Coming Home in the Dark (2021)

🎬 Verdict: ★★★★☆ (4/5)
Coming Home in the Dark is a harrowing, minimalist thriller from New Zealand that grabs you by the throat in its opening moments—and refuses to let go. Directed by James Ashcroft in his feature debut, the film is a grim, atmospheric descent into violence, guilt, and the inescapable past.

Plot: A Family Trip Turns Into a Nightmare

Set against the vast, empty landscapes of rural New Zealand, the story follows high school teacher Alan ‘Hoaggie’ Hoaganraad (Erik Thomson), who is on a casual family outing with his wife Jill (Miriama McDowell) and their two teenage sons. But tranquility is shattered when they cross paths with two drifters—Mandrake (Daniel Gillies) and his volatile accomplice Tubs (Matthias Luafutu). What begins as a tense robbery quickly spirals into something much darker, more personal, and emotionally devastating.

The film soon reveals that this isn’t a random act of violence—Mandrake has a bone to pick, and Hoaggie’s past isn’t as innocent as it first appears.

Performances: Raw and Relentless

• Erik Thomson delivers a career-defining performance, shedding his usually affable screen presence to portray a man forced to confront his deepest shame.

• Daniel Gillies is magnetic and chilling as Mandrake. With a calm, philosophical menace, he evokes comparisons to Anton Chigurh from No Country for Old Men. He’s not just terrifying—he’s fascinating.

• Matthias Luafutu as Tubs brings a brutal physicality, but also an unexpected layer of sorrow and silence, hinting at deep trauma beneath the rage.

Direction & Atmosphere

James Ashcroft directs with confidence and restraint. He keeps the camera intimate and close, using silence and stillness as weapons of suspense. There are no flashy edits, no exaggerated musical cues—just raw, almost real-time horror unfolding in long takes and minimal dialogue.

Cinematographer Matt Henley captures the harsh beauty of the New Zealand landscape, juxtaposing its vastness with the claustrophobia of the emotional trauma unfolding within the car. The score by Liam Copland is sparse and unsettling, never overpowering, but always present like an ominous breath on your neck.

Themes: The Past Always Returns

Coming Home in the Dark is ultimately about complicity, silence, and moral cowardice. It asks hard questions: Is standing by as bad as committing the crime? Can redemption exist without justice? And is some guilt too heavy to ever shed?

Ashcroft, adapting a short story by Owen Marshall, keeps the narrative ambiguous, refusing to provide easy answers or clean closure. That’s part of what makes it linger in the mind long after the credits roll.

Final Thoughts

This is not a feel-good movie. It’s a gut-punch. But for fans of emotionally charged, morally complex thrillers—think Funny Games, The Road, or The Night of the Hunter—Coming Home in the Dark is essential viewing. It’s a reminder that the most terrifying journeys are not through the wilderness, but through the parts of ourselves we try hardest to forget.

Release Details

• Director: James Ashcroft

• Writers: James Ashcroft & Eli Kent (adapted from a short story by Owen Marshall)

• Cast: Daniel Gillies, Erik Thomson, Miriama McDowell, Matthias Luafutu

• Runtime: 93 minutes

• Country: New Zealand

• Language: English

• Premiered at: Sundance Film Festival 2021

• Genre: Psychological Thriller / Drama