Horror Movie Review: Lost Gully Road (2017)

Creating atmosphere, delivering a few moments of tension and having an good turn from lead actress Adele Perovic, Lost Gully Road could have been great. However, it squanders all of that with a bland story that leaves far too many questions unanswered to be satisfying.

Perovic plays Lucy, a young woman who goes to stay at a remote cabin in the woods to wait for sister. Why? Well, through phone calls to her sister it seems as though they may have stolen a sum of money from someone. A man. Who that man is in relation to the pair isn’t ever answered. Is it a loan-shark? An ex-husband/boyfriend? A boss? All we know is that Lucy needs to stay hidden for an indeterminate amount of time, can’t use her phone or go on the internet or she might be found.

All of these instructions come from her sister who constantly warns Lucy that they can’t rouse ‘suspicion’ by not following the plan. It’s all very vague and while the set-up is different for the ‘cabin the woods’ horror setting, it amounts to the same thing. Ghostly-goings on.

In that regard, Lost Gully Road does little fresh as Lucy begins to experience strange events that have her questioning her sanity. This is augmented by her need to take medication for something the film doesn’t want to explain. As you can see, there is a lot of filling in the blanks. Which might not be a problem if the payoff was worthwhile and answered the questions we have. It doesn’t, instead ramping up the ghostliness and then ending Lucy’s story off-screen.

We get a final shot of the cabin owner who acknowledges knowing what was going on in the cabin but that doesn’t answer just what WAS going on. It’s pretty frustrating and ensures this is nothing but a mostly forgettable horror flick.

The good things about it is the performance of Adele Perovic. She has to hold the story together on her own for the most part and she does well. The only flaw in her character is the usual one you find in movies like this. Why does she stay in the cabin as things get worse and worse? The film suggests it’s because her life would be at risk if she is found but as that plot point is vague, it’s hard to really understand just how much trouble she is in.

The film also does have some scenes and sequences that allow tension to grow and leave you with an uneasy feeling. The cabin is an isolated place and it feels so, the sound effects and music adding a nice feeling of dread. It’s little touches that stop Lost Gully Road being a complete waste of time.

Just don’t expect to come out wowed and you might enjoy it.