It’s lobsters dipped in butter by day and ghosts dipped in blood by night in the great state of Maine in the exceptional haunted thriller The Ruse, written and directed by Steven Mena. One dark night in the coastal town of Blue Hill, home health aid Tracy (Kayleigh Ruller) is on the phone with her boss, screaming that she is at the end of her rope. She has been looking after her client, retired conductor and composer Olivia (Veronica Cartwright), for 96 hours without any shift relief. She is also starting to hear noises and see strange things, which she attributes to a lack of sleep. That night, something sneaks up behind Tracy, and the next morning, she is gone.
Dale (Madelyn Dundon) gets an early morning call from the health aid agency, letting her know that, due to an emergency, they are going to give her another chance, as she has been let go because of what happened to her last client. Olivia is cranky from all the changes, as she is obsessive about keeping everything in its place, right down the the knick-knacks and mug on her table. While lying in bed on her oxygen machine, she constantly asks what is going on and where Tracy is.
“She also knows how to work the horror genre in a truly wicked way.”
Dale meets next door neighbor Tom (Michael Steger), who comes by to help out bedridden Olivia, as well as young dude Ben (Drew Moerlin), who delivers the groceries on his scooter. Tom’s little daughter, Penny (Nicola Jeanette Silber), tells Dale she won’t last in the house for three days, because the house is haunted. Dale starts seeing and hearing things, while Olivia talks about how her husband comes by to visit and tell her things, even though he died a while ago.
Maine already exports a great deal of blueberries and potatoes outside the state, but what they really need to do is start pumping out movies like this across the country. While many folks want to experience the beauty of vacationland themselves, the state has become so swarmed that most scenic views are framed by the backs of everyone else’s heads.
"…dark enough and clever enough to really light up your evening..."
