''The Forgotten'' is a 2014 British

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit physical or psychological fear in its viewers. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with Transgressive art, transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements of the genre include Mo ...

, helmed by Oliver Frampton in his

directorial debut This is a list of film directorial debuts in chronological order. The films and dates referred to are a director's first commercial cinematic release. Many filmmakers have directed works which were not commercially released, for example early work ...

, that premiered on 22 August 2014 at FrightFest, featuring a teenage protagonist who becomes the focus of attention of a ghost.

Plot

Tommy (Clem Tibber) is a fourteen-year-old boy who goes to live with his father Mark (

Shaun Dingwall Shaun Dingwall (born 21 February 1970) is a British actor. He has appeared in the BBC series ''Noughts and Crosses'', the BAFTA and EMMY award-winning film '' Responsible Child'' (2019) and the Netflix series '' Top Boy''. His other credits inclu ...

) after his mother has a

nervous breakdown A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness, a mental health condition, or a psychiatric disability, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. A mental disorder is ...

. Dismayed upon learning that his father is now a

squatter Squatting is the action of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land or a building (usually residential) that the squatter does not Land ownership and tenure, own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use. The United Nations estima ...

in an empty

council estate Public housing in the United Kingdom, also known as council housing or social housing, provided the majority of rented accommodation until 2011, when the number of households in private rental housing surpassed the number in social housing. D ...

destined for demolition, he nonetheless tries to make the best of it. Tommy is awoken each night by strange noises and on one occasion, finds that he and all of his belongings have been dragged from one side of the room to the other. Growing ever more terrified, Tommy tries to talk to his father but finds him becoming ever more bizarre and disturbing in behaviour.

Cast

*Clem Tibber as Tommy *

as Mark *

Elarica Gallacher Elarica Johnson (or Gallacher; born 21 August 1989) is a British actress and model. On television, she is known for her roles in the Starz drama ''P-Valley'' (2020–2022) and the Sky Atlantic fantasy series ''A Discovery of Witches'' (2018). ...

as Carmen * James Doherty as Martin *

Lyndsey Marshal Lyndsey Marshal (born 16 June 1978) is an English actress best known for her performance in '' The Hours'', as the recurring character Cleopatra on HBO's ''Rome'', and as Lady Sarah Hill in BBC period drama '' Garrow's Law''. Biography Marshal ...

as Sarah *Lee Arnold as Police Officer *Isaura Barbé-Brown as Carmen's Mother *James Capel as Ian Wilson *Luke Kidd as Youth *Carys Lewis as Nurse *Jennifer Matter as Candy *Katherine Mount as Anna *Conor Short as Adam

Reception

''SciFiNow'' wrote a mostly positive review, writing "There are one or two hiccups along the way, and the loose ends are all tied up a little too neatly to bring about the finale, but it’s a strong finish for a film that slowly finds its way under your skin. Genuinely affecting and chilling, this is an impressive and mournful debut." The ''

Screen Daily ''Screen International'' is a British film magazine covering the international film business. It is published by Media Business Insight, a British B2B media company which also owned '' Broadcast''. The magazine is primarily aimed at those involv ...

'' was also mixed in their review, stating "The haunted, empty flat – with its red walls and deep shadows – is an impressive locale, but the ghost story element is a little too ordinary to leave a lasting impression." ''Nerdly'' wrote a similar opinion, ultimately saying that the movie "is a fantastic British horror movie that, even with its flaws, should be seen by all and marks director Oliver Frampton and writer James Hall as ones to watch."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Forgotten, The (2014 film) 2014 horror films 2014 films British supernatural horror films 2014 directorial debut films Films about squatting 2010s English-language films 2010s British films English-language horror films