Aging is a mortal terror we see play out on our faces every day. Anubys Lopez’s sophomore film Aged has taken the slowly creeping fear of our emerging gray hairs or fading memories and spun it into a disturbing take on aging and caregiving in this psychological slow burn. Aging at its apex means dementia or worse, which burdens one of our main characters in the film; other times it’s the aches and pains we suffer daily, and who knows where they come from, given the unnerving devices behind this bodily nightmare… Through supernatural and ominous means, Lopez crafts a body horror picture that may take a few familiar tropes to play with, but doesn’t follow them through to a cliché finish. Taking on our mortality and beyond, Lopez creates a haunted house story built around our own crumbling vitality, and the ways we try to escape it.
Opening to bright scenes of rural landscapes and sizzling powerlines, we arrive at a quiet coffee shop to Charles Bloom (Dave McClain), anxiously awaiting the arrival of Veronica Grey (Morgan Boss-Maltais) for a casual but much needed job interview as a caregiver for his ailing mother. Charles has cared for his mother, who is suffering with dementia, for years, but lately things are more difficult and he can’t seem to find a good fit for a full-time caregiver. He understands the monumental ask it would be for Veronica to come on full-time, and says this would be only temporary, as he’s desperate and she came highly recommended. He asks her to think on it, leaving a hundred-dollar bill on the table as incentive. This seems to be enough convincing, as Veronica provides a cover story to her mother, packs a bag, and is off with Charles – and his mountains of reassurance that they will take care of her – to her new temporary residence.
Savoring beautiful camerawork over the countryside with saturated light and colors to an old crackling operatic soundtrack, the two travel across pastoral landscapes until finally reaching the house. Veronica’s arrival is met with dread or hesitance as their gardener, Joe (Adonis Ringo), face frozen in fear, can only stare as she arrives, cutting himself in his distraction. Charles seems unfazed and brings Veronica into the house for lunch and to meet Mrs. Bloom (Carla Kidd), but immediately Veronica seems uneasy, finding photos with faces scratched out as she slowly goes through the house. Mrs. Bloom is initially as unfriendly as her home, immediately defensive of her illness, critical of her son, and suspicious of Veronica’s warm welcome as being a disingenuous one.
Lunch seems to bring about a more social scene as Mrs. Bloom gets to know Veronica better: where she’s from, her upbringing, while slightly frowning on her giving up on her Catholic faith. Mrs. Bloom seems so excited by Veronica that she suddenly bursts forth with the idea of her staying indefinitely, but Charles moves the conversation on, whilst Veronica laments having no cell service (classic) and will have to use the landline. While leaving a message for her mother, Veronica’s startled to see an emptied bag of what looks like blood in one of the rooms before Charles startles her, saying Mrs. Bloom is asking for her, being certain to shut the door behind him. Veronica is given a more “modest” wardrobe from times past and a list of chores to begin working on, and with a bell to ring for her needs, Mrs. Bloom dismisses her. In her exploration, Veronica finds a door in the house that’s locked and discovers Charles has left for the day, leaving Mrs. Bloom to show her her sleeping arrangements. Don’t make a mess, but do feel at home.
What follows is a strange mix of body horror, illness and haunting that meshes in a horrendous way. Performances are solid all around, with each cast member doing their best in their eclectic roles. On the other hand, the weathered home where it was shot, a snapping oldies soundtrack emphasized by a tense score, and sinister manner in which our antagonists go about their work is effective at creating atmospheric tension and rooting us in an antiquated space. The haunting aspect of this piece seems to center around memory, and aspects of The Creeping and The Visit can be seen as we deal with illness and mystery surrounding the hosting family, and specters that could be attributed either to the paranormal or an old woman’s failing mind. However, it’s the transformation of our heroine that’s the most disturbing revelation to watch, even if the change is slow. Lopez’s surprising conclusion diverts away from some of the tired tropes I was expecting after a lead up that had some common themes among films focusing on this topic. With little special or practical effects either, we rely almost solely on the camera and our performers to create the horror as this story burns steady with supernatural tricks that don’t break the bank.
By all accounts it seems the second film by Lopez is a more certain piece than his debut, creating a slow burning psychological thriller to mock the ticking clock. While you may be able to see what Aged is getting at early on, unique twists give the story life and steer it away from what could have been the predictable. It’s a well told story paying homage to our aging selves and how age slowly cages us like animals. But with all said and done, I keep circling back to the film’s opening quote and what it could have meant: “We all have a Monster within; the difference is in degree, not in kind.” It’s a quote from Douglas Preston from the true crime thriller The Monster of Florence that ends up leaving us with more to think about: what monsters we witnessed, and what we might carry in ourselves. With this story in mind, this relates to me that we all have baggage and demons we endure, with that weight growing greater with time and age; what separates us here is how we handle these monsters, and in this case, how we try to survive them.
Aged (2023) is available now on all major streaming services.