‘Your ghosts follow you. They never leave.’
As his debut feature, Remi Weekes’ His House is packed to the brim with commentary and this is a film I’ll likely discuss, and recommend, for a long time.
Weekes documents the horror, and inescapable trauma, of the refugee experience – particularly at the hands of the British asylum system and systematic racism. The pressure to adapt to a new environment while simultaneously handling displacement, racism and trauma is portrayed through the nightmares and visions of our characters, Bol and Rial, as they live as asylum seekers in London.
Although the film was a slow burn, and some of the visual horror felt unnecessary, Weekes really stands apart from other directors in his portrayal of what I’d say is the most important aspect of the film – trauma. His House shows us that the ghosts of our past are brought with us everywhere we go, and in the case of Bol and Rial’s tragic circumstances, these ghosts can really push us to our limits.
This is a promising start to Remi Weeke’s career. His horror debut doesn’t just tackle class and racial borders, but the plight of refugees too, and I commend Weekes for packing so much important social commentary into one short film. His House ultimately reminds audiences that this is a true story of trauma and not just a haunted house tale; and it makes me incredibly excited to see Remi Weekes future work.
