DOOD EIND (a film from Amsterdam whose title translates into English as DEAD END) is about a group of friends out for an excursion in the forests of Scotland, where they run afoul of a pair of wild dogs and seek shelter in a nearby mansion. It turns out that the dogs were actually driving the friends into the house, which is a sort of deathtrap, haunted by malevolent spirits.
After brief scenes introducing the characters, the fear launches almost immediately, and the story seeks to keep the tension high from that point on as the characters struggle to escape from a house that is obviously eager to kill them. Unfortunately, the back story behind the haunting is unnecessarily convoluted (there are multiple ghosts with divergent agendas), and DEAD END shows no guilt about having one character suddenly display psychic abilities, just so she can see the flashbacks that will explain what’s going on.
By the time the ending rolls around, you will probably find yourself not caring much who lives or dies. Which is too bad, because the film has many remarkable moments that make you wish it had managed to come up with a better conclusion.
DEAD END (Dood Eind, 2007). Written and directed by Erwin van den Eshof, from an idea by Nick Jongerius. Cast: Everon jackson Hooi, Anniek Pheifer, Alwien Tulner, mads Wittermans, Aram van de Rest, Vicotria Koblenko, Micha Hulshof, Terence Schreurs.