There’s frequently something in the woods in horror movies, but what the filmmaker chooses to do with this is more open to question. Where’s Rose presents us with a horror-spliced family drama, looking at the impact of a brief crisis on a household. It’s somewhat slight in places, notably around the mid-section of the film, but it works hard to brings its different elements together in an imaginative way. We start with eight year old Rose (Skyler Elyse Philpot), a little girl who seems to have an imaginary friend, as many kids her age do. Bearing in mind the genre of film we’re watching, however, faint alarm bells may already be ringing. These are put aside for the moment: a family gathering is taking place to congratulate her teenage brother Eric (Ty Simpkins) on getting a college place. Everyone’s happy about this news, all except Rose, but Eric reassures her that he’ll still be looking out for her. She can call him any time. This seems to assuage her; clearly, these two are close, despite their age difference.
His celebrations proper continue with his friends, although there may be a little overcompensation on his part over some unspecified issues with girl-almost-next-door Jessica (Anneliese Judge); perhaps what we’re seeing is a relationship which never was, but this doesn’t hold him back for long and he continues to enjoy himself. Crashing out in his bedroom at home afterwards, Eric is woken up early in the morning by his mother who is in a (considerable) panic: Rose isn’t in her room. They begin to search for her but, thankfully, she turns up in the woods and all seems to be fine. Well, sort of.
Eric has strange doubts about Rose at this point. She doesn’t seem to be the same child. At first, only her brother seems to pick up on this, though the rest of the household notice enough to find her newly distant behaviour a little strange. However, as Rose seems to return to her self – or at lease to make it seem that way – Eric is far from convinced, and he’s suspicious enough to investigate the change.
Early impressions of Where’s Rose call to mind Leigh Janiak’s Honeymoon (2014), which starred a Rose of its own (Rose Leslie of Game of Thrones). The film does seem to be leading the audience in a similar direction – some mysterious Other, perhaps, out there in the woods, with much of the unsettling horror coming from the perspective of a character locked out of the mystery. There are elements of that here, though shifting the narrative to encompass an older brother and younger sister is an interesting choice, permitting the pair’s parents to figure in the plot. They remain peripheral and/or a little flat, though, with mom acting like a palimpsest of stereotypical motherly attributes (making breakfasts, cooing, scolding) and dad almost negligible. These two characters are, clearly, not priorities, though it would be interesting to consider how they could have figured more in what unfolds within their family. Still, Simpkins – in his first starring role – does a decent turn as Eric, a young man on the brink of a brand new life who finds himself in a very isolating situation, bearing the brunt of unforeseen events. Skyler Philpot, as Rose, gets an increasing amount to do with some good scenes, if a few too many ‘motionless at window’ sequences.
There are some very effective moments during the film, many of which are the more subtle aspects, which provoke more questions than the admittedly small number of jump-cuts. There are some lulls in the plot progression midway through, despite the film’s tight run time, but as the film moves towards a conclusion, there’s a big leap in terms of ambition and imagination. This potentially leads to a reconsideration of what came before, which works and, although a few questions remain, this works too. There’s a lot to be said for a filmmaker ready to take a gamble in order to deliver a slick, thoughtful finale and considered as a whole, John Mathis’s writing/direction here pays off. Where’s Rose is, ultimately, a sad, disturbing, horror-infused family story.
Where’s Rose (2021) will screen as part of the Raindance Film Festival on November 1st, 2021. For more information, please click here.