Shepherd (film)

Shepherd
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Russell Owen
Written by	Russell Owen
Produced by	Karim Prince Tshibangu Aslam Parvez
Starring	Tom Hughes Kate Dickie Gaia Weiss Greta Scacchi
Cinematography	Richard Stoddard
Edited by	Jim Page Chris Thornton
Music by	Callum Donaldson
Production companies	Castle Valley Film GC Films
Distributed by	Darkland Distribution (United Kingdom)
Release date	14 October 2021 (2021-10-14) (LFF) 26 November 2021 (2021-11-26) (United Kingdom)
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

Shepherd is a 2021 British horror drama film written and directed by Russell Owen. The film stars Tom Hughes, Kate Dickie, Gaia Weiss and Greta Scacchi.^[1]

Shepherd had its world premiere at the BFI London Film Festival on 14 October 2021, and was released in the United Kingdom on 26 November 2021.

Plot[]

In the windy Scottish Highlands, Eric Black attends the bleak funeral of his wife, Rachel. He notices a strange black figure in the distance. This is revealed to be a nightmare as Eric wakes up in bed and is comforted by his dog, Baxter, a Border Collie.

While sitting in his kitchen, Eric has a disturbing vision of a crying baby in his drawer – when he opens it, it’s empty except for a sonogram. Later, he spots an advert in the newspaper for a job position as a shepherd on a remote island.

Eric drives to his parents’ old farm house with Baxter. He tells his mother Glenys he's returning home but she rejects this idea, accusing him of abandoning the family and his faith when he married Rachel. When Glenys insults Rachel, Eric, angered by her lack of remorse, leaves. Driving to a nearby lake, Eric nearly commits suicide with a pocket knife. Instead, Eric throws his old wedding ring into the water.

Eric and Baxter take a boat to the island where the shepherd job is located, operated by a half-sighted "Fisher". On the island stands a tall black unlit lighthouse; Fisher tells Eric the light is broken. Next to the lighthouse is Eric's new home, an old cottage. Fisher tells Eric the generator for the cottage is broken but there are gas-lamps inside, and that there is an emergency telephone inside which is often out of order due to the weather. She also hands Eric a black leather-bound journal which she advises him to write in, and tells him she will return next Tuesday with supplies.

The cottage is covered in dust and has taxidermied goat heads mounted on the wall. Eric unpacks an old mug that belonged to Rachel. He discovers the water supply is cut off, so he takes a bucket up the hill and finds a spring. In the spring he spots a wedding ring on a chain, which he pockets. At night, Eric struggles to ascend the stairs to the bedroom due to a phobia of heights.

Over the next few days, strange things begin to occur: Eric finds a cup of steaming tea already made in Rachel's cup, which he smashes; he also finds a bookshelf full of black journals identical to the one Fisher gave him. When he picks one up and flicks through he sees the words "she's a witch", but he does not investigate further. One day, while returning from feeding the sheep, he sees Fisher entering and leaving the lighthouse. When he tries the lighthouse door, on which a strange rune is engraved, it is locked.

One morning he is shocked to find his mother in the kitchen. She breaks down crying and Eric embraces her. Later, she begins to talk about Rachel, telling Eric she hopes that Rachel suffered when she died, at the same time taking a knife and cutting into her hand. Eric is disturbed and asks her to leave, but she corners him instead, just before he wakes up and it is revealed to be another nightmare.

One day, Eric wakes up and finds Baxter has gone missing. The telephone rings and Fisher is on the other end advising him to look for Baxter. He leaves the cottage and follows distant dog noises into a thick fog. He sees a mysterious black figure at the top of a hill, and falls and hits his head in his hurry to reach it. When he does reach it, it is revealed to be nothing but a tall rock. However, beyond the rock he sees an ancient luxury liner in a valley. He follows the dog sounds into the empty ship but he only finds an old iron key on the floor, which he pockets. The mysterious black figure appears behind him, but sensing it, he does not turn around and instead quickly leaves. The next day, he returns to the valley, but there is no sign of the ship.

Eric begins to grow paranoid, staying awake through the night armed with a knife. He hears a baby crying from his wardrobe but opens it to find a stuffed robin. He also examines the ring he plucked from the spring and realises it is his own wedding ring due to the familiar engraving inside it. Eric has nightmares that feature his wife and the mysterious black figure, and one where he sees a baby trapped under the ice and fights to free it by smashing the ice open.

In the waking world, Eric takes the iron key and successfully opens the lighthouse door. Inside he finds the stairs are lined with a variety of stuffed birds. Fighting his height phobia, he struggles to the top where he lights the lighthouse using a lighter that belonged to Rachel. Fisher notices this from her boat and looks distressed. As he leaves, he sees a horrific sight. All the sheep have been flayed open and displayed in front of the cottage. He is distraught to see that Baxter is among them. However, the next day they have all disappeared.

Eric receives a call from Fisher. He says he wants to go home, but she says he is where he needs to be. Later, he picks up one of the journals and looks through it, finding a drawing of a figure holding a lamp to lure a ship onto rocks, titled "The Wrecker". He turns the next page and is shocked to find a drawing of Baxter.

The next day, Eric knocks over a can of fuel for the broken generator, spilling it over the floor. The distorted figure of his wife appears in the kitchen. After a confrontation, he throws Rachel's old lighter at the fuel spill, lighting her and the cottage on fire. He runs out and spots Fisher's boat in the distance. He attempts to get her attention but she is revealed to be making a stuffed bird and deliberately ignoring him. In desperation, he begins to swim out to the boat, but sinks into the water where a ghostly hand grabs him by the ankle and prevents him from escaping.

He washes up on shore where two unclear figures and a dog, who may be Baxter, come running to rescue him. Later, he is interviewed by a police officer, and is unable to give her identifying details for Fisher. He confesses that he caused the death of his wife. He reveals that on the day of her death, he was drunk while driving them both, and the car veered off the road onto a cliff's edge. He was unable to tolerate the height and left the car, causing it to become unbalanced and tip over the edge with Rachel still inside, who was pregnant at the time.

The police officer leaves the room, and the phone inside the interrogation room rings. Eric picks up, and Fisher is on the other end of the line, calling from a telephone box with bloodied hands. He tells her that he's told the police everything, but she replies that she has insurance. She is shown to be picking up Eric's pocket knife and visiting Glenys in her home, implying she has framed Eric for her murder. The lights go off inside the room as Eric puts down the phone. A bright light and sounds of the island come from under the door and as Eric opens it, he emerges from the lighthouse door.

Cast[]

• Tom Hughes as Eric Black, a grieving widower.
• Kate Dickie as Fisher, a half-sighted boat woman.
• Gaia Weiss as Rachel Black, Eric's deceased wife.
• Greta Scacchi as Glenys Black, Eric's estranged, widowed mother.

Production[]

The film began filming in February 2019 and was shot in Scotland and Wales. The principal photography was shot on the Isle of Mull with the interior scenes shot at BBC Studios in Dumbarton. Additional photography (Second Unit) was shot in North Wales. Underwater scenes were shot at the Underwater Studio in Basildon, Essex.^[1][2][3]

Release[]

Shepherd had its world premiere at the BFI London Film Festival on 14 October 2021, and was released in the United Kingdom on 26 November 2021, by Darkland Distribution.

References[]

External links[]

• Shepherd at IMDb