Initially planned to be put to work as an unwilling sex slave, Angel, a young Deaf girl with an "unattractive" birth mark on her face, instead becomes the assistant to Viktor, who runs the brothel.
At night, Angel wanders the walls and crawlspaces of the house, which is when she befriends newcomer Vanya who understands sign language.
The commander, Goran, brings his squad into the brothel, including his beloved brother, Josif, and another soldier, Ivan.
The shuffling noises inside the room alert Goran, Viktor, and the rest of the squad who come to find Ivan and Vanya dead, with Angel gone.
As the men slowly put down their weapons, Angel grabs the knife from Viktor's belt and stabs him in the foot causing him to inadvertently shoot Josif.
[citation needed] Starburst said: "The film is just powerful and gut-churning enough to leave a lasting impression and one of the strongest directorial debuts of recent times.
[citation needed] Dread Central said: "Hyett’s direction is measured, confident, and darkly poetic throughout, weaving an emotional web of tenderness amidst hopelessness and abuse.
[citation needed] Bloody Disgusting wrote: "What makes The Seasoning House stand out is that everything about it is simple and done in a way that just results in the proper definition of art".
[7] Time Out London criticized what they saw as a "failure to blend the raw sexual violence and social comment with more familiar generic tropes" and the "downbeat switchback ending" that they felt was "neither convincing nor earned.".