Marrowbone (film)

Marrowbone (Spanish: El secreto de Marrowbone, lit. 'The Secret of Marrowbone') is a 2017 English-language Spanish psychological horror mystery drama film written and directed by Sergio G. Sánchez, and starring George MacKay, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Heaton, Mia Goth, and Matthew Stagg. The film tells the story of the titular Marrowbone siblings (MacKay, Heaton, Goth, and Stagg), who relocate from England to their mother's ancestral estate in Maine, where they are faced by a sinister presence at home. Marrowbone was screened in the Special Presentations section at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival and released in Spain on 27 October 2017 by Universal Pictures.

Marrowbone
Theatrical release poster
Spanish	El secreto de Marrowbone
Directed by	Sergio G. Sánchez
Written by	Sergio G. Sánchez
Produced by	Belén Atienza Álvaro Augustín Ghislain Barrois
Starring	George MacKay Anya Taylor-Joy Charlie Heaton Mia Goth Matthew Stagg Kyle Soller Nicola Harrison Tom Fisher
Cinematography	Xavi Giménez
Edited by	Elena Ruiz
Music by	Fernando Velázquez
Production companies	Lionsgate International Mediaset Marrowbone Telecinco Cinema Ruidos en el Ático, AIE. Movistar+
Distributed by	Universal Pictures
Release dates	11 September 2017 (2017-09-11) (TIFF) 27 October 2017 (2017-10-27) (Spain)
Running time	110 minutes
Country	Spain
Language	English
Budget	€8 million (est. $9.9 million)
Box office	$12.3 million

Plot

In 1968, Rose Fairbairn brings her four children; Jack, Jane, Billy, and Sam, from England to her childhood home, the Marrowbone Residence, in rural Maine. She tells them they will use 'Marrowbone', Rose's maiden name. A local girl named Allie befriends them. However, Rose's health worsens and she dies, leaving Jack, the eldest, to care for his siblings. Before dying, Rose makes Jack promise that he and his siblings stay together and hide the news of her death until he can become their legal guardian. Later, a man shows up on the property.

Six months later, the siblings still live in the house. All the mirrors are covered to protect them from a "ghost" in the loft. Jack is the only sibling to visit the local town to pick up necessities. He courts Allie, now a library employee, while keeping his past a secret from her. The town lawyer, Tom Porter, is in charge of the Marrowbone estate and has unrequited affection for Allie.

Tom informs Jack he will come to collect the fee and Rose's signature to finish the paperwork that transfers ownership of the estate to Rose. Desperate for money and panicked that Tom would discover Rose's death, the siblings decide to use the money box at a secluded spot that belonged to their father and forge Rose's signature on the papers. After several incidents, the siblings believe the "ghost" was their father who was bricked up in the attic and left to starve to death after he found them.

Meanwhile, Tom attempts to persuade Allie to come to New York with him, where he is set to begin a new job at a big law firm, but Allie rejects his advances. Before leaving, he gives her information on the Marrowbone family's past. Allie learns that their father, Simon Fairbairn, was a serial killer who was convicted and later broke out of jail. Meanwhile, Jane is convinced that Simon is still alive.

Tom is informed that his new employer is no longer interested in an employee, but a partner. He is offered a share of the firm, which he doesn't have. Tom believes the Marrowbone siblings have more money, and he blackmails Jack. Billy confronts Jack about Simon and urges Jack to deal with him together before Jack has a seizure. Jane decides they must tell Allie the truth. The siblings arrange for Allie to meet up at the secluded spot where she and the siblings first met, but Allie only finds their diary.

Allie reads it, which reveals that Simon found the house six months ago, and Jack locked his siblings inside the attic to keep them safe. He tries to give the money box back to Simon, who leads Jack to the secluded place but is thrown from a cliff and knocked out by his vengeful father. When Jack regained consciousness, he returned to the house, only to realize Simon had murdered his siblings. After bricking up the attic, a devastated Jack prepared to commit suicide, but through his grief and the head injury he suffered during the struggle, he developed multiple personalities of his siblings to convince himself they are still alive, covering all the mirrors in the house to avoid reminding himself that he is alone and going into the attic for the same reason.

Meanwhile, Tom arrives at the house and finds a bricked attic entrance, convinced the money is hidden there, and tears down the wall, but he is attacked by a figure. Allie goes to the Marrowbone house and finds Jack's different personalities arguing themselves. She tries to snap him out of it, but he drives her away, unwilling to accept his siblings' deaths. Noticing Tom's belongings, Allie goes up to the attic and finds Jack's sibling's desiccated corpses, and Tom dying from his wounds. She confronts Simon while calling out for Jack's alternate personalities for help. Eventually, Jack lets Billy take over and kills Simon.

Sometime later, Allie cares for Jack after he is released from a psychiatric hospital. She disregards the doctor's recommendation to make sure Jack takes his medicine, knowing that Jack is happier when he believes his siblings are alive and well.

Cast

• George MacKay as Jack Marrowbone
• Anya Taylor-Joy as Allie
• Charlie Heaton as William "Billy" Marrowbone
• Mia Goth as Jane Marrowbone
• Matthew Stagg as Samuel "Sam" Marrowbone
• Kyle Soller as Tom Porter
• Nicola Harrison as Rose Marrowbone
• Tom Fisher as Simon Fairbairn
• Myra Kathryn Pearse as Molly
• Paul Jesson as Doctor
• Robert Nairne as the Monster

Production

In May 2017, it was announced Sergio G. Sánchez would write and direct the film, with J. A. Bayona executive producing, alongside Belen Atienza producing. In July 2016, Anya Taylor-Joy, Mia Goth, George MacKay and Charlie Heaton joined the cast of the film.

Release

The film had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival on 11 September 2017. It was released in Spain on 27 October 2017 by Universal Pictures. Marrowbone was also released theatrically in the United Kingdom on 13 July 2018. It was released digitally on 18 November.

Critical reception

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 49% based on 75 reviews, and an average rating of 5.40/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Marrowbone's effective setting and strong cast can't make up for thinly conceived characters and a story short on genuine scares." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 63 out of 100, based on 5 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

Remake

A South Korean remake under the working title The Secret House was in production as of February 2024.

See also

• List of Spanish films of 2017

External links

• Universal Pictures official site
• Marrowbone at IMDb 
• Marrowbone at AllMovie
• Marrowbone at Box Office Mojo
• Marrowbone at Rotten Tomatoes