Sean Parker
There’s been a lot of discussion about the trolley problem recently. You know, the moral v. ethical quandary that has no black-and-white answer. A sort of Kobayashi Maru for my fellow Star Trek fans, where no matter the decision, loss is inevitable, and the true measure for examination is in the aftermath of events. The stark gravity of Thordur Palsson’s feature debut, The Damned, is derived from a similar consideration as we follow a small Icelandic fishing village through a particularly brutal winter in the 1800s. When a large sailing vessel runs aground off the village’s coast, the group is left to decide the fate of the travelers. Helping them puts the village’s dwindling rations at risk, whereas leaving them to die comes with a burden of guilt and insufferable dread, and possibly something supernatural, too.
It’s worth noting how impressive and visually striking The Damned’s visual artistry is from its first frame. It may be January, but you can feel the cold sea air emanating from Palsson’s desolate winter folktale. The barren, isolative elements of the bright, snowy landscape during the daytime suggest the futility of leaving the harsh snow-filled desert. On the other side, the long and abysmally cold, dark nights invite the psychology of nyctophobia to unsettle and disturb the mind. The Damned becomes a double-sided coin that reminds the group how perilous their situation is while establishing an unforgiving landscape, and the cinematography gorgeously frames it.
The Damned follows Odessa Young’s Eva, a widow left to lead the village’s fishermen through this season after losing her husband to the sea during the previous winter. She’s inherited the village’s only boat, so she makes the decisions. The debate is quickly put to rest when the shipwreck is seen from their location. As it stands, the residents may have barely enough to make it through the season. The conundrum is that feeding everyone will result in everyone’s death. So, it’s decided that they do nothing. When Eva encounters a barrel of food washed up on their shore, she leads an expedition out to the rocks to find more, only to discover survivors who’ve made it through the first night. The group suffers casualties as the survivors fight for spots on the boat, and the consequences of the villagers’ decision are seen up close.
The next day, bodies begin to wash upon the shore. Coffins are facilitated to store the bodies, and crosses are strewn around them, but the ground is too cold to provide a proper burial. With the constant reminder of death upon their shore, The Damned grows darker. Tales of a demonic mythological force begin permeating the subconsciousness’ of the survivors, and Eva becomes considerably haunted from witnessing death so up close. The calling card of this mystical beast to invade the minds of the guilt-ridden and turn everyone against one another seems self-fulfilling. But, as circumstances begin growing more dire and food goes missing, the remaining villagers start believing in the supernatural entity and forcing them to feel remorse for an impossible choice that will have you asking which group were the lucky ones and which ones are actually The Damned.
An agonizing, dread-soaked guttural response to survivor’s guilt, trauma, and moral responsibility, The Damned challenges the ideas of black-and-white choices by firmly planting itself in the gray. The film plays with light with thematic intent, granting the characters some form of relief through the days as they begin fearing the quiet nights. Eva’s convictional resolve starts deteriorating as inexplicable events begin occurring. Eva goes from being staunchly against the belief that something else is out there until she begins experiencing the supernatural herself.
Many have criticized the ending of the film, and to that end, I understand. When watching The Damned, the final reveal plays like a retcon of events. However, if you consider the psychology of the characters, it makes perfect sense. There’s more to consider in Eva’s backstory with the villagers than we’re thinking about. While it isn’t an enjoyable ending, and Palsson could have done more to emphasize why this climax is necessary, the finale accounts for the widow’s plight and the contentious anger of Eva’s virtually uncontested decision regarding the shipwreck. Still, this reveal is used to view the characters from an alternate perspective on additional viewings, and I do think The Damned is worth multiple watches.
Regardless of how you feel about the end of The Damned, it remains a beautiful film from start to finish. Many will draw comparisons to films in the Eggers filmography, and with its dour tone, Nordic influence, and Lovecraftian inferences, it should. This feels like a natural film to follow Nosferatu into the new year, and people may want to make a double feature out of it. Palsson’s film is a gripping and atmospheric horror drama with imaginative shots that will take your breath away. The Damned is a magnificent horror experience to usher in the new year.
The Damned is now playing in American theaters and begins playing in UK and Irish cinemas on January 10.
The Damned | Official Trailer (HD) | Vertical
The Damned, an ominous and chilling thriller, follows Eve and her crew as they come across a shipwreck and are faced with the moral dilemma to either help, or prioritize their own survival.
