A One Mann’s Movies review of “Lyvia’s House” (2024).
I occasionally get sent screeners for upcoming film releases and “Lyvia’s House” is one of those. Directed by the Greek director Niko Volonakis, the film will be released exclusively in the US on the ‘Vudu/Fandango at Home’ and local cable & satellite providers on October 1. Additional platforms including iTunes/Apple TV, Amazon Prime Video and Google Play (and presumably international availability) will follow on October 15.
Some of these low-budget indie films I get sent to review are total schlocky dross. But this one proved to be an exception…. in many departments it has a lot of merit. But it also has some real irritations.
Bob the Movie Man Rating:
Plot Summary:
Inspired by true events, Lyvia’s House follows young journalist Tara Manning (Tara Nichol Caldwell), who recently moved with her new lover Johnny (Joshua Malekos) into the former home of infamous Italian artist, Lyvia (also Nichol Caldwell), who mysteriously vanished months earlier. The locals talk of the lovely, reclusive Lyvia, but are dismissive when pressed. Tara soon begins to wonder if Lyvia’s disappearance is somehow connected to murders that took place in the area twenty years earlier.
Certification:
UK: ’15’; US: ‘R’. (As this is a pre-release it’s not yet classified but I would estimate it will be a 15/R due to language and violence.)
Talent:
Starring: Tara Nichol Caldwell, Joshua Malekos, Danielle Octavien, Ann Marie Gideon, Andrew Diego, Deborah Tucker, Pete Davis, Brit Zane, Cami Oh.
Directed by: Niko Volonakis.
Written by: Patricia V. Davis.
Running Time: 1h 56m.
“Lyvia’s House” Summary:
Positives:
- Model turned actress Tara Nichol Caldwell, in her debut feature, really impresses.
- The cinematography (by Cody Martin, also in his debut feature) is REALLY impressive.
- The editing (by director) Niko Volonakis keeps you on your toes.
Negatives:
- The music. Far too much and far too intrusive.
- The story is nothing special and in the “seen it all before” bracket.
- A weak finale.
Review of “Lyvia’s House”:
A terrific debut performance by Tara Nichol Caldwell
For once in a ‘murder mystery/thriller’ the lead female has to do more than just run around screaming. As our heroine Tara, debut performer Tara Nichol Caldwell has to wring terror, confusion, and hurt out of the plot. And Nichol Caldwell does that extremely well. Not only is she beautiful and perfectly poised (a final shot, with the actress sitting on the house roof is stunning) but she is also extremely sexy. I may be a bit of a perv, but given we have two good-looking people in a film of this type, I was hoping for more of a sex scene than the brief ‘naked in the shower sex’ that we got. Outside of that, it’s all very ‘1940’s fades to shadowy movements’ stuff.
Elsewhere, some of the supporting acts were also pretty good including Ann Marie Gideon as the friendly Post Office owner Mary Anne and Andrew Diego (also in his debut) as the creepy ‘village idiot’ Georgie Smalls.
It’s a pretty well-worn story.
The story is really nothing to write home about…. about a spate of historical serial killings that appear to be repeating again. If you can’t see where this is going fairly early on, then you really should have been paying more attention! Despite that, the script generally engages you: it introduces you to the quirky locals; introduces red herrings to keep you on your toes; adds the occasional brutal murder and even drops in a bit of incest at one point to earn it its undoubted ‘R’ certificate.
But, for me, there felt to be rather too much talky-talk-talk in the house between Tara and Johnny which made some of these scenes drag a bit. I’d have generally taken my editing knife out and lost about 10 to 15 minutes of the film.
And, sorry, but the finale is a bit of an “oh!” let down.
The cinematography is just… wow!
For a film of this type I was really blown away by the cinematography by first timer Cody Martin. Everything about it – the framing, the colour palette, the lighting was just spot on. Some scenes just made me go “Wow”! Case in point, where Tara is walking around the house at night lit solely by the light of a flickering open fire. Hopefully, this film will come to the attention of some bigger Hollywood directors and they will give Mr Martin a shot at the big time. Based on this, he really deserves it.
Cut into the action, often between scenes, are pictures of nature and rural life progressing as normal, which work really well. In general, the editing (by the director himself) is pretty good, keeping you on your toes as we zip from current time to flashback, sometimes subliminally.
But… argggh… the music!
On the BBC show “Little Britain”, David Walliams used to cruelly take the piss of the late-lamented actor Dennis Waterman, portraying him as a tiny little man who would insist on writing the theme song for the shows he starred in. “Write the theme toon, sing the theme toon…” he’d go. (e.g. see here). I was reminded of that here, since the Greek Niko Volonakis not only directs the film, edits the film and acts as a camera operator on the film but he also composed the film’s music.
Now, it’s not that the added electronic music is bad per se… in fact, in many places, I thought it was very good. However, there is FAR FAR too much of it. EVERY…. SINGLE… SCENE!!! It drones on and on in the background like some dying death-chant of a guru drowning in the village well! The great composers – Williams, Goldsmith, Horner, Korngold – they all knew when to include music but more importantly when to shut the fuck up and let the dialogue stand alone. Silence is sometimes golden… but there was none of it to be found in this film. For me, this was the biggest negative aspect of the whole film.
Summary Thoughts on “Lyvia’s House”
I really wasn’t expecting too much from this film, but I was actually pleasantly surprised. It undoubtedly has some rough edges, and the odd bit of amateurish acting to boot, but you could do far worse than give this a try when it appears on your screens in October.
Where to Watch it (Powered by Justwatch)
Not yet on the Justwatch database. I will update the post nearer the release time.
Trailer for “Lyvia’s House”:
The trailer is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K15ImhAilQs .
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