Leah, June, and their toddler daughter, Lyle, move into a gorgeous brownstone in Brooklyn. Leah is the stay-at-home mom who looks after Lyle. She is also pregnant with their second child. June is the up-and-coming music producer who works a lot to try and keep up with their lifestyle. Life for the three is looking absolutely awesome…until tragedy hits and their baby girl, Lyle dies. As the film progresses, we see that Leah is completely falling apart. Her despair turns into paranoia, while June seems to become more prosperous with her career. Eventually, Leah suspects that Lyle’s demise was not an accident and fears for her unborn baby.
Although this film is only 65 minutes long, the plot and characters are strong. The woman who plays Leah, (Gaby Hoffmann) did a pretty amazing job, though, at times, she was a bit melodramatic. Aside from baby Lyle, one of my favorite characters was the creepy landlady, Karen. I would love to have known more about her. The rest of the cast did a passable job.
There were a couple of things I loved about the film: I really appreciated that the lesbian couple at the forefront of the story was not portrayed as being something subversive.
Another thing I loved was the creepy undertone. Although this film is of the horror genre, it’s not a typical horror film. Most of the scares are of the psychological variety with plenty of drama and a touch of horror. The cinematography is beautiful and effectively added to the tension of the film.
Lyle is an incredible film that is entertaining from the beginning to the very end. As the viewer, we cannot ignore Leah’s hysteria. Her emotions are raw and full of paranoia and tension.
Overall, I highly recommend Lyle. It reminded me of Rosemary’s Baby (1968) with a hint of The Sentinel (1977). I’m looking forward to director Stewart Thorndike’s next horror film.
WICKED RATING: [usr 6]
Title: Lyle
Director: Stewart Thorndike
Writer(s): Stewart Thorndike
Stars: Gaby Hoffmann, Kim Allen, Ashlie Atkinson
Year: 2014
Language: English
Length: 65 Minutes
Sub-Genre: Drama, Horror
