The Inhabitant - Horror Movie with Leslie Bibb and Odessa A'zion - Review: "The Borden family curse"

The Inhabitant is a 2022 horror movie written and directed by Jerren Lauder, starring Odessa A’zion, Leslie Bibb and Dermot Mulroney.

A Lizzie Borden urban legend inspires to create a movie that does not live up to expectations.

Premise

Tara is simply trying to get by, going to high school, aspiring to attend Stanford, and dealing with her issues. However, her parents are acting strangely distant. When a series of horrible axe killings take place in the neighborhood, Tara starts having terrifying visions, which leads her to question her own sanity and her family lineage.

Movie Review

There are movies that simply do not work. And we can go about analyzing why, because the lead actors Odessa A’zion, Leslie Bibb and Durmont Mulroney do their best with what they are given to work with. Therein lies the problem with this film, ‘The Inhabitant’ does not have much substance, and it does not offer more than a film that can be summarized as a long “minute counter” viewing experience, while we waiting to find out if Tara (A’zion) is in fact possessed by the spirit of the infamous alleged killer Lizzie Borden, or if she isn’t.

Just to recap on who Lizzie Borden was. She lived in Massachusetts at the end of XVIII, and was the only suspect in the axe murders of her father and stepmother. She became a media phenomenon and was acquitted, but ended up living as a recluse in her home town. The perfect fodder for urban myths and legends, and of course the foundation for the premise in this movie, namely that Lizzie Borden’s spirit still haunts and lingers around on a yearly basis, taking possession women making them commit terrifying acts.

The Inhabitant is a pastime horror movie that counts on limited resources, and is sustained by the talented cast, who play their parts within the run-of-the-mill screenplay parameters. The photography is quotidian, as are the effects, and the screenplay is quite streamline (read predictable).… One would wish for some more imaginative takes and script. Sure, there are some atmospherics to set the mood, the mandatory air of eeriness, in great part thanks to the ominous score, which, comment aside, seems inspired by Vangelis, and the whispering voice of the spirit and the distorted murmurings are as in many a horror movie, but they are there fulfilling their purpose of creating an ambiance of horror.

Then again, we gather that the producers had no grand intentions with this feature. As a cinematic piece it neither stands out nor does it have any interesting scenes or sequences that will stay in our mind’s eye. All in all, we can only say that this movie was rather disappointing.

We will not give away what happens, nor come with spoilers here. We will simply say that if you plan to watch this film, it might be best not to expect a film that will go down in the annals of horror movie wonders.