Carrying on the grand tradition (and captivating messiness) of possession-by-spirit narratives, à la Ghost’s Whoopi Goldberg, Patrick Swayze, and Demi Moore triangle, Went Up the Hill is an eerie-yet-poignant ghost story. Director Samuel Van Grinsven (Sequin in a Blue Room) centers this stylish thriller on the grieving Jack (Stranger Things’ Dacre Montgomery), who returns to an isolated corner of New Zealand after his birth mother, Elizabeth, passes away.

Taken away from Elizabeth at a young age, Jack meets his mother’s widow, Jill (Phantom Thread’s Vicky Krieps), at the funeral. Assuming that Jill had called him home, Jack is unnerved when he realizes it was Elizabeth — a lingering spirit who goes on to inhabit both Jack and Jill. Technically impressive and anchored by strong performances, Went Up the Hill is an incisive, atmospheric exploration of trauma — and an example of dramatic horror at its best.