''The Black Gloves'' is a 2017

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apoca ...

directed by

Lawrie Brewster Lawrie Brewster is a Scottish indie filmmaker, director and producer, known for his 2013 film ''Lord of Tears ''Lord of Tears,'' also known as ''The Owlman'', is a 2013 Scottish low-budget horror film directed by Lawrie Brewster and was his hor ...

and starring

Macarena Gómez Macarena Gómez Traseira (born 2 February 1978) is a Spanish actress. She became known for her many roles in fantasy and horror films. She plays the iconic role of Lola in the television series '' La que se avecina''. Career Born on 2 February ...

. It serves as a prequel to his 2013 debut horror film ''

Lord of Tears ''Lord of Tears,'' also known as ''The Owlman'', is a 2013 Scottish low-budget horror film directed by Lawrie Brewster and was his horror film directorial debut. The film first released on 25 October 2013 in Whitby at the Bram Stoker Internatio ...

''. The film is set during the 1940s and tells the story of a psychologist that soon finds himself at odds with the Owlman, a sinister owl-headed figure.

Plot

Finn Galloway is a psychologist that has become obsessed with one of his patients, a young woman who had been terrified of a sinister owl-headed entity called the Owlman. His investigations bear little fruit until he learns of a former

ballerina A ballet dancer ( it, ballerina fem.; ''ballerino'' masc.) is a person who practices the art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet; however, dancers have a strict hierarchy and strict gender roles. They rely on yea ...

named Elisa Grey, who has sequestered herself at the Baldurrock Estate with only her guardian Lorena Velasco for company. Finn discovers that Elisa suffers from identical fears, which prompts him to begin treating her in hopes of uncovering the truth - only to find that this will likely bring him face to face with the terrifying Owlman.

Cast

... Lorena Velasco * Alexandra Nicole Hulme ... Elisa Grey *

Nicholas Vince Nicholas Vince (born May 1958) is an actor, writer, and film maker who was born in West Germany and lives in South London. He trained at Mountview Theatre Academy, and shortly after graduating he met Clive Barker, modeling for him and later being ...

... Uncle Edward * Jamie Scott Gordon ... Finn Galloway *

Briony Monroe ''Bryonia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the gourd family. Bryony is its best-known common name. They are native to western Eurasia and adjacent regions, such as North Africa, the Canary Islands and South Asia. Description and ecology B ...

... Susan Barrow

Production

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as actor ...

took place in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

and is currently in post production. Like the 2013 ''Lord of Tears'' and the connected 2015 film '' The Unkindness of Ravens'', Brewster teamed up with his partner Sarah Daly, who penned the film's script and served as the film's producer. Also akin to both films, Brewster's Hex Media launched a

Kickstarter Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of July 2021, ...

campaign to help with finishing the film. Unlike the prior two films, ''The Black Gloves'' was shot entirely in black and white, a "noir look" that Daly stated "seemed a natural fit for the Owlman, who is this shadowy entity, always lurking in dark corners, watching.”

Release

''The Black Gloves'' premiered at 28 October 2017

London FrightFest Film Festival FrightFest, also known as Arrow Video FrightFest is an annual film festival held in London and Glasgow. The festival holds three major events each year: a festival running five days over the UK late August Bank Holiday weekend, a Halloween event ...

s All Nighter Halloween Event.

Critical response

''The Black Gloves'' received mostly positive reviews from critics. Author

Kim Newman Kim James Newman (born 31 July 1959) is an English journalist, film critic and fiction writer. Recurring interests visible in his work include film history and horror fiction—both of which he attributes to seeing Tod Browning's ''Dracula (1931 ...

reviewed the film, writing that "the main attraction is a slide into madness that eventually delivers a full-on scary dance sequence with oily creatures and the most savagely fearsome owl-thing yet." ''

Starburst Magazine ''Starburst'' is a British science fiction magazine published by Starburst Magazine Limited. ''Starburst'' contains news, interviews, features, and reviews of genre material in various media, including TV, film, soundtracks, multimedia, books, ...

'' rated the film a score of 8/10, calling it, "a strikingly shot in black-and-white psychological horror film with elements of classic mid-20th Century classics like The Innocents, coupled with the likes of

Black Swan The black swan (''Cygnus atratus'') is a large waterbird, a species of swan which breeds mainly in the southeast and southwest regions of Australia. Within Australia, the black swan is nomadic, with erratic migration patterns dependent upon c ...

and Argento's

Suspiria ''Suspiria'' () is a 1977 Italian supernatural horror film directed by Dario Argento, who co-wrote the screenplay with Daria Nicolodi, partially based on Thomas De Quincey's 1845 essay ''Suspiria de Profundis''. The film stars Jessica Harper as ...

." Kieran Fisher of ''Diabolique Magazine'' praised the film's performances, cinematography, costume design, and unnerving atmosphere.

References

External links

* * British horror films English-language Scottish films 2017 horror films British black-and-white films Films set in the 1940s Films set in Scotland Scottish horror films Films shot in Scotland Films by Scottish directors Films directed by Lawrie Brewster 2010s English-language films 2010s British films {{2010s-horror-film-stub