Steven Soderbergh is famous for also doing the camerawork in the movies he directs, and Presence might be the biggest-ever flex from Soderbergh the cinematographer. From the opening frame of the picture, the filmmaker gives the audience the point of view of a ghost haunting an empty house. The camera sweeps from room to room. Dawn is breaking and the neighborhood is just visible outside the windows. The noises of ramping rush hour are just starting to hum. It’s a performance of a kind — sometimes almost a dance. The first director cameo played from behind the camera. When the Payne family moves into their new suburban home, they’re unaware they’re sharing the space with an unseen entity that provides the audience with a window into their unraveling lives.
Rebecca Payne (Lucy Liu) runs the household with executive efficiency, while her husband Chris (Chris Sullivan) is the family’s emotional core. They have a teenage son named Tyler (Eddy Maday) who’s a local swimming champion and a big man on campus at his high school. Tyler’s little sister Chloe (Callina Liang) is a sensitive kid dealing with grief following a friend’s recent death. The supernatural presence seems particularly interested in Chloe, who possesses an intuitive ability to sense things others can’t.
Presence came out in January, just a few months after Here debuted last November. Robert Zemeckis’ film portrays passing generations using a camera fixed in one spot of a house. Here and Presence engage in opposite strategies, but both feature extreme kinds of camerawork to create formalist domestic portraits. Zemeckis’ film is based on a graphic novel, and while a fixed point of view might be an interesting twist for a story told with still illustrations, it’s a supremely constricting gimmick for cinema. Soderbergh’s experiment is much more compelling because his spectral cinematography serves the purpose of flipping the script on haunted house storytelling, making the audience empathize with the ghost.
As the Payne family’s tensions simmer — marital strain, sibling rivalry, parental favoritism — the ghost observes from corners and doorways. The spirit occasionally makes its displeasure known through toppled objects and strobing lamps. The real estate agent (Julia Fox) who sold the Paynes the house becomes an unwitting catalyst to the events in the film, while a local medium (Natalie Woolams-Torres) arrives to investigate the supernatural activity.
The film’s most unsettling elements emerge through Tyler’s friendship with Ryan (West Mulholland), a troubled newcomer whose interest in Chloe carries sinister undertones. The presence watches their interactions with increasing agitation, building toward moments where the otherworldly and the everyday collide.
Callina Liang’s Chloe is a highlight in this cast. Her subtle glances directly into the camera are perfectly calibrated to inform viewers of her sensitivity to the presence while also slowly ratcheting up the chills. It’s great to see Lucy Liu back on the big screen, but the nontraditional relationship dynamics between Rebecca and Chris feel forced and contrived. If Rebecca is this brilliant, ambitious and successful, how would she ever end up with a marshmallow like Chris?
The film’s 85-minute runtime unfolds in short shots and long takes that read like scenes from a play. Presence captures the shifting dynamics in family relationships while maintaining an atmosphere of mounting dread. Soderbergh’s camera floats through rooms and eavesdrops on conversations with spectral curiosity. However, what begins as a traditional ghost story gradually reveals deeper layers about protection, sacrifice, and the lengths we’ll go to for those we love.
Presence is streaming on Hulu.
Joe Nolan is a critic, columnist and performing singer/songwriter based in East Nashville. Find out more about his projects at www.joenolan.com.