Starting out the month of scary movies with a little British film on Shudder called Baghead. A young woman inherits a pub from her estranged father after he dies under mysterious circumstances only to discover the pub has an unusual tenant residing in the creepy basement.

The film has a really strong production design. The look of the pub, the basement and the titular “Baghead” are all expertly realized and throughly creepy.

Freya Allen, best known for The Witcher, plays our heroine. She delivers a good performance as the point of view character learning the ropes of this supernatural entity as we learn them. Peter Mullan as her estranged father is excellent with his dark gravely Scottish accent that adds so much to the ambience of the film. Jeremy Irvine is also really effective as an interloper who insists on meeting the creature in the basement.

My favorite part of the film is the first half as we are exploring this supernatural entity and trying to navigate the rules of this creature. It’s super creepy and holds a lot of thrills. I like that the characters are all very smart and practical in the opening half of the film. They make smart decisions that had me smiling and saying to myself “very clever, I like that.”

My problem is the second half of the film. I’m spoiler territory here so be warned. The creature in the basement is a woman who wears a burlap sack over her head. If you give her an object that was precious to someone who has died she will summon that persons spirit and you will be able to talk to them. However if you talk too long Baghead will take over and start spewing evil and try to harm you. It’s a great premise with frightening implications.

The further we delve into the mystery of Baghead, the faster the movie starts to crumble. Who is Baghead? Where did she come from? Who is the mysterious cadre of shadowy men who make sure the pub is passed down from one owner to the next? These questions have answers that don’t really work for me. The answer is never as intriguing to me as the question. It’s the fine line these movies have to walk.

Other questions like What does Baghead want? And what actually happens if she escapes? are completely unclear. Which is a major problem for the narrative momentum and the stakes for the film. What happens if she escapes should be the most important question the movie answers. If I don’t know what’s at stake why should I care what happens. The tension dissipates in the second half because the stakes aren’t clear.

That said, I had a lot of fun with the film. It’s creepy in all the right ways. It has good performers. I has an intriguing story. I had fun with it. It wasn’t a home run, but it was a strong start to the month.

I’d recommend it. It’s currently streaming on Shudder. It’s my cup of tea.