I didn’t date much until my junior and senior years of high school, so I entered college with limited relationship experience. That’s where I met someone who still stands out as my personal “red flag.” She wasn’t a horrible person, but she had very specific ideas about being a boyfriend, including a rule that we couldn’t do anything I’d already done with an ex. Apparently, past girlfriends could claim permanent custody of vacation destinations.
“Have you been here before?”
I don’t like to lie, but sometimes I did just so we could leave the house and have fun.
“What do you think of when you think of your ex?”
I thought we were dating, not being deposed. I’d rather enjoy the person I’m with than defend my romantic history. Still, jealousy has a way of making an ex the third person in a relationship, whether they know it or not. Mallory’s Ghost takes that uncomfortable idea and gives it a room of its own.
From writer and co-director Arabella Oz, Mallory’s Ghost follows Mallory (Oz) and her boyfriend, Sam (Nick Canellakis), a playwright struggling with a serious case of writer’s block. Hoping to get the words flowing again, Sam suggests a trip to a retreat in Maine owned by Lorna (Delphi Harrington), where he wrote some of his best work.
There’s just one catch: he also spent time there with his ex, Louise (Anjelica Bosboom).
Already feeling inadequate next to the woman who came before her, Mallory begins questioning whether Sam has truly moved on. When she starts seeing a ghostly presence she believes is Louise, their getaway becomes considerably less relaxing.
The first half of this movie was painful to watch, and I mean that as a compliment to the writing. I’ve been in relationships where it feels like you have to erase your entire past to make the other person comfortable. But stop talking about that past, and suddenly you’re hiding something or still carrying a torch for an ex. There’s no winning. Normally, that kind of discomfort would have me turning a movie off within the first 30 minutes. Oz’s script and the delivery of the dialogue brought those feelings back so effectively that I had to give her credit, even while I wanted someone to change the subject.
As the story unfolds, though, my reaction began to change. Without spoiling where it goes, the film starts questioning how much Mallory actually knows about the woman she finds so threatening. It’s easy to make someone the villain of a relationship when you’ve never had a conversation with them. You can fill in every blank with whatever makes you feel worse about yourself.
The second half gives that idea room to develop, looking beyond Mallory’s suspicion to explore what keeps feeding it. I went from recognizing behavior that frustrated me to becoming curious about what Mallory might learn about herself. That shift gave the film more emotional depth than I initially expected.
The small cast does a good job of making that progression believable. Arabella Oz and Nick Canellakis have a chemistry that feels real and lived in. I believe Mallory and Sam care about each other, which makes it especially uncomfortable when they can’t seem to have a conversation without her fears getting in the way. Oz lets us feel the insecurity underneath Mallory’s behavior without making that behavior any less frustrating.
As our understanding of Louise develops, Anjelica Bosboom also becomes an important part of why the story works. There has to be a person beyond the intimidating ex Mallory has built up in her head, and the film gives us a chance to see her that way.
The retreat, itself, is beautiful, and the cinematography deserves praise for making the setting such a memorable part of the experience. It looks exactly like the place where you could clear your head and get some writing done, provided you didn’t bring all your relationship baggage along for the trip. Early on, I enjoyed the contrast between those inviting surroundings and Mallory’s inability to relax in them. As the story changes, the house takes on a more isolating quality, giving that same beauty a different feeling.
It’s somewhere I’d happily visit, although this movie makes a convincing argument for sorting out a few things before packing.
I give Mallory’s Ghost four out of five stars.
The film started by reminding me of relationship conversations I’d happily never have again, but I’m glad I stuck around to see where it was going. What initially felt like an uncomfortable weekend with a jealous girlfriend became a thoughtful look at insecurity and how little we sometimes know about the people we compare ourselves to. Oz gives those feelings room to develop, and the small cast and beautiful setting make the journey worth taking.
I came in wanting Mallory to give Sam a break and ended up hoping she could give herself one, too.