After a family’s estranged aunt passes away, they’re reluctant and creeped out to receive her cremated ashes. But when a series of supernatural misfortunes beset them, they’ll have to go through hell to be rid of her angry spirit.

Urns don’t belong in a closet, thrown into the ocean, stored in the attic, or anywhere near your family, apparently, as shown in Barry Jay’s 2019 horror film, Ashes. It is a great new addition to the demonic possession genre, one that will hit positive notes for a wide and varying audience, and best of all, has one of the best and most creative ouija board scenes I’ve seen in a long time. Creepy to the core and head deep in the occult and supernatural genres with its ouija board, seances, and violent possessions by very angry ghosts, Ashes is a horror movie centered around a family drama that is so big that it permeates the worlds of both the living and the dead.

A family — grandmother Caroline (Elaine Partnow), mother Ellyn (Elizabeth Keener), her fiancé Duane (Jeremy Isaiah Earl), their eldest daughter Camille (Angelique Maurnae), and youngest daughter Melanie (Yumarie Morales) — become caretakers to the ashes of an estranged aunt from Ellyn’s childhood. Having briefly lived with the creepy Aunt Marion (Melinda DeKay) who had issues stemming from senility during her childhood, Ellyn remembers Aunt Marion as someone that she and her brother played pranks on, laughing at the elderly woman often. Not long after receiving the ashes, Duane and Melanie find Ellyn talking in her sleep, and upon waking her, Ellyn relays that she received a cryptic message from her deceased father urging them to get rid of Aunt Marion’s ashes. Believing her dreams to be real premonitions, Ellyn begs her family to get rid of the ashes, but the topic has them divided on whether to dispose of them or to keep the remains of their deceased family member, based on principle. With all except for Ellyn agreeing to store her in the attic, the remains are placed on a shelf in the attic instead of being buried in the family plot. That night Caroline experiences a sudden stroke, and as the days go on, each family member subsequently experiences more tragedies of their own, causing them to question whether it is just a series of unfortunate events or if they are suffering the wrath of Aunt Marion from beyond the grave.

Wow! Some freaky shite goes down in Ashes. Surprisingly gory and shocking in the violence that the supernatural being inflicts, this movie caused my jaw to hit the floor numerous times. Though the supernatural aspect is on point, Ashes also has an air of comedy in its dialogue, reminiscent of a Korean horror film’s darkly funny tone. The only thing about the comedic aspect that was lost on me was the method of having the characters being interviewed by the cameras, like the method used in The Office — there is no indication of who these characters are talking to, so this method was used for seemingly no reason. However, it did add to the comedy, which this intensely creepy movie benefited from. The creepiness of the movie was punctuated by its terrifying film score, which establishes a foreboding atmosphere using violins and low horns. The suspense and pacing of this film are near perfect, which along with Barry Jay’s directorial flair, is accomplished with the help of the wonderfully cast family.

After a while I forgot these actors were performing since their family bond seemed so real; their loving connection and constant bickering made a family appear with ease early on in the film. Like in Peele’s earlier 2019 horror flick, Us, the husband, played by Jeremy Isaiah Earl, offers a good amount of the comedic relief in this film. The daughters, played by Angelique Maurnae and Yumarie Morales, are perfect scream queens. Mother Ellyn, who suffers the most in this film and who is played by Elizabeth Keener, is amazing! Her scenes call for her to act out some pretty rough possessions, and even when she comes to she plays a woman still possessed by her own psychological breakdown due to the aforementioned freaky shite happening to her. Ellyn is tormented by Aunt Marion, played by Melinda DeKay who also gets some superb possession acting done in this film. The makeup for the possessions resurrected feelings of the Evil Dead movies — delightful and disturbing and all-around entertaining.

Hell hath no fury like a ghostie scorned in Barry Jay’s scary family film, Ashes. It’s a little of The Office, meeting a mix of Paranormal Activity and The Last Exorcism (2010), and a lot of family drama creating the narrative of this film; all of these aspects add up to one quality film. This surprising indie film has a lot to offer audiences, including all of the aforementioned positive points as well as a totally ’80s original rock ballad for the closing credits. If you take away anything from this film, it will certainly be a lesson in treating your elders with care, lest they come back to seek revenge once they finally have power again in the afterlife! In order to watch this demonic feast of a film, catch it on digital and demand thanks to 1091 Media.