It’s December 2nd and day 2 of our Awful Advent 25 Days of Christmas Horror feature. Behind today’s door is British horror Salvage from 2009. This is a movie actually set on Christmas eve so perfectly fitting for the feature. It looks as though it was filmed in the middle of summer, however. I definitely wouldn’t say it has that undeniable Xmas vibe. Despite this, it does fit the bill and often flies under the radar.
Set on the Wirral in England, UK. Salvage tells the story of Beth, Jodie and Kieran. Something horrifying is happening on their street. Nobody knows what is happening but the neighbours are dying and the place is on lockdown. We follow Beth as she attempts to survive against the unidentified threat. All while saving her daughter in the process.
Taking in place in a small cul-de-sac, the action is tense and features a few decent scares. While maybe not the most obvious Christmas horror in the world. We have Christmas Trees, presents, turkeys and people arguing. You can’t get more Christmas than that, right?
Suspenseful British Horror
Salvage came about as part of a celebration of Liverpool’s 2008 EU City of Culture status. Written by the duo of Colin O’Donnell and Alan Patterson and directed by Lawrence Gough. It’s a tense and claustrophobic low budget horror movie. Focusing on a very small cast of characters. The movie presents Beth and Kieran with an unknown threat. Playing on certain bigoted views doing the rounds at the time. Kieran believes it is terrorism. Beth thinks this suggestion is ridiculous. The movie never actually reveals the truth until near the end. Naturally, it is far more insane than the pair could have imagined.
Doing a nice job of setting up motivation for our hero Beth. Jodie is furious at her mother and is staying with a neighbour. Special forces are ordering everyone to stay indoors. Beth, however, is concerned for her daughter. She has to find a way to get to her neighbour’s house so she can be with Jodie. The only problem is that the neighbours live across the street. How will Beth get there? There are soldiers everywhere. Combine this with the unknown threat to Beth and Kieran and you have the makings of some nice suspense. Early moments of the movie are extremely tense and very atmospheric.
A Likeable Protagonist
Beth, despite her flaws, is incredibly likeable and you want to see her succeed. Her motivations make perfect sense. You never find yourself wondering why she is doing this or why didn’t she do that. She believes her daughter is in danger and she will do anything to save her. While doing this, she finds tremendous strength and resolve. As far as she is concerned, nothing will stand in her way. It’s a fantastic horror representation of the mama bear phenomenon. I am sure many women can attest to that feeling of protection for their children. Rarely in a horror movie like this do the protagonists have such a well defined motivation.
The fact that Beth and Jodie’s relationship is so fractured adds to the drama. Beth feels like she has already failed Jodie and does not want to do it again. Having had her while she was studying to become a lawyer. Beth has placed her career ahead of her relationships. Her ex-husband divorced her due to this and Jodie now resents her. Beth is less of a bad mum and more just lacking in a natural maternal nature. She clearly loves her daughter, though, and will do anything for her. This fractured mother daughter relationship leads to some interesting moments. One in particular, later in the movie, is very impactful. It’s an interesting dynamic and feels different from the usual horror fodder.
The small cul-de-sac that hosts the action is a bit of a double edged sword. The houses being close together keeps the action contained. Beth moves through some of the neighbour’s houses and you never know what she will find. This works to add an extra sense of tension. Despite this, the location is undeniably boring and there is a distinct sense of rinse and repeat. Each scene feels similar to the last. Later revelations will make you wonder why the events stayed contained to the small area. When viewed as a complete picture, it really makes no sense.
Fantastic Acting
Wow, Neve McIntosh is on fire in this movie. What a brilliant performance. She is thoroughly convincing as the regretful absent mum desperate to save her child. Beth spends much of the movie covered in dirt and exhausted. She goes crawling around gardens and throwing herself over fences. Swinging pokers and climbing ladders.
All in all, she generally gets very beat up and very dirty. It’s one of my favourite British horror movie performances. From being an angry and conflicted person right down to going full on action heroine mode. Neve is totally invested and genuinely captivating. I think it is fair to say that without her performance this movie would barely be worth a watch.
Shaun Dooley as Kieran is also fantastic. He puts on a nuanced performance. Dooley makes Kieran entirely believable for his sleaziness and smarm. Kieran develops as the movie goes on and becomes fairly likeable. This is mostly down to Dooley’s portrayal as Kieran isn’t a sympathetic character. Scenes where he Kieran is displaying emotion are perfectly convincing.
One scene, in particular, is noteworthy for just how effective it is. Linzey Cocker as Jodie puts on a very realistic performance. I have to point out that she looks way too old to be playing the 14 year old character. Cocker was in her 20s here and it shows. Still, that’s not her fault. There is a bit of a soap opera realism to the way she plays the character. You really feel her resentment when she shouts at Beth. Her Salford accent helps with that as well.
Soooo British
A quick thing I should point out here is the dialogue. Americans are going to struggle with some it. Hell, I did and I am Welsh, albeit with a very non-Welsh accent. I have family from the North of England. I should be used to this. Well, at least a little. It is an absolute smorgasbord of random British accents. Beth has a thick Scottish accent. Jodie is from Manchester. One of the special forces characters has an ultra thick Liverpool accent. Dooley seems to be from Yorkshire.
Beth is generally fine and most people will get a kick out of her aggressive Scottish tinged cussing. Jodie is easy to understand but, again, has a very thick accent. The special forces dude later in the movie can be difficult in parts. It’s Dooley that posed the most issues for me, however. Not so much because of his accent but because of his pitch and the volume he talks at. I missed big chunks of what he was saying due to this. Having watched this movie a good few times, I miss something every viewing. It doesn’t help that there is a big disparity between loud sounds and voices. People who struggle with understanding accents may have a hard time here.
Inconsistent and, Ultimately, Disappointing
The problem with Salvage and the reason for the score is the inconsistency. It starts with an intriguing scenario and builds tension incredibly well. Unfortunately, it just doesn’t manage to maintain it. It actually descends into farce as the movie goes on. The once promising plot is replaced by an action packed final 20 minutes. This would normally be fine but the action feels pointless. The area is so small that there is no reason it would be contained there. Things start happening that just feel completely forced to up the ante. It also has a tendency to set up one story before completely abandoning it for another. It is very inconsistent.
Unfortunately, that is not where the issues end. Despite how good some of the earlier practical stuff had looked. Later scenes feature terrible effects. Said awful effects combine with some absolutely silly cinematography. Certain shots are actually comical and look ridiculous. It’s very disappointing and the earlier hope of the movie is lost. One scene in particular witnessed from Beth’s perspective is particularly awful.
Many of the scenes make no sense. There are plot holes everywhere. Things happen with no explanation and the writing is very sloppy. A few effective scenes toward the end don’t make up for the more ridiculous ones. A few things happen that are bound to have the audience asking “WTF?”.
The slow burn nature of the early part of the movie may put a few people off. People who enjoy a gradual build up of tension may really enjoy it, however. The early part of the movie hints at something fantastic. Despite that, the last 20 minutes betray that promise entirely.
Should You Watch Salvage?
If you are looking for a fairly exciting horror movie with a Christmas theme then give Salvage a watch. It is, however, too inconsistent and uneven to truly recommend. Fantastic acting from Neve McIntosh isn’t enough to overcome some of the silliness and poor writing. If you don’t scrutinise the plot too much, you may really enjoy it. But Salvage is a flawed movie overall with just a few high points.