Nocturne

Still, the way this story unfolds, and how it unpeels its protagonist into a sexually deflowered, master musician is too predictable to be scary, despite a few striking tableaux involving a psychedelic.

If it's psychological horror you love, Nocturne will be music to your ears. If not super-scary, Quirke's film is an accomplished, uncomfortable tour de force.

Nocturne, like its brittle protagonist, is good enough at what it does to make you wish it were a little better.

A movie that can't decide if it's a YA "Black Swan" or a YA "Suspiria"-yes, there is a big difference.

Although missing opportunities to present a memorable production, Quirke has crafted the kind of popcorn horror film that doesn't demand much from its audience and, in the process, delivers something unsettling.

Contrivances are par for the course in this genre, but "Nocturne" lacks the stylistic flair to make them fun.

I found it to be a little convoluted at times, but it recovers with some eye-catching cinematic moments.

Thematically, [filmmaker Zu] Quirk and her production team have created a very pleasingly atmospheric film with Nocturne.

Nocturne nonetheless very much plays as a YA horror flick, a kind of baby's-first-Faustian-bargain.

Nocturne's high-stakes climax is genuinely unsettling and suspenseful, making it a horror film that's worth sticking with despite its flaws.