Amulet (film)

Did You Know?

• The film was announced in April 2018 under the original title Outside.
• Production began in autumn 2018.

Plot

Ex-soldier Tomaz unearths an amulet at an outpost in the woods, the site where he was stationed in his former country before escaping to London. He has flashbacks to that time and to Miriam, a woman whose life he spared after catching her trying to cross the border. In London, Tomaz works as a day labourer and sleeps in a derelict building with other refugees. When the building is set on fire, he flees and collapses in an alleyway, where Sister Claire, a nun, discovers him.

After visiting him in hospital, she takes him to a house, explaining that a woman named Magda needs help caring for her dying mother. As Sister Claire leaves, she throws Tomaz's money into a sewer. Magda initially resists Tomaz's presence, but they grow accustomed to each other. While repairing pipes, Tomaz finds a live albino bat clogging the toilet; he kills it after being bitten.

He eventually sees Magda's mother imprisoned in the attic; the mother attacks Magda, and Tomaz becomes protective. He takes Magda dancing. Returning home, they witness the mother giving birth to a bat-like creature. Tomaz consults Sister Claire, who says the mother is a demon and that she and Magda have been charged with containing it.

Tomaz returns to stab the demon, but it attacks him until Magda intervenes. A flashback reveals that Tomaz, after developing a crush on Miriam, chased and raped her when she tried to leave to reunite with her daughter.

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating based on reviews, with an average rating. The critics consensus reads: 'If its chilly sense of dread never quite becomes spine-tingling terror, Amulet remains smart, solidly disquieting fun for genre fans seeking slow-building horror.' David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter called the film 'smart and stylish' and noted that Garai steadily builds suspense while keeping intentions enigmatic until the final act. Justin Chang of Fresh Air described it as an 'intensely creepy supernatural freakout' and praised Garai's writing and direction. Mark Kermode selected it as his film of the week on Kermode and Mayo's Film Review.