Newly cured victims of a violent rage virus are reintegrated into an
unaccepting society.
Directed by: David Freyne
Starring: Ellen Page, Sam Keeley, Tom
Vaughan-Lawlor, Stuart Graham, Hilda Fay
Just when you think a genre has played out every narrative possibility,
along comes a fresh take. Few of horror's sub-genres feel quite as drained
of potential for originality as the zombie movie, but with his feature
debut, writer-director David Freyne combines the typical outbreak
plot with the political allegory of the
Planet of the Apes series, with a dash of
Invasion of the Body Snatchers and
Village of the Damned thrown in for good measure.
An opening text sets the scene - a virus that turns its victims into
violent, mindless animals was quickly dealt with in Europe, except for
Ireland, where 25% of the population was affected, leading to United Nations
troops being dispatched to deal with the situation. A cure having been
found, the formerly infected are controversially released back into
society.
Among the reintegrated is Senan (Sam Keely), who returns to live
with his sister-in-law Abbie (Ellen Page), a journalist with a Dublin
TV network, and her young son. Abbie's husband and Senan's brother was
killed when the virus initially broke, but what Abbie doesn't know is that
his killer was Senan.
Also released is former lawyer and wannabe politician Connor (Tom Vaughan-Lawlor), who befriended Senan during their time in captivity. Despite his
qualifications, Connor is forced to work as a cleaner, and is subjected,
along with the rest of 'the cured' to daily prejudice from their fellow
citizens. Gathering a band of loyal followers, Connor begins a terrorist
campaign with the aim of releasing the thousands still infected who languish
in prisons.
It's curious that The Cured is a product of the Republic of
Ireland, as its allegory seems more directly related to the post 'Troubles'
landscape of Northern Ireland. Though cured of the virus, the former zombies
are haunted by memories of the atrocities they committed while infected. The
infection is named the 'Maze' virus, perhaps in reference to the maximum
security prison that housed political prisoners during the Troubles, only to
release them back into society upon the cessation of violence, regardless of
the violent nature of their past crimes.
If, like this writer, you live in the Republic of Ireland, the primary
allegory is that of the refugee crisis and immigration in general, with
victims of violence attempting to integrate themselves into a society that
views them with suspicion. The idea of educated professionals reduced to
working menial jobs will resonate with anyone who lives in a Western
European city, where the immigrants who serve you coffee, flip your burgers
and dump your garbage may well be far better educated than yourself.
The Cured plays best when it's dealing with the relationship
between Senan and Abbie, the latter torn between her liberal, accepting
nature and her need to keep her son safe. Keely effectively evokes sympathy
as he conveys his character's self-doubt regarding the effectiveness of his
cure and his fear of regressing to his infected state.
The quietly chilling Vaughan-Lawlor continues to build his reputation
following strong performances in Daphne
and
Maze, the latter another film which saw him leading a political
revolt. Unlike Caesar in the various incarnations of the
Planet of the Apes saga, his Connor is a black and white
villain with no moral qualms about shedding blood to achieve his goals,
which makes Freyne's film's final act play out in a flat, good versus evil
manner, adding a bitter taste to the nuanced food for thought it
had been serving us up to that point.
The Cured is on Arrow now.
