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Honeymoon is a 2014 supernatural horror film directed by Leigh Janiak. The film stars Rose Leslie and Harry Treadaway as newlyweds Bea and Paul, who spend their honeymoon in a secluded Canadian forest. The film centres around Bea's strange disappearance one night and her subsequent bizarre behaviour, as well as the mysterious lights and figures in the woods. The film received generally positive reviews, with critics praising its direction, tension, and acting, while some criticised its predictability and lack of resolution.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Genre | Supernatural horror |
| Director | Leigh Janiak |
| Writers | Leigh Janiak and Phil Graziadei |
| Stars | Rose Leslie, Harry Treadaway |
| Plot | Newlyweds Bea and Paul spend their honeymoon at Bea's family's cabin in a secluded Canadian forest. One night, Paul wakes up to find Bea missing. He finds her naked and disoriented in the woods, and she claims she was sleepwalking due to stress. Bea's behaviour becomes increasingly strange, and she starts to physically deteriorate. Paul discovers that she has been impregnated with a large worm-like creature by mysterious silhouettes in the woods. |
| Runtime | 1h 27m |
| Release date | 12 September 2014 |
| Rating | R |
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What You'll Learn
Plot
The 2014 American supernatural horror film Honeymoon is directed by Leigh Janiak and stars Rose Leslie and Harry Treadaway as newlyweds Bea and Paul. The couple spends their honeymoon at Bea's family's cabin in a secluded Canadian forest.
One day, the couple goes to a small restaurant where Bea meets her childhood friend Will, the owner, and his wife Annie. Will and Annie act strangely and ask them to leave. That night, Paul wakes up to find Bea missing. He finds her naked and disoriented in the woods, and she claims that she was sleepwalking due to stress. As time passes, Bea's behaviour becomes increasingly distant and strange. Paul initially blames this on an encounter with Will, but soon realises there's more going on.
One night, Paul sees bright lights through the window, but when he goes to investigate, he finds nothing. During an argument, Bea locks herself in the bathroom. When Paul breaks in, he finds her repeatedly stabbing herself in the genitals. He ties her to the bed and she asks him to take it out of her. Paul puts his hand into her vagina and takes out a large worm-like creature. Bea explains that the night she disappeared into the woods, she saw the same lights Paul saw and walked towards them. She saw silhouettes that impregnated her with the creature. She says that she must protect Paul because they are going to "dispose of him". Bea knocks Paul out, takes him to the middle of a lake on a boat, and throws him to his death, believing she is protecting him by "hiding" him underwater.
Bea is shown to be deteriorating, with her skin peeling off and her eyes discoloured. She meets Will's wife Annie, who is similarly deteriorated, and they walk into the lights together.
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Reception
The 2014 film Honeymoon received mixed reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a rating of 76% based on 58 reviews, with an average rating of 5.80/10. On IMDB, the film received a rating of 5.7/10.
Ryan Turek of Shock Till You Drop gave the film a positive review, praising director Leigh Janiak's "confident direction" and the "two very good lead actors" for slowly amplifying "the tension and mess with your head." Similarly, Ryland Aldrich of Twitch Film called the film "a good story, excellently told, and very, very scary." Andy Greene of Pop Insomniacs gave the film a mixed review, stating that while the film "isn’t going to blow your mind, or scare the crap out of you," director Leigh Janiak "is clever enough to bank on these young stars and their explosive chemistry."
Mike McCahill of The Guardian gave the film a more negative review, awarding it 2 out of 5 stars and writing that Janiak "aims for Lars von Trier’s sustained dread but manages only vague unease." Other reviews on IMDB describe the film as "not a terrible film by any means, but too much setup and not enough payoff" and "another [film] that doesn't make sense."
The film also received praise for its lead actors, Rose Leslie and Harry Treadaway, with Brian Tallerico of RogerEbert.com noting that Leslie is "excellent at conveying the reality of a terrifying situation." Leslie's performance was also recognised by Leigh Janiak, who chose her for the role of Bea after seeing her performance as Ygritte in Game of Thrones.
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Characters
The 2014 American supernatural horror film Honeymoon, directed by Leigh Janiak, stars Rose Leslie and Harry Treadaway as newlyweds Bea and Paul. The couple, who are madly in love, spend their honeymoon in a remote cabin in the woods that belongs to Bea's family.
Bea
Bea, played by Rose Leslie, is a joyful newlywed who, along with her husband Paul, seems destined to have a lovely honeymoon. However, things take a turn for the worse when she goes missing one night and is found naked and disoriented in the woods. She claims to have been sleepwalking due to stress, but her behaviour becomes increasingly strange and distant. Bea's physical appearance also starts to deteriorate, with her skin becoming white and flaky and discoloured, and strange marks appearing on her body. She also starts acting erratically and seems to have trouble remembering details of her relationship with Paul.
Paul
Harry Treadaway plays Bea's husband, Paul. Paul is kind and loving towards his new wife, Bea. However, he becomes suspicious of Bea's behaviour after she goes missing in the woods and exhibits strange behaviour upon her return. He notices the marks on her body and suspects that she has had an encounter with Will, a childhood friend of Bea's. As Bea's behaviour becomes more erratic, Paul's concern turns to fear as he realises that something is not quite right with his wife. Despite his growing fears, Paul tries to protect Bea and get to the bottom of what is happening to her.
Will
Will is Bea's childhood friend and the owner of a small, rustic restaurant in the woods near Bea's family cabin. When Bea and Paul arrive at the restaurant, Will acts strangely and asks them to leave. However, he later calms down when he realises he knows Bea. Will is married to Annie, who also behaves strangely when she meets Bea and Paul at their restaurant. Will is later shown to be hiding, and Paul finds his bloody baseball cap floating in the water.
Annie
Annie is Will's wife, who exhibits strange behaviour when she meets Bea and Paul at their restaurant. She interrupts their conversation, telling them they need to get away. Annie is later shown to have similar marks on her thighs as Bea and they walk away together into the lights.
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Themes
The 2014 horror film Honeymoon explores several themes related to relationships, identity, and the unknown.
One of the central themes is the deterioration of a relationship and the dynamics between the two main characters, Bea and Paul, a newly married couple. The film depicts how their relationship starts to fall apart as strange events unfold during their honeymoon, with Bea's behaviour becoming increasingly erratic and distant. This dynamic is heightened by the isolated setting of a secluded cabin in the woods, where Bea and Paul are largely the only characters onscreen. The film also explores the idea of trust and doubt in a relationship, as Paul begins to question who Bea is and whether she is hiding something from him. This theme of doubt is further emphasised by the mysterious lights in the woods and the suggestion of otherworldly forces at play, adding to the sense of uncertainty and suspicion.
Identity is also a prominent theme in Honeymoon. As the film progresses, Bea's physical and mental state deteriorates, with her skin peeling off and her eyes discoloured. She exhibits strange behaviour, and Paul suspects that she is not the same person he married. This exploration of identity is heightened by the reveal of a "Body Snatchers"-esque scenario, where Bea's body and identity are taken over by an unknown force. The film also touches on the idea of self-perception, as Bea herself acknowledges that she is changing but feels compelled to protect Paul, believing that she is acting in his best interest.
The unknown and the unexplained are also central themes in Honeymoon. The film leaves many questions unanswered, such as the origin of the lights in the woods and the exact nature of the forces that impregnated Bea. This lack of context and background adds to the sense of mystery and creepiness, allowing the audience to fill in the gaps with their imagination. While some viewers may find this open-ended approach intriguing, others may be left wanting more concrete answers and a clearer resolution.
Finally, the film touches on the theme of sanity and mental health. As Bea's behaviour becomes more erratic, the audience is left to question whether her transformation is supernatural or a result of mental illness. This ambiguity adds to the psychological unnerving nature of the film, as the viewer is unable to determine the exact cause of Bea's deterioration.
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Production
The 2014 film Honeymoon is an American supernatural horror film with a twist ending. It was directed by Leigh Janiak, marking her directorial debut, and written by Janiak and Phil Graziadei. The film stars Rose Leslie and Harry Treadaway as newlyweds Bea and Paul, who spend their honeymoon in a secluded cabin in the woods.
The idea for the film was conceived in 2010, after Janiak viewed Monsters and Tiny Furniture. Janiak and Graziadei began writing the script in 2011 or 2012, and found their producer at the end of 2011. Financing took about a year, and principal photography began in early 2013. The film had a limited budget.
The film premiered on March 7, 2014, at South by Southwest and was theatrically released by Magnolia Pictures on September 12, 2014. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a rating of 76% based on 58 reviews, with an average rating of 5.80/10. On Metacritic, it has a score of 65 out of 100 based on 10 critic reviews, indicating "generally favourable reviews".
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Frequently asked questions
Honeymoon is a 2014 supernatural horror film about a couple whose honeymoon is plagued by strange events.
Bea, one of the newlyweds, goes missing one night and is found naked and disoriented in the woods. She claims to have been sleepwalking, but her behaviour becomes increasingly strange.
Bea's behaviour becomes more erratic, and her skin starts deteriorating with her skin peeling off and her eyes discoloured. She also starts stabbing herself in the genitals and a large worm-like creature is removed from her.
Paul discovers that Bea has been impregnated by some mysterious force in the woods. Bea knocks him out, ties an anchor to his feet, and throws him into a lake to his death, believing she is protecting him.
Honeymoon received generally positive reviews, with a rating of 76% on Rotten Tomatoes and a score of 65 out of 100 on Metacritic. Critics called it "smart, stylish, and nail-bitingly tense", with praise for its direction, acting, and tension. However, some reviewers criticised the movie for its lack of context and unsatisfying ending.
