Richard, an archaeologist, and his wife, Jules, live with their son Owen, who claims he has been hearing some whistling sounds. So, Richard starts to investigate a mythic folklore about an ancient oak tree on his land. During his investigations, a dark and sinister force pursues his home.
The film had its world premiere at the BFI London Film Festival on 12 October 2023.[4][5] In October 2023, BFI Distribution and Brainstorm Media acquired distribution rights to the film for the UK and the USA, respectively.[6]
Starve Acre was released in select cinemas in North America on 26 July 2024. It was released in the United Kingdom on 6 September 2024.[2]
Reception
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 83% of 63 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.5/10. The website's consensus reads: "Matt Smith and Morfydd Clark are terrific as embattled parents in Starve Acre, an upsetting folk horror tale that locates the doom in domesticity."[7]Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 66 out of 100, based on 18 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[8]