'Presence' is a ghost story about messy family dynamics

Presence

Directed by Steven Soderbergh (Neon, 2024)

Who loves a good horror movie? Well, if you do, you are out of luck. This is not a horror movie. OK, who doesn’t love a scary ghost story? Well, you too are out of luck, because this is not a scary ghost story in the traditional sense.

So, what is Presence? The evocative and excellent new film, directed by Steven Soderbergh, is a meditation on the messy dynamics of holding together as a family during the ordinary and extraordinary challenges of life. It is a focused drama where the main character is a spirit deeply attached to a house and a family for unknown reasons.

That is not a spoiler. Within the first 15 minutes of the film it becomes clear that the story unfolds through the first-person perspective of an unnamed spirit. Soderbergh is not attempting to pull off a clever plot trick but to offer an entry point into the life of the family. The fine camera work is the narrative tool Soderbergh uses to paint a compelling portrait of this mute spirit, or “presence,” as the protagonist in the story. We see what it sees and hear what it hears in its episodic observation and occasional interactions with the family. That is all you need to know.

After watching, my son pointed out how well the film conveys the complex relationship among teen siblings: distaste, annoyance, and frustration paired with an unspoken deeper current of love and concern. The same can be said for the experience of parenting where spouses are not on the same page about raising teens and each is juggling work, family, and their own personal baggage.

Presence takes seriously the interconnectedness of imperfect families that are bound together by a deep love in a way that most Hollywood films do not. That’s why it’s ultimately emotionally wrenching.