Astral (2018) Characters, Setting & Themes Explained

The movie takes place in the United Kingdom, primarily centered on the Harmann family home and a university campus. The family home serves as the main location where supernatural events unfold, particularly around the attic. A psychiatric hospital is also featured, where Claire is briefly held before her death.

• uk setting
• harmann home
• university
• haunted house

Astral is set in present-day Britain in the early 2020s. The film uses modern elements like video footage and a contemporary university environment to ground the supernatural events in a recognizable, everyday world.

• present day
• modern setting
• 2020s britain

The film explores three primary themes: the supernatural realm of astral projection and spirits; the psychological weight of trauma and grief, particularly surrounding a mother's death; and the clash between occult practices and scientific rationalism. These themes intertwine as Alex's experiments blur the line between the living world and the afterlife.

• supernatural
• trauma
• grief
• occult
• astral projection

Astral centers on astral projection as a gateway between the living world and the realm of spirits. Shadowy entities progressively take more human forms, including a ram-headed figure and the demon Asmodeus. The film explores the dangerous consequences of opening doors between realms that should remain closed.

• astral projection
• spirits
• demon asmodeus
• entities
• occult gateway

Alex Harmann is a 21-year-old British university student who turns to astral projection after his mother Claire's suicide. He approaches the practice as a scientific experiment, hoping to contact her in the afterlife. His research becomes increasingly dangerous as entities attempt to inhabit his body, threatening his grip on reality.

• alex harmann
• protagonist
• university student
• astral projection

Claire Harmann is Alex's mother, who is released from a psychiatric hospital and becomes mysteriously drawn to the attic of the family home. Her suspicious death is later revealed to be caused by demonic influence rather than mental illness, reframing her perceived madness as genuine haunting.

• claire harmann
• mother
• psychiatric hospital
• attic

The attic serves as the focal point of supernatural activity in the Harmann home. Claire is mysteriously drawn there before her death, and it becomes the site where demonic entities manifest. The space represents both the gateway between realms and the manifestation of the family's buried trauma.

• attic
• haunted space
• supernatural gateway
• family trauma

The film presents a tension between Alex's rational, scientific approach to astral projection and Michelle's occult practices, including Tarot reading and exorcism. Dr. Lefter provides clinical explanations for the phenomena. The climax suggests both approaches have merit but must be handled with caution, as opening supernatural doors cannot be easily closed.

• science vs occult
• tarot
• exorcism
• rational inquiry

Astral reveals that Claire's suicide was not caused by mental illness alone but by demonic possession, specifically the demon Asmodeus. The family history contains generational trauma tied to supernatural influence, with the attic serving as a conduit for entities that have plagued the family line.

• family secrets
• demonic possession
• generational trauma
• asmodeus

Astral maintains a dark, tense, and psychologically gripping tone throughout. The film is emotionally heavy, dominated by grief, sadness, and constant threat from malevolent entities. There is virtually no humor, with only a minor romantic subplot providing minimal relief from the pervasive darkness.

• dark tone
• psychological thriller
• horror atmosphere
• emotional weight

Astral ends on a bittersweet note. While the immediate supernatural threat is resolved and Alex gains some closure with his mother's memory, the knowledge that his family's generations were haunted by demonic influence leaves a somber resolution. The triumph over evil comes with the weight of understanding this generational trauma.

• bittersweet ending
• closure
• resolution
• emotional payoff