Some weeks the news cycle hands you a title that does its own marketing. Séance, a Victorian Gothic thriller written and directed by Vivian Kerr, who also stars, is getting a limited U.S. theatrical run this fall, and MSN has the new clips to go with the announcement.

The double duty is what catches my eye. Actor-directors have been making Gothic thrillers on lean budgets forever, and the good ones, like The Invitation or the better corners of A24's horror shelf, live or die on atmosphere rather than effects. Candlelight, creaking floorboards, corsets, someone saying the wrong thing at dinner. From the clips that's clearly the lane here.

The timing fits too. October is coming, which means every distributor with a movie involving ghosts, candles, or repressed Victorian grief is racing to the altar. A séance plot is about as autumn as a pumpkin on a porch, and I mean that as a compliment. This stuff works on me every single year.

I've been burned before, though. Gothic horror is easy to promise and hard to land. But the clips lean on stillness and silence more than jump scares, which usually means the filmmakers trust their material. If you want to judge for yourself, they're up now.

Limited theatrical means limited, so if this plays near you it's probably a one-weekend situation. And you know my stance by now: a horror crowd in a dark room can't be replicated on a laptop. Ghost stories especially. Something about hearing strangers hold their breath around you.

No exact date on my calendar yet beyond "this fall," but I'll keep an eye out and pass along theater listings when they firm up. Until then, the clips will have to hold you over.