What’s interesting is that the film is often more effective when it isn’t trying so hard to scare you.
For installment number 12 of The Halloween Fifteen for 2026, I’m taking a look at The Abandoned from 2015, also known as The Confines. Directed by Eytan Rockaway and written by Rockaway and Ido Fluk, the film stars Louisa Krause as Julia, Jason Patric as Cooper, and Mark Margolis as Jim.
I originally confused this movie with another film called The Abandoned that I had purchased, and I ended up watching this one digitally instead. That worked out just fine, though, because I was looking for a modern ghost story, and this one definitely fits the bill.
The film follows Julia, a single mother who takes a job as a security guard at a luxurious — but completely abandoned — apartment complex. She’s in a difficult position because if she loses this job, she could also lose custody of her daughter. Needless to say, she can’t afford to screw things up.
On her first night, Julia meets Cooper, her sole co-worker, who immediately informs her that people don’t tend to last very long in this particular job. He doesn’t offer much of an explanation, but his unpleasant attitude certainly doesn’t make her feel welcome.
Part of Julia’s job involves patrolling the enormous building, which features elaborate architecture, grand ballrooms, and some seriously impressive interiors. Julia carries a flashlight and wears a small camera attached near her ear as she makes her rounds. During her patrol, she discovers that the security cameras aren’t working in one section of the building. Cooper tells her not to worry about it because the area is unfinished and supposedly empty.
Naturally, Julia doesn’t leave well enough alone. Despite being brand-new to the job, she decides to investigate for herself. She gets the cameras working, breaks the lock on a restricted room, and ventures inside.
That’s when things start to go wrong.
The Abandoned is clearly a low-budget production, but director Eytan Rockaway does a good job building atmosphere and gradually increasing the tension. The building itself provides an excellent backdrop for a ghost story, and there are moments when the film genuinely succeeds at creating an unsettling mood.
Unfortunately, the screenplay relies heavily on familiar horror tropes, and the movie makes frequent use of jump scares. If you’re not a fan of that particular technique, you might find this one frustrating. Personally, I didn’t think most of the jump scares worked very well. Some of the timing felt off, while others simply failed to generate the intended reaction.
What’s interesting is that the film is often more effective when it isn’t trying so hard to scare you. The quieter scenes, where the tension builds naturally and you’re left wondering what’s lurking around the next corner, are much stronger than the moments designed to make you jump out of your seat.
The biggest reason I stayed invested in the movie, however, is Louisa Krause’s performance. She’s excellent as Julia and gives the film an emotional center that helps carry it through some of its weaker moments. Even when the story becomes predictable or falls back on familiar horror conventions, Krause keeps things interesting.
The ending is another element worth mentioning because I suspect it will divide audiences. It raises more questions than it answers, and I can understand why some viewers might find that frustrating. Personally, though, I liked what the filmmakers were going for. The conclusion is unusual, and I didn’t see it coming, which deserves some credit in a genre where so many stories follow the same familiar patterns.
I won’t pretend that The Abandoned is a groundbreaking horror film. The plot has its share of clichés, the jump scares are hit-or-miss, and the story leaves some things unexplained. But the atmospheric setting, Rockaway’s direction, and Krause’s performance make it a worthwhile watch.
Just make sure you find the right The Abandoned, since there seem to be quite a few movies with that title!
3.0 out of 5.0 stars
