Joely Richardson leads Little Bone Lodge, the latest film from Matthias Hoene, a name probably best known for Cockneys vs Zombies. Whereas that film was a b-movie blend of action, gangster film, comedy, and zombies, Little Bone Lodge could not be more different. Set during a storm on a remote farm, Little Bone Lodge sees one mother go to extreme lengths to hold onto her family.
Little Bone Lodge opens fairly sweetly. Mama (Richardson) and her teenage daughter Maisy (Sadie Soverall) eat cake and celebrate Pa’s (Roger Ajogbe) Birthday. Their festivities are suddenly interrupted by banging on the door and hysterical screaming from a young man outside. Against her better judgement, Mama opens the door and is greeted by a man, Matty (Harry Cadby), and the injured body of his brother Jack (Neil Linpow, who also wrote the script). Mama and Maisy offer the two men sanctuary and medical aid, but it soon becomes clear that the men are not as honest as they are pretending to be.
The set-up is a familiar one, but Hoene puts in time to subvert viewer expectations. Mama herself is a perfect example, she is far from the typical female character within this scenario. She is strong, feisty, and friendly, and utilises her motherly ways to get the invaders onside. Richardson’s performance is both fierce and soft, and the personification of a mother that will do everything to save her child. She effortlessly switches from action heroine to cuddly matriarch, with just a hint of intrigue to keep the viewer guessing who exactly Mama is.
Both the storm and remote setting isolate the story and the characters, creating an oppressive atmospheric backdrop to proceedings. As Little Bone Lodge forges forward, the intensity of this backdrop begins to permeate into the main narrative.
With the storm swelling around them, the characters’ true selves are unleashed, distorting the previous status quo. The viewer finds themselves in several morality based quandaries, with Linpow’s script presenting a complex depth of layers. The further the film goes, the more layers are peeled back, stirring up complicated feelings.
A standout from Lipnow’s script and the performances of the cast is the intricate interlacing and mirroring of the two familial factions. On one hand you have brothers Matty and Jack. The two do not have a maternal presence in their lives and this has affected both of them in different ways. On the other side is Mama and Maisy; the two are very close, stiflingly so for Maisy, but there is a reason that Mama clings so tightly. She lost a son years ago and has never quite dealt with that loss. Watching the motherless brothers go head-to-head with the son-less mother is a fascinating prospect. In an odd way, both sides are screaming out for comfort from the other, but as lines are drawn, a bitter battle for survival wins out.
As far removed from the brash British silliness of Cockneys vs Zombies as you could ever imagine, Little Bone Lodge is a storm of swelling emotions, family secrets, and a classic example of nature versus nurture. Led by a complex and spirited performance by Joely Richardson, Little Bone Lodge is a great example of home invasion done right.
Little Bone Lodge
Summary
Mothers, sons, and the ties that bind form the central thesis to Matthias Hoene’s Little Bone Lodge, a film with a fair few tricks hiding up its sleeve.
Little Bone Lodge was reviewed at FrightFest Glasgow 2023.
