The film opens with Kat (Kiernan Shipka) waking from a fractured nightmare in which her parents die in a car accident on a highway. She is staying at a Catholic boarding school and it is the day before February break. Her parents don't so up when all the other girls' families arrive.
Rose (Lucy Boynton) is also staying behind at break. She lies about her folks getting the dates wrong in order to have another night with her boyfriend in town. She get paired with Kat to look after her. This cramps her plans and she also suspects she may be pregnant.
The film presents some long stretches of shots of the large, empty school. Perkins is good at creating atmosphere from the setting. Soon another girl is introduced to the story, a hitchhiker played by Emma Roberts. She has a medical wristband she sheds and is clearly off a bit. A nice couple offer to give her a ride. Again Perkins is talented at created a thick atmosphere of dread. There is something off about how things go down but it is difficult to place. That shows real talent for establishing mood.
All three actresses are compelling but Shipka is a real standout here. She has a look at one moment that is the best moment of the film, an image that will stick with you. Roberts is also very good and convincing as someone who is damaged or scared or both.
The Blackcoat's Daughter does a lot well, especially in creating an unsettling atmosphere. In its attempts to break from horror tropes, it becomes too fragmented to make an impact in the end. The supernatural elements in the film are vague. There is some notion of demonic possession but it never materializes into a plot point. The film is all mood.
3.5/5
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