A twist filled horror thriller that deals with themes of obsession and doubt, Girl at the Window places classic American horror conventions in an Australian film, resulting in a watchable if at times messy teen slasher movie.

The setup for Girl at the Window is as classic as it gets: high school teen Amy (Ella Newton) and her widowed mum Barbara (Radha Mitchell) move to rural Australia for a fresh start. One night Amy hears a scream. Peeping through her window she witnesses her neighbour Chris (Vince Colosimo) acting suspiciously. Convinced Chris is up to no good, Amy starts her own investigation, resulting in a blend of Nancy Drew style snooping and teen slasher tropes.

Director Mark Hartley – who made a name for himself with the excellent documentaries Not Quiet Hollywood and Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films – borrows heavily from the voyeuristic thriller sensibilities of Brian De Palma (Dressed to Kill) with his use of split-screen and split diopter throughout the film. Girl in the Window has the style, with Garry Richards (The Furies) providing sharp photography, yet it doesn’t have much in the way on consistency as a suspense driven horror movie.

The elements are there for the film to be so. The screenplay written by Terence Hammond (Last Dance) and Nicolette Minster (her feature film debut) has some nice twists and turns to its murder mystery that relays into themes of obsession and doubt, as one young woman’s credibility and sanity is constantly questioned by a small community reeling from the deaths of several teens at the hands of the “Clockwork Killer”. Much in the way of eye-popping violence is featured throughout.

As the “girl” in the films title, Ella Newton delivers on the psychological and physical distress her character endures in her obsessive pursuit for the truth. Minster was brought on by Hartley to flesh out the character to suit the “believe all women” political climate, and it is an interesting element that gives some spice to the scream queen trope.

Girl in the Window doesn’t consistently capture those elements that could have made this latest Aussie horror flick a notable addition to the teen slasher genre. Hartley has a great eye for the visual and a clear passion for horror cinema, yet his second feature narrative proves to be less the sum of its parts.