The Mortuary Assistant is the second indie horror movie based on a small video game this year looking to find an audience. Rebecca Owens (Willa Holland, Arrow) has just finished her internship and has been offered a position at a mortuary. Over the course of the night, she learns dark secrets tied to her past and her future.
When it comes to films set in a funeral home, there are certain things to expect. Chances are, there is going to be plenty of jump scares, ruminations on death, and gore. (Thankfully, there are no quirky characters.) The main goal is to not worry so much about overusing the tropes of the genre; it is more about the delivery of these familiar moments.
The Mortuary Assistant never shies away from blood. The film opens with an embalming with some great special effects that look and sound disgusting. Shockingly, there are not many autopsy scenes. This is where the creature effects take over as the dead bodies make frightening faces. The Big Bad is also one of the creepiest seen from this sub-genre.
The setting is used to maximum effect, being both claustrophobic and sprawling at the same time. It causes a sense of confusion that sometimes does a little more than needed. Instead of creating the tension of not knowing where you are at, it leads to questions of how one location relates to another. It is never distracting, however.
The plot is a basic possession story with the added twist of Rebecca aware that demons are trying to take over her body. Her battle is the driving force in The Mortuary Assistant. As the night continues, Rebecca’s backstory becomes more fleshed out. Lore is also introduced that seems important, but is explained vaguely. It becomes a little hard to follow. Things seem to be tied up in a nice bow in an ending that seems to be a commentary on Rebecca’s addiction. But the finale is an unintentionally funny moment that blows that theory out of the water.
The Mortuary Assistant opens in theaters February, Friday the 13th.