Three review: This is the Emirati horror film we've been waiting for

Nayla Al Khaja forgoes cheap scares to instill true suspense in this thrilling supernatural tale

Three revolves around a recently divorced mother who tries to uncover the root of her teenage son’s strange and increasingly frightening behaviour. Photo: Nayla Al Khaja

Like any supernatural horror worth its salt, Nayla Al Khaja’s Three knows true terror thrives in waiting for something to happen.

It doesn’t rely on cheap jump scares but rather takes its time to instil fear. It ensures that danger creeps just along the periphery of perception. After all, the unseen is infinitely more terrifying than what is caught on camera. And when the film decides it is time to bring the threat centre frame, it is a treat.

The film, which will be released in GCC cinemas on February 1, is Al Khaja’s debut feature.

However, the filmmaker has long been regarded as a pioneering figure in the local industry. Her most recent short films, Animal and The Shadow, are available on Netflix and have earned their fair share of awards at international festivals. Both films exhibit Al Khaja’s dexterity in pulling and slackening suspense. The Shadow, however, shows her natural propensity towards the horror genre.

With Three, Al Khaja kicks it up a notch and delves deeper into the supernatural and all its creepy, vast symbolical splendour. And she does it with a fine pace and cinematic eye, even if the film stumbles at times with technical missteps.

Three revolves around a recently divorced mother who tries to uncover the root of her teenage son’s strange and increasingly frightening behaviour. She slowly becomes convinced that her son is possessed by jinn and, ricocheting between neurologists and mullahs, tries to find a solution to his condition. As such, Three touches on multiple metaphorical dimensions, from mental health to domestic and cultural tensions.

The film also takes cues from several local folkloric concepts. The ghaf is a prominent symbol in the film, exploring the belief that the desert trees are favourite dwelling spaces for jinn. It also puts the foot into focus, alluding to the numerous associations between jinn and feet.

Three, which marked its world premiere at the Red Sea International Film Festival last month, is not the first UAE film to incorporate jinn. However, previous local attempts to depict the supernatural being in horror have been somewhat lacklustre (remember 2013's Djinn?).

This effort is the supernatural force's most effective and memorable presentation on screen yet. As such, the film can be viewed as a proud addition to the catalogue of Emirati horror and has been crafted in a way to ensure global appeal.

Scary films with a child at the centre depend greatly on the talent of their young cast. Saud Alzarooni excellently takes on the role of Ahmed, who is 13. Alzarooni manages to gracefully flit between loveable, innocent grins and spine-chilling gazes that allude to the evil swirling within.

Faten Ahmed’s performance as Ahmed’s mother, Maryam, is also sharp and underscores the stakes that give the film its edge-of-your-seat quality and keep audiences invested in its characters. Noura Alabed, meanwhile, expertly takes on the character of Ahmed’s aunt, Noora. She provides the film’s comedic relief as the traditional foil to her sister’s westernised beliefs.

In fact, much of the cast does a superb job in their roles. Jefferson Hall, of Oppenheimer and Halloween fame, gives a layered and sensitive depiction of the neurologist Dr Mark Holly, who serves to saturate the cultural tensions in the film.

Even secondary characters, including those portrayed by Abdulrazzaq Al Khaja, Mohannad Huthail and Kelly B Jones, are potent with life and ideology. Cinema Akil founder Butheina Kazim even has a wonderful cameo in one of the film’s most chilling moments.

However, there are some issues – even if they are more on the technical side of things and do not compromise the story or the viewing experience much. Shots blur inexplicably in certain angles, sometimes distractingly so. The sound design is not seamlessly integrated within the film and occasionally detracts from the film’s otherwise fitting score. However, these issues could also be a result of the cinema hall where the film marked its UAE premiere on Wednesday.

But these points are insignificant qualms for a film that accomplishes what it sets out to do: to thrill and move audiences.

An hour into delivering measured doses of fear, the film climbs to its tense and breathless climax, displaying the full force of what its jinn are capable of. During the premiere, some people buried their faces during the film's climax. Others yelped or remained nervously quiet. It was a gleefully frightening experience as the film proved its mettle in its climax. After all, what better litmus test for a horror film than the terror of its audience?

Three will be screening across UAE and GCC cinemas from February 1