Marrakech Film Festival 2024: The Cottage

Atmosphere is everything in Silvina Schnicer’s The Cottage. The filmmaker’s solo feature debut after co-directing Tigre and Carajita, her latest outing follows a family escape to the countryside to spend time in their picturesque cottage. The discovery of squatters living in the area causes tensions to grow between father Rudi (Sebastián Arzeno) and the caretaker, Tomás (Alejandro Gigena), as Rudi attempts to convince his neighbours that Tomás should be fired. Meanwhile, the family’s children spend their time roaming the outdoors. But when their childish mischief accidentally leads to disaster, events take a darker turn as the family work to find a means to cover up what happened. The result is a haunting and carefully crafted family drama.

Schinicer takes her time in establishing the tone and setting. The small community and surrounding area seem so far removed from the world outside that the location feels like its own isolated bubble. Despite the wide-open countryside, there’s an eerily claustrophobic ambience, which only grows more oppressive when the situation escalates. The tone is only elevated further with some beautiful cinematography, with one rainy night by an open window being a particular standout. However, The Cottage is at its best whenever it taps into horror elements to emphasise the children’s trauma. This choice not only adds a unique layer to the domestic drama, but also results in some genuinely effective moments. In one scene, for example, young Fede (Milo Zeus Lis) is so affected by what transpired that his distressed mumbling and restlessness looks more like he’s been possessed by a demon than having a vivid nightmare.

The slow-burn approach the filmmaker takes to develop these ideas only enriches the sense of place and tone further, right up to its poignant conclusion. Given how strong its horror-tinted spin is, it comes as somewhat of a disappointment that most of the film’s focus lies elsewhere. Although the deliberate pacing means that it takes some time for the main plot to get underway, strong performances from the entire cast ensure that the feature remains engaging.

By introducing a touch of horror into an atmospheric domestic drama, Schnicer creates something wonderful with The Cottage. Its only downside is that it doesn’t lean into its strengths more to elevate it higher above the crowd.

Andrew Murray

The Cottage does not have a release date yet.