From sibling rivalry to playing favourites, toxic family dynamics provide fertile ground for horror, as exemplified by the upcoming film The Restoration at Grayson Manor, starring Chris Colfer.

The movie, which was filmed in County Laois and directed by Ireland’s own Glenn McQuaid, blends humour, body horror and gothic aesthetics – and it’s set to make its Irish premiere later this month.

So, what is The Restoration at Grayson Manor about, exactly, you ask? Well, buckle in, because it’s a wild ride.

The film centres on Boyd Grayson (Chris Colfer), a hedonistic heir to a sprawling estate who has a penchant for flaunting his party lifestyle and busy sex life in his mother’s face. His mother, Jacqueline (Alice Krige), is obsessed with legacy and desperate for a grandchild.

Needless to say, there is no shortage of toxic family tension between these two, which makes for the perfect foundation for a gothic horror story. A random accident results in Boyd losing his hands, and Jacqueline seizes the opportunity to control and manipulate her son through experimental technology.

Under his mother’s questionable care, Boyd becomes the first patient to receive prosthetic hands that are controlled entirely by his subconscious. Tempers flare, despicable characters come and go, and the stand-off between mother and son reaches frightening new heights.

Ahead of the film’s Irish premiere, Colfer spoke about the complexity of his character. “Boyd Grayson is a very privileged and deeply damaged person,” he said. “Boyd is a chaotic musician and composer. His music is very out there. It’s very representative of his frame of mind.

“He has a lot of anger going on inside him and he uses music to express that frustration. His mother tortured him in his youth with conversion therapies, so now Boyd lives to make her angry and uncomfortable in any way possible.”

In addition to being filmed in Ireland, an Irish production team is behind The Restoration at Grayson Manor. The film is produced by Brendan McCarthy, John McDonnell and Deirdre Levins of Dublin-based, Fantastic Films, the award-winning production company behind Vivarium, Woken and You Are Not My Mother.

On working in the Emerald Isle to shoot The Restoration at Grayson Manor, Colfer said he “adored filming in Ireland,” adding that he “really just fell in love with the Irish people”.

You can catch The Restoration at Grayson Manor at the Dublin International Film Festival on February 28.