User Reviews

The fourth and in my opinion best of the four announced Blumhouse films for Amazon Prime has arrived with "Nocturne". The film stars Sydney Sweeney and Madison Iseman as twins Juliet and Vivian. Both attend a noted music school and Vivian is a prodigy who has been accepted to Julliard upon completion of her studies.

Juliet had applied only to Julliard but was not accepted and this has caused issues with the faculty who had encouraged her to apply to other schools as well due to the 7% acceptance of Julliard and the longs odds of one or both of them being accepted.

When the top musician at the school kills herself, a spot to do a featured performance at an upcoming showcase arises and Vivian is asked to perform as she is clearly the next in line. Juliet comes into possession of a mysterious notebook filled with strange drawings that belonged to the recently departed former prodigy and she becomes obsessed with the drawings which seem to predict the future and in turn cause her to add drawings of her own to them. This starts a chain of events where Juliet sees a change in personality where she begins to covet her sister's talent, success, boyfriend, and more and begins a chain of events that will upturn their lives.

The film like the prior three Blumhouse Amazon films is not scary nor overly intense but it does have an engaging story and characters which will keep you watching and delivers an entertaining twist on films such as "The Competition" which depict the struggles and conflicts of aspiring musicians.

3.5 stars out of 5

... but remember, music is a blood sport and Juliet shows us why with a powerfully crimson performance as a teenage girl determined to rise to the challenge. Twins sibling rivalry and a piano provides the foundation but the cornerstones are the pressures placed on adolescence, the price of admission to achieving aspirations, the penalties incurred due to high expectations and the effects on others that take place as a consequence. Imaginatively done, if not all that original, it is the composition created by Sydney Sweeney that deserves the credit and a well earned round of applause.

The second of Amazon's Blumhouse collaborations I watched was "Nocturne", a debut feature from writer/director Zu Quirke which, not unlike "Black Box" eschews conventional horror, this time for more of a psychological thriller.

Juliet (Sydney Sweeney) lives under the shadow of her twin sister Vivian (Madison Iseman). Though both are talented pianists, Juliet's demeanour means that Vivian is graduating to Julliard but she is not. Moira (Ji Eun Hwang), their current schools most gifted student, takes her own life, which means the final concerts solo is vacant. Vivian seems the natural person to claim it, until Juliet finds Moira's notebook, a cryptic and dark series of notes, markings and illustrations. The book has an effect on Juliet, increasing her confidence, but how far is she willing to go to claim that solo.

As with "Black Box" I feel that there's lots to admire with this film, but little to love. It does feel like a budget version of "Black Swan", with its story of pressure are the higher end of artistic achievement. The performances from the two leads, Iselman and Sweeney, are really good. Art direction and cinematherapy are decent, the effects - such as they are - aren't bad - though it does help that they often aren't looking for realism, rather part of a fantastic dream type sequence. I do feel like I'm prepared to give the film a whole point for the final shot (to say anything more is a bit too spoilery).

But plot wise it's a bit too humdrum and predictable. You'll be well in advance of Juliet in terms of what is happening and you'll probably see the ending coming a mile off. There are a couple of minor twists that the film doesn't do a great job of disguising and it's all just a little too flat, and lacking in originality and invention to recommend it as worthwhile.

Negatives ultimately outweighed the positives for me, but at least there were positives.

I enjoyed this one, with the creepy faustian deal occuring in the background.

Though why this is so interesting is because they chose to leave things a little vague and open ended. I interpreted this movie in at least 3 different ways, maybe in 4 even.

At the end of the day it is hard to come across well shot movies with good plot beats, audio/music, and solid acting. This one covered the bases very well and has elements of horror woven into it, just enough to keep you on your toes.

The ending was damn creepy as well.

7/10 bravo, good watch.

I was really drawn in by this film . I felt the relationship between the sisters was authentic and relatable. Music is cut throat and requires so much sacrifice , I feel this showed that really well- while still allowing the characters to be teens .

I liked the feel , the aesthetic and the plot . Hard to tell if this is reality or all in the mind of the main character and you never really get a good answer .

This is not a life changing film, but it doesn't try to be something it isn't and it leaves you feeling sad and empty which is what they are going for .

The movie started out so well, I thought I was in for a treat. Exceptional camera work and unusual use of sound, together with a compelling plot, this movie seemed to be going places, reminiscent of Roman Polanski's The Tenant.

Unfortunately the tone of the movie shifts with the plot near midpoint from a young student's sense of identity fracturing under the stress of creative disappointment to mundane sibling rivalry.

Generally, the acting is good, so is the direction. This movie could have been so much more.

This movie reminded me of Black Swan and Perfection, but was original enough to be entertaining. Without giving much away, I will say I would have appreciated a bit more explanation on the notebook or the origin of how it came to the first girl. I guess it leaves endless room and questions for sequels and prequels. There is definitely more there to be explained, and it was good enough that I would watch another one to find out more.

Another reviewer put it well, Sydney Sweeney's performance was great, she was very expressive and the only reason I didn't fall asleep. I also really liked the occasional choir - SHRIEK - note blast when she experienced some trauma (hard to explain if you didn't hear it) The rest of it felt like a bad Shyamalan movie where the writer wanted to give some twist ending that wasn't a twist ending with clues that weren't clues. They spent too much time trying to be clever just to have you say - eh.

* * spoilers * * Was the writer hinting that the entire thing was a dream or just the vision during her fall or was he trying to leave it ambiguous for dummies because of dummies like me who need it spelled out to them? I got the sense that he was just trying to spice up an otherwise standard sibling rivalry movie. I was half expecting one of the students to put their cigarette out on her corpse to express their indifference. Fame? We can't even be bothered by wincing at your shattered body (wow, that's deep, thinking about lowering my score now).

I liked this one a lot more than I thought I was going to. I am a little surprised at the 5.7 rating as I am giving it a 7 no normally it's the other way around. Maybe people were expecting a little bit more classic horror, but I felt it had a very atmospheric, creepy vibe throughout that served up a solid, new age horror vibe.

I thought the story wasn't wildly original but just different enough to make it feel fresh. The pacing felt very good and kept me solidly engaged from start to finish. I wish there was a little bit more background as far as the supernatural aspect and where and how it manifested in the modern day.

The acting was hit or miss. The main blonde twin did an excellent job throughout. Her range of emotion was really quite good and she gave a solid performance. The other twin did a decent job and while her delivery often felt natural, many times it felt situationally "inappropriate". Some of the side characters were not all that great.

I really liked the score/sound design, the overall vibe of this production and I was quite pleased with the ending as well. It felt in-line with the story and not a cop out like so many are nowadays. I would definitely recommend checking it out.

Going into this movie with the anticipation of your typical Blumhouse fair, I was pleasantly surprised by the tasteful camera work and over all quality. Some reviews say that this movie is not your typical horror movie and they would be correct; it's not a horror movie at all. Its more of a 90m arthouse film. The dialogue is drab and despite the cast pulling of a fairly solid performance, there's very little life to be found in the story. Do yourself a favour and find something entertaining to watch.

I think the film's focus on how further you can go to achieve your dreams and how much your ambition can corrupt you has been delivered perfectly well. The lead actress was perfect; her mimics, her silence, her dead-looking eyes all throughout the movie gave you the image of a distorted mind and a highly oppressed teenager. You always need to sacrifice something to get something else in life--we pay for our food for example, we give up our hard earned money on something that'll keep us going. This movie shows that simple example in a more delicate situation with a rather dangerous environment.

I was amazed by how good it was, really wasn't expecting it to be. The ending was phenomenal. I don't see why anyone would not like this movie, if you like these type of thriller films, you shouldn't miss out on this one. Great directory, great acting from all parts. It also goes without saying that the film's message was loud and clear and I think it shows a very sad example but it is also the reality of a lot of people.

I recommend this movie a hundred percent.

A bizarre fever dream of heartache and music- Nocturne is unlike any other film you've seen before- but is hardly capable of conveying its ideas in a meaningful form. I found this film endlessly fascinating, and honestly quite hard to watch, even though I couldn't take my eyes off of the screen. Its script is harsh and honest and balances so many heavy themes you can hardly believe that the film is just about music and not something more. My main problem with the film is its execution. The film feels so unique of original ideas and concepts, but takes no time to explain what it is trying to say, and ends up baffling the audience rather than providing something or really anything significant. I think it could have been a beautiful horror flick- but it's more uneven than not with its styling and sense of storytelling- you simply won't know what you are watching from time to time. The acting is phenomenal, especially from lead actress Sydney Sweeney- who truly carries the film along the tone it desires and allows us to empathize with every harsh thing her character goes through. The cinematography is honestly kinda bland for the most part, but there is some cool imagery throughout. In the end, Nocturne is a rather original and fascinating little horror flick- but its potential still lies in the open of what could have been a far better story.

My Rating: 7.5/10.

Jealous sister, rivals and the desire to be the best in a tale that wasn't all that interesting. Typical raw ambition taking over and creating a monster. I would skip this.

"Music is a blood sport." Dr. Cask (Ivan Shaw)

Having just viewed The Wolf of Snow Hollow, which combines the satiric with the traditional horror genre, seeing writer-director Zu Quirke's Nocturne made me realize that a horror film with no digitized scares or much blood to boot can be a most terrorizing rendition of that durable formula. The scare is in the mind, you see.

Juliet (Sydney Sweeney) and her more talented sister, Vi (Madison Iseman), compete at their high-class music school for the chance to play in the school's final concert. They both choose Saint-Saëns' Piano Concerto No 2 (remember the concerto competition with the demanding Rachmaninov 3rd in Shine?). Although Vi wins the right to play it at the concert in the end of the year, Juliet makes an implied Faustian pact with the devil, whom she found in an old playbook, to reverse her sister's fortunes and enhance her own.

What is so impactful is the lack of blood and screams; in fact, there are few, if any, jump scares. The terror is in Juliet's head, her obsession to win, her jealousy as the guiding principle. It's all very sotto voce, so to speak, a quiet doom tamped down by beautiful music and feelings kept just low enough to allow effective dialogue and feel the presence of a malevolent force, which may be the devil but surely is the "green-eyed monster which doth mock the meat it feeds on." In some sense, I am reminded of the rivalry in Black Swan

About the Saint Sens, pianist Lise de la Salle wrote: "The highly lyrical first movement is an expression of late Romanticism. The second movement is as effervescent as a glass of champagne. And the final movement, a real whirlwind, a fantastic ride (wonderfully captured in this quasi-perpetual movement in triplets), is quite dizzying." These elements could be found in Nocturne.

"Welcome to the Blumhouse" is a "program of eight terrifying genre movies coming to Prime Video," and if the other seven are as good as this one, Halloween viewing will have matured to an intelligence and psychology worthy of a genre rarely this high class or intellectually satisfying.

While watching 'Nocturne' it can be really hard not to notice the similarities between this and 'Black Swan'. It's slightly less sexual but the story follows a very similar pattern. To be fair there are far worse films to base yours off. It's just something I noticed. The opening scene of 'Nocturne' sets up some intrigue. It's not a scary or suspenseful scene, but it is strange and leaves you wanting to know why it happened. From there the film sets about telling its story, and does so in a surprisingly compelling way.

I'm not a big music fan (and certainly not classical music) but I didn't find that hindered my enjoyment of the film at all. If that's putting you off seeing the movie I would suggest not to worry about it. The film is a horror, but more in a bizarre way than a suspenseful or gory way. If horror isn't for you, I would say that isn't necessarily a deal-breaker on this one. I could imagine non-horror fans finding a way to enjoy this movie.

Sydney Sweeney was really good in the lead role here. She played a big part in making the film as watchable as it was. She's in every scene so it was very important she got her performance right. I liked 'Nocturne' without ever perhaps loving it. It's worth a look but don't set your expectations too high.

Very surprised by this film. Not your typical horror but I would say this is way better than most. Solid acting, great use of music, well directed. This is definitely a film that will keep your attention. It is a little slower paced but the mood and setting more than make up for that.

This was okay but not as good as I expected it to be. I found myself bored several times throughout the movie wanting to skip forward. The concept was good it just didn't connect with me in the end.

This is a film that is wide open to interpretation.

It has it's good qualities. Most of it can be found in the tension between our main character and well, just about every aspect of her life. The music is phenomenal, without doubt.

The concept is interesting but I feel it could've been executed better. It was so vague and slow paced. For the most part, this was bland for me. Even though the best part was the final scene, overall, it just didn't impress me.

It is a different take on envy and if you like films that explore that subject from a psychological thriller sprinkled with some horror/supernatural aspects, check it out. It wasn't bad but it didn't get me where I hoped it would take me.

My first impression of this film was something of an obscure nature, it felt disturbing but not in a way that I'd come to expect from the horror/psychological thriller category. Opening with a violin and the chime of a grandfather clock, it felt a little intriguing and somewhat different yet bland and far from familiarity. Still, sometime change is good and refreshing so I wanted to give it a chance and a the benefit of the doubt. The opening is all rather depressing, bleak and ugly conveying music in an unflattering way to make you feel anxious or tense. It doesn't have to be about music the subject is all rather irrelevant. The subject isn't overly of interest to me however I can understand the characters enthusiasm towards it. The artwork on the walls through the corridor isn't overly captivating and remind the viewer of death and despair. The audience is expected to perceive the school in a negative light to some degree as its very subject is sucking the life out of some of its pupils.

The film is about sacrifice and how far one might go to be the best in their chosen field. Is it healthy to devote your life to something? Especially if you don't necessarily have a gift for it as much as others might have. Will you even be seen or get the recognition and respect you feel you are seeking by the end of it. Ultimately will the sacrifice make you happy. It's about sibling rivalry and the darkness within competition. (Sydney Sweeney) Juliet and (Madison Iseman) Vivian are twin sisters, both are aspiring pianists at their school, however Vivian is considered the more talented which makes Juliet jealous. (Sydney Sweeney) is excellent in the role conniving in her approach and treacherous with big bewildering eyes appearing all innocent yet deceiving. Her dead to the world look of dissociation amongst her peers can be misleading, but her devotion to her subject is immeasurable, as she appears to bargain with the devil himself within the workings of a theory notebook. It's the theory notebook of a girl already deceased. The audience will find itself totally behind Juliet and this is credit to the way (Sweeney) plays it to some extent, empathising with her struggles of being overshadowed by her twin sister. Vivian appears to have it all, (Madison Iseman) does a good job at being irritating subtly just enough to get the audience to root for Juliet.

The film has similarities to The Black Swan as well as films like Whiplash but doesn't appear to bring as much believability as whiplash and is slightly less intense. The horror element is unique in this type of story, yet with the notebook, it distracts from what could've been very close to home type of reality much like whiplash. It brings with it lots of interesting themes about life and the values we hold dear leaving the audience with an image to reflect on and ask yourself if all the effort is all worth it and rewarding in the end.

Just so boring. Reminded me of something like black swan which was also bobbins. Didn't even bother finishing watching it.

This movie could easily be deemed as Black Swan's teenage cousin due to the extremely similar theme of darkness taking over, yet stripped of its surreal vanity due to all the teenage drama. However, what struck me with this film was the brilliantly haunting images! Many have discussed the name and how it basically means a piece of music influenced by night, but it is a bit more general than that; it'scmore like, a piece of art influenced by night and the movie does great work with this through both the nocturne imagery (the pictures in the book) and the nocturne musical score (the pieces they play.) I'm sure many will say that this movie is too pretentious but that's just it... Art is pretentious because it deals with such deep meaning... Art and the devil and God are all tied in together and this film weaves that concept in so delicately. Nothing is forced and nothing is hidden. What you see is what you get. The ending may be ambiguous, but if you simply open your mind to the idea of how perfection is simply impossible, you may understand it a bit more. Also, great work by two of the lead actresses! They definitely have a glossy future ahead of them!