Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘Bethany’

Written by Scott Edwards

Not wanting to become our parents is a fear that many people have, especially when we had a rotten childhood. Knowing that our parents love us and want us to succeed at life is a good thing, but when they force us to do things that we do not believe in, well, that is a different story altogether. Pushing us in a direction that we are not wanting to go can leave scars that last a lifetime and even though I believe in forgiveness, there are still many things that I cannot just let go. As we grow into parents, it is important to remember what made our childhood good and bad and that is the first step in becoming the best parent we can be.
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After her mother’s funeral, Claire and her husband Aaron have made a life changing decision. Moving back into her childhood home may be financially responsible for the couple, but Claire does not have many good memories surrounding the house, especially concerning her mother. Not telling Aaron everything about her past, Claire is quickly welcomed back into her old home by her imaginary friend Bethany who has been waiting to see her again. Getting visions from the past and now haunting dreams that force her to scream herself awake, Claire needs to get help from anyone that will listen to her.

Trying to kill herself after her first child was stillborn, Claire has had terrible personal issues, but refuses to go back to taking her medication. The love that Aaron has for her and his passion for making tea with lots of honey is enough to help sooth her nerves, but Bethany is playing by a new set of rules and is more aggressive than ever before. As Claire finally sees Bethany hiding behind the walls, she does not understand why her former friend wants to hurt her. Waking up to footsteps in the hallway, Claire goes to investigate, but gets pushed down the stairs by the former friend.

Waking up in the hospital with Aaron by her side, Claire finds out another life changing discovery, she is pregnant. Not wanting to have a baby in her old house, there is nothing that she will be able to do to stop it now. As Aaron is making strides at work, he is confident that everything will be fine for the struggling couple. Getting a visit from their doctor, Dr. Brown, Claire seems to be in high spirits as he is invited into the house, but Bethany refuses to be ignored. Attacking her former friend, Claire pulls out a knife and cuts the ghost’s fingers off, but when she sees that she has cut her wrist once again she is forced to question her own sanity. With nobody believing her about Bethany tormenting her in the house, Claire gets a visit from the most unlikely of people who knows a little something about her birth and who is hiding in the walls.

I am not a fan of movies that play with different timelines when telling a story, but when it is done right, I have nothing to complain about and this movie did it right. With Claire remembering everything that her mother did and forced her to do in the past, she just wanted those memories to die, but the house would not let that happen. Watching as Claire was forced to open up to Aaron about her past was refreshing and while I don’t know why she would not have done that before they moved into the house, Claire has plenty of skeletons in the closet that will not go away. The love that Aaron and Dr. Brown show for the woman in her time of need is something that I did not expect when Claire seemed to go completely off of the reservation and their research could be the only thing that can save the young pregnant woman. With a ghostly presence in the house, bad mother memories, creepy cereal eating, terrifying visions, an invisible friend and a family secret for the ages, Bethany pulls at your psyche, especially if you do not have happy memories of your childhood. Stay Scared.

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