Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		1.0
Overall		3.5

The Vigil Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf October 2, 2021

“The Vigil” tracks the experiences of a shomer hired to watch over the body of a recently deceased man. The production explains what a shomer is at the beginning of the movie, helping those unfamiliar with Orthodox Jewish rituals to better understand the position, which carries immense importance when protecting the dead from evil spirits looking to claim them. There’s a distinct religious angle to writer/director Keith Thomas’s picture, but there’s just as much pure genre filmmaking in play. “The Vigil” is a ghost story, exploring spooky encounters and darkly lit rooms, and it’s a highly effective one, well-crafted on a low budget. Thomas wants a little more from the event than simple frights, weaving in elements of guilt and shame to supercharge the haunting that brings the lead character to the edge of sanity.

Yakov (Dave Davis) has recently left the Jewish faith, getting used to life outside of his orthodox upbringing, including emerging intimacies with Sarah (Malky Goldman), a young woman interested in the nervous man, encouraging him to call her. Without community support and a job, Yakov is hurting for money, offered quick cash by Reb Shulem (Menashe Lustig) to become a shomer for Ruben Litvak (Ronald Cohen), an elderly man who’s recently passed away. Tasked with spending a long night inside a small home, Yakov accepts the responsibility, settling into his surroundings while the widow, Mrs. Litvak (Lynn Cohen), retires upstairs. Left on his own, Yakov contacts Sarah via text messaging and tries to understand a new world of dating, but something inside the dwelling won’t rest. Experiencing strange occurrences while trying to remain awake, Yakov discovers more to Ruben’s existence, exposed to his obsessive research into the Mazzik, a demon attracted to those who’ve experienced tremendous trauma, forced to live with the torturous guilt.

Yakov’s hidden pain isn’t explored until later in the movie, as the screenplay is more interested in the nervous man he’s become. He’s walked away from Orthodox Judaism, left with a small group of people in a similar situation, introduced at a gathering of friends trying to create a circle of support. Sarah is also there, and she’s okay with Yakov’s attention, with the anxious man confronted with romantic interest away from the divide of faith, leaving him exposed to fresh feelings he doesn’t know what to do with. “The Vigil” also establishes the character as someone who needs work, struggling to make ends meet. He’s provided with a business opportunity from Reb Shulem, a figure from his past life, who offers a pile of cash for shomer duty, presenting an easy gig that requires Yakov to remain inside the house, near Ruben’s body, from dusk till dawn.

The premise is a classic set-up for horror happenings, putting Yakov in a vulnerable position during his overnight stay. Household agitation is amplified by Mrs. Litvak, a grieving, scattered woman who remains in the house, providing occasional movement that adds to the shomer’s nervousness. “The Vigil” keeps things calm for a few moments, watching Yakov research tips on how to date women, listen to music, and answer texts from Sarah. However, peace is short lived in the movie, which quickly transitions into a freak-out, with the central image of Ruben’s covered body soon joined by the Mazzik, a demon looking for a fresh life to haunt, finding an agreeable host in Yakov. Just why Yakov is targeted plays into Thomas’s overall focus on the crippling power of guilt, with living room inhabitants, both living and dead, experiencing a moment of violence they can’t erase, changing their lives forever. While Thomas is dealing with a supernatural force in “The Vigil,” he gets under the skin with the material’s real-world encounters with cruelty, with the Mazzik symbolizing more than just an otherworldly presence.

The Vigil Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Daylight is almost nonexistent in "The Vigil," which takes place primarily at night and inside a small apartment. Darkness is the theme here, with the AVC encoded image (2.39:1 aspect ratio) presentation doing well with delineation, finding nothing lost to solidification. The production is focused on shadowy encounters in black spaces, but frame particulars remain present. Detail primarily deals with the Yakov's facial surfaces and decaying elements of the living space, which register as intended. Costuming is fibrous and decoration is open for study. Colors are limited, but glowing greens from phone displays and interior lighting are distinct, along with warmer offerings from lamps around the body. Skintones are natural. Some artifacting is present, most notably during the film's finale, which uses limited sources of light.

The Vigil Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 5.1 DTS-HD MA mix provides requisite creepiness, offering compelling surround activity with strange movement and thumping inside the apartment. Shocks also come through with circular intensity. Dialogue exchanges are sharp, with crisp enunciation and accents. Music supports as needed. Sound effects are key to the listening experience, and creaks and cracks are clear, offering a pronounced presence on the track. Low-end isn't challenged, with some heavier hits during acts of violence.

The Vigil Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• A Theatrical Trailer (1:56, HD) is included.

The Vigil Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Thomas works with genre expectations in "The Vigil," sending Yakov into the dark to figure out what's going on. He can't leave the home due to physical pain, and attempts to reach the outside world through his phone are disrupted by the elusive enemy. There are a lot of creepy encounters in the picture, which Thomas executes superbly despite some obvious budget limitations. Panic is helped along by Davis, who gives a sensational performance as Yakov, carrying the movie with his intensity, and he also clarifies the character's crisis of faith and guardianship, giving the feature some gut-punch emotion to help it rise above the genre norm. "The Vigil" doesn't provide a rowdy viewing experience, but it delivers requisite unease with a distinct cultural point of view, reaching beyond simple scares to find terror of a different, more intimate kind.