The Restoration at Grayson Manor is the Queer, caustic, sexy, family melodrama set in a gorgeous mansion in the Irish countryside flick that
Fantastic Fest 2025 Review: THE RESTORATION AT GRAYSON MANOR Successfully Balances Family Drama and Murderous Hands
EMILY VON SEELE
The Restoration at Grayson Manor is the Queer, caustic, sexy, family melodrama set in a gorgeous mansion in the Irish countryside flick that you never knew you needed. Glenn McQuaid’s film is a complex balance of moods that come together to create something truly unique and entertaining.
Boyd (Chris Colfer) is a spoiled, lavish, party-going libertine who resides with his mother Jacqueline (Alice Krige) in an old manor house. Jacqueline and Boyd have a bit of a toxic relationship, to put it mildly. He loathes her for refusing to embrace his queerness and see him as a whole person, and she despises the fact that his party lifestyle and sexual preferences have prevented her from getting the grandchild that she so desperately wants. Not so that she can be a doting grandmother (there isn't a soft bone in this woman's body), but so that the family bloodline can continue on.
Yeah, it's a messed-up dynamic, to be sure. Boyd has tried to move out and leave his mother and her smothering life behind a number of times, but has always returned. But now he finds he has to depend on her in an entirely new way. When the film opens, an accident caused by a falling mirror that is part of the manor house's renovation completely removes both of his hands. His mother calls in a special doctor and a private medical team to see to Boyd's injuries from the safety and privacy of their home, instead of taking him to a hospital. Doctor Tannock (Daniel Adegboyega) is a bit of a mad scientist, pioneering a new form of nanotechnology that will pair a set of synthetic hands with Boyd's brain, creating the most advanced form of prosthetics ever seen. Boyd's time in recovery is… strange, to say the least. As the hands begin to pair with the subconscious parts of his mind, they begin moving on their own and attacking anyone in the house who has pissed Boyd off (mostly Jacqueline). In the meantime, Boyd is developing what may be the first truly tender relationship of his life with Lee (Declan Reynolds), one of his nursing staff, and another member is running around the mansion high on just about every hallucinogen she can find.
This film has a very complex vibe to it. At one moment, it's gonzo, with a pair of disembodied hands running around the house like Thing, choking people, and at the next, it's tender and beautiful. Then it will turn on a dime and become something out of a soap opera, as Boyd and Jacqueline battle it out in yet another loud and sardonic exchange of barbs.
And at the end of the day, it's a beautiful story about wanting the acceptance and freedom to live your life fully as the person that you truly are. Boyd is unapologetically out, but that doesn't mean that he is living his life in a completely free space. He is very much still ensnared by the trappings of heteronormative life through his mother's constant pressure to produce a blood heir to take the mantle of their family into the future. Jacqueline is obsessed with lineage. Masses of portraits of their ancestors line the walls of Grayson Manor, never once letting Boyd forget who he is and where he comes from. As much as they despise one another, Jacqueline fully expects his portrait to one day grace the walls of the home as well, for future generations to gaze as they ponder their polished legacy and their place in this world. The push and pull of their relationship makes up the most interesting parts of the film. Yes, they are toxic, but they are also codependent and as hilarious as they are horrible to one another.
I highly recommend this film if you are in any way a fan of horror comedies, absurdism, sticking it to your intolerable, elitist family members, Queer cinema, and hilariously toxic relationships. The Restoration at Grayson Manor has it all.
Listen to the EVIL DEAD ’CAST Team Discuss the Series Finale of ASH VS EVIL DEAD.
As one last hurrah, the Daily Dead cast team has put out one final hour and a half special podcast to mark the end of Ash vs. Evil Dead.
From Evil Dead ’Cast: "This is it, our take on the final episode of Ash vs. Evil Dead, and also the final episode of this podcast. As you'll be able to tell by listening, this podcast was really special for the three of us, and we're sad to see it end for many reasons, not the least of which is that you guys were listening and you wrote and called in with some great comments. Thank you guys! You are truly GROOVY!!
The Shining by Paul Jackson / Twitter / Tumblr / Instagram / Store
18″ x 24″ screen print, signed & numbered edition of 100.
Part of Below the Line 2: An Exhibition of Modern Movie Art, opening September 8th, 6:30pm - 10:30pm at Mills Hardware, 95 King Street, Hamilton, Ontario. More info HERE.
Check out the Daily Dead for a great interview with Paul Davis about his experiences writing and creating this new book ‘Lost In The Shadows’. If it doesn’t wet your appetite even more for one of these kick ass books, I don’t know what will...well, maybe some more candid photos? Ha ha!
Horror fans recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of Joss Whedon's groundbreaking TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, so it's rather fitting that ComiXology Unlimited's new April additions include volumes 1 and 2 (also available as individual issues #1–10) of Dark Horse Comics' Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 9...
Other comic books coming to ComiXology Unlimited this month include Garth Ennis' Complete Battlefields Vol. 1-2, Hellboy Vol. 8 and issues #1-#6, volume 3 of Todd McFarlane's Spawn Origins Collection, and several 25th anniversary editions of popular Image Comics titles.
You can read the full list of new additions to ComiXology Unlimited on Daily Dead, as well as a list of what's leaving the digital platform this month. As a special treat for Daily Dead readers, we also have preview pages from Buffy the Vampire SlayerSeason 9 Vol. 1: Freefall that shows how Buffy's life has changed after magic is removed from her world.
Listen to the EVIL DEAD ’CAST Team Discuss the Penultimate Episode of ASH VS EVIL DEAD.
The Daily Dead podcast will be coming to an end along with the show. You can listen to last week’s ep in anticipation of the season/series finale tomorrow.
"Everything's coming to a head this week, and it's exciting and all kinds of f*#ed up! And we loved it all! What did we NOT love? The news that Ash vs. Evil Dead has been canceled. :( Even though we saw it coming, we're all seriously bummed. But, we're happy to do a couple more episodes of this podcast, and we'd love if you guys took part in the last one, next week.
