REVIEW #98 Midnight Mass (2021)

Midnight Mass is a limited series on Netflix, created by Mike Flanagan. When a new priest arrives on Crockett Island and miracles start happening more and more frequently the residents find a deeper love for faith. However what comes with these miracles are strange disappearances and occurrences across the island.

CAST & THE ACTING 

I think the acting was good across the entire cast, each character was portrayed convincingly and their performances really set the tone for the series. What I also enjoyed about Midnight Mass was that it seemed like the role of the ‘main character’ rotated as the series went on. Zach Gilford played Riley Flynn, a mentally damaged recovering addict and his performance does justice to such a complex character. He also had good chemistry with Kate Siegel who played Erin Greene, another character who had returned to Crockett Island. The pair created a really good relationship between Riley and Erin, which got you invested in their journey and it made the events in the series impact the audience even more. Hamish Linklater played the role of the Priest, Father Paul Hill and I have to give credit to his performance because he had to portray so many different versions of the character, he almost changed in every episode, which required a different energy and delivery. I always like it when an actor can truly make me hate the character they are playing and Samantha Sloyan certainly did that as Bev Keane! With each episode of Midnight Mass I was truly just hoping she would be killed off and that speaks volumes for Sloyan’s portrayal. There are many other actors that play an important part in the series and I don’t think there was a single performance that I thought was poor or not up to scratch.

PLOT & THE STORYLINE 

I really didn’t know what to expect with Midnight Mass, after reading the brief description I assumed a horror that delved into the mystic arts of faith, perhaps something similar to The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. However I was pleasantly surprised because the actual storyline was something I would enjoy a lot more. I don’t want to give anything away because the guess work is part of what makes this series enjoyable. I also liked the fact they weren’t afraid to make bold decisions with their characters, creating big twists that shocked me! This kept the series exciting and had me on the edge of my seat, that’s why I had to watch it all in one sitting. It’s all set on a tiny secluded island which helped contribute to the tension because everyone is miles away from any help. Midnight Mass also touched upon racism slightly, especially the subtle racism that goes on with people who are so set in their ways. This was handled really nicely, not making it the main theme but obvious enough to make the message heard. Overall I really enjoyed Midnight Mass and the storyline really suited me and what I like to watch, It’s not really a scary horror so I wouldn’t go into it expecting that.

CINEMATOGRAPHY & SPECIAL EFFECTS 

Michael Fimognari was responsible for the cinematography and I think he done a brilliant job. He knew how to utilise tone and the colour of certain scenes to make it scarier or to emphasise how secluded the island was. I will try and word this carefully not to give anything away but I think the design of the main ‘threat’ on the island was good and it fitted into the Christian themes of the series. A technique that I appreciated was how they used the citizens singing hymns as a form of musical score for the scene, this made the scenes freakier and helped Midnight mass fit into that horror genre. The special effects used were kept nice and subtle, creating a strong sense of realism which helped keep me engaged throughout all the episodes.

OVERALL (8.5/10)

I really enjoyed Midnight Mass, the cast delivered strong performances and I appreciated how the role of ‘main character’ almost rotated around the characters which was nice. The series isn’t afraid to make bold decisions, creating nice twists that shocks the audience. I wouldn’t say it was scary at all, there are a couple of jumpy moments sure but scary? I don’t think so. Perhaps they could have done a little more to truly fit the horror genre. Other than that the storyline was exciting and engaging, it has you guessing what’s actually going on within Crockett Island which keeps you on the edge of your seat. The cinematography was good and the special effects were kept nice and subtle which made it as realistic as possible. So a really strong score of 8.5 is perfectly justified for me!

Thanks for reading.

Callan