Nathan Shepka’s new gothic horror tale, The Baby in the Basket (2024) is finally here. We at Malevolent Dark really appreciate the production team keeping us in the loop for this one. From the looks of it, the final product turned out to be quite the departure from the trailer we saw in 2023. This is the first film we have seen from Shepka Productions since When Darkness Falls (2022).
When we first caught word on this project, we thought we were getting a black and white atmospheric thriller in the vein of Darren Arnofsky or David Fincher. What we got is a brilliantly shot full color film with fantastic cinematography and impeccable polish.
The Baby in the Basket – Synopsis
The Baby in the Basket tells a tale as old as the book of revelations. In doing so it covers the gambit from standard gothic horror with deeply religious themes of the questioning of one’s faith, possession and other Satanic tropes.
During WWII a secluded monastery names St. Augustine’s deals with the internal turmoil of faith while a real storm brews outside. During the storm, someone unannounced leaves a baby on the steps of the monastery. The nuns rush to their duty to care for the child, but soon things begin to get weird. Strange behaviors take over the residents of the monastery.
Sister Agnes, played by Amber Doig-Thorne, suspects that child is born of evil and soon her fears are proven be rooted in a dark reality.
Technically Stunning Cinema
Once I got over my own incorrect expectations for the film and I had to quickly assimilate the realty that Shepka was actually delivering. Whoa, was it glorious. It’s impossible to say too much about the set and scene that Shepka chooses to tell his tale. The gothic structure of the monastery is fantastic both inside and out. The structure looms ominously behind a cold grey sky and the mirror surface of a dark body of water.
Even more impressive is the technical aptitude of the cinematography. The film is filled with dynamic shots that move deftly through the expanse of the monastery painstakingly detailing action on the ground while also capturing the enormity of structure. At various points during the epic storm, flashes of lighting flicker across the faces of the cast as they are delivering their lines. This subtle illumination allows the film to revel in darkness while still detailing the action.
An Impressive Cast
Nathan Shepka assembled an extremely strong cast for The Baby in the Basket. It starts with Amber Doig-Thorne driving the action as Agnes, a nun with questionable faith that succumbs to the unholy influence of the demonic baby. Doig-Thorne has an impressive list of credits across genres, but recently has been enjoying a dark turn into horror with Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey (2023) and In Search of Fear (2024).
If her performance in The Baby in the Basket is an indicator of her trajectory, she is on stellar path.
Amber Doig-Thorne possesses the innate ability to subtly project her evil through a veil of calm. Long before her eyes roll back to the demonic whites, the audience can see that something is askew in her mannerisms. The subtle display of malice shines as she suggests that one of the other nuns hang herself in such a matter of fact way that it feels strangely persuasive.
The cast is further bolstered with a strong performance from Maryam d’Abo as Mother Supirior. As a former bond girl in the The Living Daylights (1987) and deep horror creds from the sci-fi horror insanity of Xtro (1982), Maryam provides a foundation for the action to unfold as serves as primary protector for the demon child while everyone else tries to destroy it.
Nathan Shepka plays a large role in his own film as Daniel. Helps maintain the monastery while he secretly desires relations with the nuns. He’s strong man that can resist, but like everyone else at the monastery has a breaking point. Finally, Elle O’Hara and Michaela Longden also bring their own strong performances to adding conflict and resolution to the story.
In the pursuit of atmosphere
The Baby in the Basket intends to unfold a slowly burning narrative that focuses on establishing a dark and foreboding atmosphere over all else. In this goal, the exceeds expectations. Everything from the location, music, editing, lighting and cinematography support the pursuit of atmosphere. Even the subtle reverb of the great halls of the monastery can be felt in the voices of the characters.
This does cause the film’s pacing to drag a bit and even as the final action unfolds, it never feels as explosive as it could. The narrative of the film is solid and well told, but it doesn’t break new ground. Horror fans looking for demonic comfort food will find plenty of it, but Fans looking for a new formula will want for more as the end credits roll.
For all of the atmospheric build-up, the final reveal of the malevolent child feels like an abrupt departure from the atmospheric unseen evil. It leaves the audience wondering if implicit would not have been better than explicit in this case.
The Baby in the Basket – Utterly Fantastic
At Malevolent Dark we get a lot of indie films that start at Kickstarter. Rarely does the final product come with the fit and finish of The Baby in the Basket. From a pure technical standpoint, it sits among the best of the indie films that we have ever reviewed on the site.
Readily available technology allows anyone to pick up a camera and the gap between those with chops and those without couldn’t be more clear. Nathan Shepka and his team clearly have thew chops and this film is a testament to that. With a slightly stronger script and more compelling tale to tell, there is really no limit to where they can go.
We are super excited to see more work from this team.