Fantastic Fest 2025: ‘The Restoration of Grayson Manor’ leans into soap opera theatrics
Glenn McQuaid delivers the goods with his new feature film.
We can always use more queer horror. Out of Fantastic Fest 2025, Glenn McQuaid’s The Restoration of Grayson Manor dishes up delights and frights on a silver platter. McQuaid, who co-wrote the script with Clay McLeod Chapman, examines how queer identity is “so often framed through the lens of procreation,” he shares in his director’s statement, and honors horror’s long tradition of the evil hand. High servings of soap opera theatrics and camp balance with the film’s more horrifying elements, ultimately delivering one of the best from the festival this year.
Chris Colfer stars as Boyd Grayson, a privileged socialite and musician. Boyd’s mother Jacqueline (Alice Krige) makes his life a living hell, constantly provoking him, and urges him to finally give her some grandchildren and heirs to the family estate. The current restoration of Grayson Manor mirrors their decaying relationship, but no renovations could possibly fix what’s already broken. A fluke accident leaves Boyd without his hands, and to adapt to his new life, Jacqueline hires a crew of workers, including Dr. Jeffrey Tannock (Daniel Adegboyega), who will attend to his every need. It’s not an ideal situation, particularly as Boyd and Jacqueline’s relationship reaches a fevered pitch.
Tannock, a neuroprosthetics doctor, builds an electric pair of hands that Boyd can control with his mind. What begins as a marvel of modern science quickly unravels into a deadly game when the hands become devices of evil and destruction. With a flair for soaps such as Days of Our Lives and Passions, the film offers all the melodrama you could want, alongside deliciously campy performances from the entire cast, but never skimps on the horror. As Jacqueline’s scheme, in which servant Claudia (Gabriela Garcia Vargas) has been enmeshed, to make Boyd a father commences, Boyd must figure out a way out of this mess and learn to better use his new hands.
The Restoration of Grayson Manor manages a tight balancing act between humor and horror. The cast, namely Colfer and Krige, bring the script to vivacious life, bouncing off one another and turning in career moments. Cinematographer Narayan Van Maele brings his talents, and along with McQuaid, there’s an incredible sense of style that emerges, in addition to the grandiose set design. A great attention to the details heightens the material into a thrilling one.
From various physical gags and setpieces to flamboyant characters, The Restoration of Grayson Manor is the thrilling piece of queer cinema we need right now. Its tremendous heart throbs at its center, with the players gleefully digging their teeth into the script. Glenn McQuaid, his first directing project in 11 years, stakes his claim in the current horror landscape with a cannonball-sized splash. There’s no telling what he’ll do next.
