Films Set Inside One Home
- Mollie Marchant
- May 6, 2020
- 3 min read
With lockdown in full effect due to Covid-19, many people are turning towards their televisions to escape the boredom that comes with staying at home all day. Inspired by these current circumstances for many people across the UK and the rest of the world, we decided to put together a short list of three films that all take place almost completely inside one home. This list has something for apartment dwellers, home owners and those sharing with a number of housemates, and with all three of the films discussed being completely different from the next, we hope that there will be something here for everyone to enjoy- though we sincerely hope that none of these films reflect your current circumstances in any way apart from them being heavily set indoors!
Rear Window
Alfred Hitchcock’s brilliant 1954 thriller follows James Stewart as photojournalist Jeff, whose thrill-seeking ways have led to him being housebound with a broken leg. Driven by his boredom to people-watching through his large apartment windows, he begins to suspect that he has been a witness to evidence of a brutal murder. Shocked by what he has seen, Jeff enlists the help of his exceptionally stylish girlfriend, played charmingly by Grace Kelly, and his witty, no-nonsense nurse Stella to help him find further evidence of his neighbour's guilt.
Taking place completely from inside his New York apartment, we see only what Jeff can see within his apartment and from his windows in this cleverly directed murder mystery. This limited view from a singular setting is what makes Rear Window feel like a particularly appropriate watch during this time, and watching it in lockdown adds a whole new level of sympathy for Jeff's situation and appreciation for the film as a whole. Even if you’ve seen this classic before, a re-watch with this new perspective is essential.
Mother!
Another film that takes place completely from within one home is Darren Aronofsky’s 2017 drama, ‘Mother!’. Starring Jennifer Lawrence and Javier Bardem as unnamed characters listed only as ‘Mother’ and ‘Him’ in the credits, this horror infused biblical retelling has become one of the most divisive films of recent times, with critics and audiences alike seeming to have either loved it or hated it.
The film is told completely from the point of view of Lawrence’s character- a young woman who just wants to make the house she’s just bought with her husband (Bardem) into “a paradise.” Her plans for a peaceful life renovating their home while her husband works on his latest novel are soon dashed out however, when another couple played by Michelle Pfeiffer and Ed Harris (credited as ‘Man’ and ‘Woman’) stumble upon their sanctuary and are invited to stay by her husband.
From here on out the film becomes an anxiety-inducing nightmare for both 'Mother' and the viewer, as more and more people start to invade and destroy her once tranquil home. Jennifer Lawrence gives one of, if not the best, performances of her career as the terrorised homeowner, and it’s remarkable that she wasn’t even nominated for an Academy Award for this gruelling performance that caused her to dislocate a rib from hyperventilating so much.
As proven from the mixed reactions to the film upon its release, Mother! certainly won’t be for everyone reading this, and it’s completely understandable if in these times of enforced reclusiveness that the last thing you want to feel right now is stressed out and claustrophobic. It’s undeniable how well this film fits the brief of this article, however, and if you’re in the mood for something stirring, Mother! might just be for you.
Black Christmas
If you’re more of a straight up horror fan, you’re sure to appreciate Bob Clark’s 1974 classic, Black Christmas. Rather than taking place in an apartment or one couple’s home like the two previous films, Black Christmas is set almost completely inside a Canadian sorority home during – as you can probably guess from the title - Christmas break.
The film stars Olivia Hussey and Margot Kidder as members of a group of sorority sisters who receive a number of strange and frightening anonymous calls to their house before they begin to go missing one by one. Though it’s much less famous than the iconic slashers that it inspired and preceded, such as John Carpenter’s Halloween, Friday the 13th and Scream, Black Christmas is a fantastically crafted horror with believable and likable characters rarely found in most slashers.
Inspired by a combination of the urban legend "The Babysitter and the Man Upstairs" and real life murders that occurred during the Christmas season in Montreal in 1943, Black Christmas is a genuinely nail biting watch that will probably have you side eyeing the phone every time it rings for the rest of your time in lockdown, and is a must watch for any horror fan.
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