A Cure For Wellness (2016)

This is my first review in almost 6 months because I got all up in my feelings and decided that no one read or cared about my reviews. I have concluded that even if no one ever reads them, I enjoy writing them, so I intend on writing.
In my absence I have watched many movies, mostly with the watch parties on Twitter.

This movie I watched with #FrightClub (I included the hashtag in case anyone wanted to join us, it's awfully good fun and has the bonus of not having to pick your own movie if you're indecisive like I am).

I went into this movie knowing very little about what it was about. I remember seeing the trailer at some point in my endless scrolling of streaming services while trying to pick a movie.

Dane DeHaan plays Lockhart, a shrewd Wall Street executive who is tasked to bring back fellow businessman Pembroke from a mysterious sanitarium in the Swiss Alps. Once he arrives he is faced with mysterious circumstances that lead him to unravel the many secrets that the sanitarium is keeping.

Director Gore Verbinski transports us to the beautiful landscape of the Swiss Alps, the castle that the film is mostly shot in is breathtaking. But it's not just the picturesque landscape that makes this movie beautiful, Bojan Bazelli (the cinematographer) gives us phenomenal visuals all throughout the film. The camera work in each scene is impeccable and really helps drive the story along.

The story is complex. The sanatorium houses rich people who leave their busy lives to come to this wellness retreat to get well. While there, Dr Volmer (played by Jason Isaacs) claims that the aquifer under the castle produces water with restorative properties and encourages the residents to drink and bathe in the water as much as possible.
When Lockhart arrives to collect Pembroke he is suspiciously given the run around by staff and Dr Volmer and is subsequently the victim of an accident that leads him to be a resident himself. He goes about uncovering all the secrets that The Institute has hidden away.

I think the thing that I enjoyed about this psychological horror was that perfect combination of great direction, great actors, a great script and fantastic cinematography.

I will definitely watch this one again, if only for the foreshadowing that I missed on my first watch through. I hope you'll give it a watch too.

I give this one 4 1/2 eels out of 5

Happy Horrors my friends.