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Orphan: First Kill – It’s Orphan Time (Again)!

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After 13 long years, there is finally another addition to the Orphan cinematic universe. 

Set just months before the events of the original film, Orphan: First Kill offers some of Leena’s backstory and explaining how she became Esther. In many ways, the film is set up with the same basic premise as the original as Esther is adopted by an incredibly wealthy family as their long-lost daughter. As she lives a life of lavishness and extravagance, Esther does her best to fit in by stepping into the life of the real Esther. Determined to keep up the façade of her new life, she must get rid of anyone who stands in her way.

Directed by William Brent Bell, Orphan: First Kill is a solid long-awaited prequel to the Orphan franchise. Taking pages from the original film, First Kill starts off with a false sense of familiarity as Esther tries to blend in and manipulate a seemingly clueless family. Even so, although it offers fans the same creepy horror vibes that made the original a success, the film still manages to surprise by going in a very different direction than its predecessor that makes it unique. 

Whereas the first film used the mother’s perspective, First Kill instead uses Esther’s point of view to tell its story. Beginning from her time in a psychiatric facility, the film even reveals moments that would have been private to Esther in the last entry. One example of this comes as Esther messes up on information that the real Esther would’ve known. After the critical error, she goes to the washroom and punching a wall in anger. First Kill‘s shift in perspective provides context for the later film by showing the initial challenge of stepping into the role. These moments are often hilarious but also carry a terrifying edge. What’s more, by using Esther as the primary point of view, the film completely twists the dynamics of the franchise. (In fact, doing so almost even makes her the film’s hero.) 

Overall, Orphan: First Kill is a great entry to a franchise that was long overdue for an expansion. Offering fans all of the great vibes from the original, First Kill still manages to shock and intrigue the viewer with some surprises that suggest that the franchise may not be dead after all. 

Orphan: First Kill is available on PVOD on Friday, August 19th, 2022.

Nope: Say Yes to Nope

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Jordan Peele has come to dominate the comedic horror genre. 

Bursting out of the gate with Get Out and Us, Peele has established himself as one of the great voices of this generation. Now, with the release of Nope, Peele continues his trend of creating original and inventive sci-fi horror that subverts them our expectations with thought-provoking surprises. 

Set on a vast secluded desert range in California, Nope tells the story of OJ and Emerald Haywood (Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer). After their father is killed in a freak accident, the two siblings are left to deal with the horses that they train for use in Hollywood films. However, mysterious things keep happening on the ranch. The power goes out, horses go missing, and debris falls from the sky. However, when the OJ and Emerald suspect that there’s an unidentified flying object in the sky, they become determined to get photographic evidence of this alien ship and prove to the world that there are life forms that are Not On Planet Earth.

Anchored by a tremendous cast, Nope is more than just pure spectacle. Featuring solid work from Steven Yeun, Michael Wincott and Brandon Perea, the film feels almost plausible due to the strength of their work. Nevertheless, the best performances comes from Kaluuya and Palmer. Having worked together on Get Out, Peele understands how to bring out the best in Kaluuya and that is certainly the case here. As the heavily burdened OJ, Kaluuya brings a confidence to the role that grounds the film. However, at the same time, Palmer absolutely shines as well, bringing a liveliness on screen that contrasts Kaluuya’s gravitas. 

Classic sci-fi films often identify aliens as technologically-advanced sophisticated beings and, without spoilers, Peele brings his own unique spin to the genre. In this way, Nope is also a great love letter to old school Hollywood filmmaking, and acknowledges the role of the black community within that space. However, while both Get Out and Us have contained messages about social injustice within the Black community, Nope takes a slightly different approach. By using sci-fi tropes as his backdrop, Peele creates a film which both celebrates and satirizes our obsession with celebrity culture.

Although their family has been involved in Hollywood for generations, the Haywood family remains relatively unknown in the world of movie-making. When they realize that footage of the potential invaders could bring them mega-stardom, OJ and Emerald fight to get the perfect shot, risking their lives in the process. (After all, this is their chance to get on Oprah.) In fact, everyone in Nope seems to wants their shot at glory. Clinging to his time as a child star, Ricky proudly reminds people of his former fame and accomplishments. Hollywood director Antlers Hoist (Michael Wincott) wants to leave his mark on the industry which has relegated him to commercials. Even minimum wage tech-employee Angel can’t help but look for something more. 

But, as Hoist reminds, the fame isn’t always worth it. And it comes at a cost.

Whether it’s Ricky’s tragedy on set or the endless stream of casualties at the hands of their alien attackers, those who choose to stare too deeply into the eyes of fame find out first-hand how quickly things can go sideways. Coming at a time when celebrities fall from grace on a daily basis, Nope highlights how easy it can become to broken by the sheer carnage around us. While the film doesn’t entirely demonize those who have done wrong—look for the ‘fist bump’—it does remind us of the danger of toxic celebrity. Allegations, scandal and controversies on social media dominate the news cycle, creating a proverbial dark cloud over the industry. (Note that Peele even named his main character ‘OJ’.) These shadows can weigh heavily on us, especially if we spend too much time focusing on upon them.

The more you stare into the abyss, the higher chance there is of you getting sucked into it.

With even film, Peele continues to show that he understands what it takes to elevate sci-fi horror beyond thrills and chills. While the film is slightly more difficult to decode than his previous efforts, there’s no doubt that Nopeis another win for the director. Fueled by fun and fury, the film provides all the necessary scares but also provides solid social commentary through sharp writing.

In other words, Nope is worth saying yes to.

Nope is available in theatres on July 22nd, 2022.

Culture Shock: Blowing Up Independence Day

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Set at the Mexican-American border, Culture Shock tells the story of Marisol (Martha Higareda), a young Mexican woman who is fleeing the dangers of her home in search for a new life in America. Yearning for freedom and safety for her family, Marisol fights and claws to cross the border only to discover that the world she’s dreamed of may actually be more of a nightmare.

Released as part of Blumhouse’s Into the Dark horror anthology, Culture Shock is a fun and increasingly dark sci-fi horror with a social conscience. For her first feature film, director Gigi Saul Guerrero shows an incredible amount of confidence behind the camera. There is a fire within her direction that drives the film and underscores her passion for justice. Part Get Out and part The Stepford Wives, Culture Shock has all the ingredients necessary to cook up something special and executes effectively. Fueled by an inner rage, the film is as sharp in its satire as it is brutal in its gore. 

Although the film features solid performances across the board, Shock benefits most from some excellent work by Higareda. As Marisol, Higareda’s performance contains a strength that carries the film. Whether she’s fighting the perils of crossing the border or attempting to navigate a community BBQ, Higareda attacks each scene with ferocity and courage. (It’s also worth noting the most surprising performance comes from Creed Bratton. Best known for his work on The Office, Bratton’s comedic chops are rarely utilized here. Instead, there’s a snarl and grit within his performance that catches the viewer off-guard.)

Visually, Shock is an absolute treat as well. Although she begins with muted colours and heavy shadows, Guerrero eventually fills the screen with clear and crisp red, whites and blues as her vision of the American Dream takes hold. Once Marisol crosses the US border, she is met with the purest of Americana, including fireworks, barbeques and flags galore. This world is meant to represent the very best of US ideals, embedded with a sense of purity, safety and, above all else, hope. 

However, Shock shows that not all dreams are reality. 

Leaning into the darkest edges of American immigration, Shock speaks to the dangers inherent to starting a new life. As Marisol leans into the life that she (thinks) has always wanted, so too does she begin to see her identity slip away. Pressures of language and food subtly chip away at her Mexican heritage, shaping her into a White American model. More than this, however, Shock exposes the pain and suffering it is caused by American immigration policies (especially those under the Trump era). From the separation of families to sacrificing one’s cultural identity in order to ‘fit in’, Guerrero uses her horror to underscore the tragedy of recent real-life events.

But therein lies the irony.

Into The Dark — “Culture Shock” – A dystopian horror film following a young Mexican womanÕs journey across the border into Texas in pursuit of the American Dream, only to find herself in an ÒAmerican SimulationÓ virtual reality. Ricky (Ian Inigo) and Marisol (Martha Higareda), shown. (Photo by: Richard Foreman, Jr. SMPSP/Hulu)

As stories of xenophobia and racism unravel before our eyes, Guerrero highlights the fact that the greatest myth of the American Dream may be how easy it is to attain. In Shock, we see a world of open doors and opportunity… yet soon discover the deeply rooted pain that lurks underneath. While these stories become more commonplace, these systems show themselves to be designed primarily to keep people out as opposed to welcoming them inside.

In other words, it’s possible that the greatest horror in Shock is that it’s no longer shocking at all.

Culture Shock is available on Super Channel on Monday, July 4th, 2022.

The Black Phone: Answering the Call to Fight Back

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Set in a suburban town in Colorado back in 1978, The Black Phone begins as five children go missing. A mysterious (and presumed) serial killer that targets children–who the media calls ‘The Grabber’–is on the loose and abducting children one-by-one in the area. For his 6th victim, The Grabber abducts Finney Shaw, a clever but weak 13-year-old that’s frequently bullied. Trapped in a sound proof basement by the sociopathic lunatic, Finney needs to get out of his prison as quickly as possible. However, when a seemingly disconnected black phone keeps calling him, he learns that the mysterious callers are, in fact, the Grabbers previous captives with a plan to help him escape.

(from left) The Grabber (Ethan Hawke) and Finney Shaw (Mason Thames) in The Black Phone, directed by Scott Derrickson.

Directed by Scott Derrickson, The Black Phone presents itself as a horror movie with an interesting premise but it’s really about overcoming your fears and standing up for yourself. Constantly getting beat up throughout the film, Finney always takes the abuse without fighting back. (In fact, his friend and even his little sister have to be the ones that fight his battles for him.) As a representation of the ultimate bully, The Grabber only picks on those who are much weaker than him to be his victims, tormenting them for his amusement. When the time comes, Finney has no other option but to stand up to The Grabber. However, in order to fight back, he must use all of the tools and knowledge of the previous victims to defeat his bully and set himself free.

Mason Thames as Finney Shaw in The Black Phone, directed by Scott Derrickson.

Personally, I really loved how they went about the horror and premise of the movie. By using a lunatic abductor as the villain, Derrickson gives a sense of realism to the film as this could easily happen to anyone. Trapped in a small confined space, the film has maintains an eerie claustrophobic feel. (A sense that’s further emphasized by Finney’s reliance on the Grabber for food.) What’s most shocking about the film is the effectiveness of its fight scenes. Inspired by The Karate Kid, the hits are surprisingly heavy with a lot of weight to them, allowing the violence to feel satisfying in the end.

At the same time, although the film seems grounded, The Black Phone also has a supernatural influence to it that should engage horror fans. With each call from those who died at the hand of the Grabber, Finney taps into their power and influence. As a result, the film feel feels almost as though The Grabber is the final boss in a video game and Finney is using tips from the other dead children to ‘level up’.

(from left) Vance Hopper (Brady Hepner) and Finney Shaw (Mason Thames) in The Black Phone, directed by Scott Derrickson.

In many ways, Black Phone becomes really inspirational as it gives anyone who’s ever been bullied the motivation to fight back. As the film builds to its cathartic finale, it’s hard not to empathize with (or even relate to) Finney. One cannot help but put themselves in his shoes as he finds the strength to stand up to his kidnapper.

Derrickson has always been a master of horror and it shows here. Balancing both ‘realistic’ and ‘supernatural’ horror, The Black Phone proves to be a solid horror film with a satisfying ending. In short, this is definitely one scare-fest that will Grab you.

The Black Phone is available in theatres on Friday, June 24th, 2022.

Queen of Spades: A Call to Parents

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We’ve probably all played the game as kids (or, at least, talked about it.)

Whether its at a slumber party or just hanging out with friends, the topic of unleashing the paranormal seems to be a common part of the teen experience. After all, how many of us sat down and tried to terrify one another with stories designed to make us scared to be alone in the next room? Furthermore, from ouija boards to enacting urban legends, how many of us have ever tried to step our toes into the paranormal ourselves?

Queen of Spades follows Anna (Ava Preston), a young pre-teen who’s been hanging out more with older youth since her mom is always at work. One night, the group discuss the legend of the Queen of Spades, an ominous entity that can be summoned by reciting her name while staring into a mirror. Although the experience begins as a joke, the teens become increasingly terrified when members of their group begin to die. Soon, they discover that they have unleashed a horrifying evil and must work together to stop her before she claims all of their souls for herself.

Directed by Patrick White, Queen of Spades is an absolutely fun (but predictable) ride into the world of paranormal activity. Although the tale is based on the well-known ‘Bloody Mary’ folklore, White tries to breathe new life into the idea by focusing on the story’s Russian equivalent. In doing so, he adds a unique spin on the material which helps it seem more original. However, what White is best at is his use of his set design. By emphasizing the numerous reflective surfaces within each room, he creates an ominous sense of dread that pervades the house. (It says something when one can make even the tea kettle seem like a potential threat.) 

In addition, despite some fairly good performances from its youth, the true highlights of the film come from its adults and, more specifically, veterans Kaelen Ohm and Daniel Kash. As Anna’s mother Mary, Ohm is fully believable as the burnt out mother. Despite the nature of the paranormal activity around her, Ohm never really over-indulges her work and even provides the youth with some grounding to their own performances. However, the real story of the film is Kash, who’s clearly having the most fun as the paranoid and broken Smirnov. Though he’s rarely onscreen throughout the first half of the film, Kash steals every scene that he’s in as the fumbling and fearful paranormal expert.

The biggest issue with Spades is simply that this is a story structure that we’ve seen many times before. Even though White does his best to keep things feeling fresh, the film checks off a number of narrative boxes which hold the film back from ever becoming something new. (For example, kids play game that contacts paranormal and start dying one by one as few (if any) adults believe them.) Through no real fault of its own, the premise of the film simply plays itself out as standard horror fare, even if the execution is quite good.

What does set Spades apart though is it emphasis on the relationship between parent and child. While one might expect that the stories of the teens might drive the narrative, it’s the bond between Mary and Anna that becomes the film’s central focus. Though she loves her daughter, single mother Mary is always away at work and her absence has left a hole in their relationship. Without her mother around, Anna is spending more time with kids who are much older than her who push her to act their age. (In fact, its teenage Katy who calls out Mary more than once for leaving her daughter alone and blaming her for the entire situation.) 

In many ways, the film uses its monster to symbolize the irresponsibility of parents who neglect or abuse children. For instance, though she was originally tasked with caring for kids, the Queen of Spades abused that power and become a serial killer. Although the Queen’s legend may be extreme, she serves as an example of the damage that can take place when adults misuse the responsibility of caring for children. (What’s more, in a complete coincidence, the Queen’s nightmarish behaviour also echoes the trauma of the bodies of the First Nations children that were discovered only a few weeks ago.) As a result, when it is held up against the relationship of Mary and Anna, the film serves as a call for parents to place greater value on their kids and help preserve their innocence.

Despite it’s predictable structure, there’s a lot of fun to be had in Queen of Spades. Whereas White may lean into the tropes that we’re all familiar with, his use of set design and special effects help give the film enough entertainment value to scare up some of your time.

Just be sure to cover up the mirrors after you do.

To see our interview with director Patrick White, click here.

Queen of Spades is available in theatres and on VOD on Tuesday, June 15th, 2021.

Possessor: Plagued by our Shifting Selves

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“Pull me out.”

Such is the plea of Tasya Vos (Andrea Riseborough), a corporate assassin who allows her consciousness downloaded into the minds of others so that can commit murders for the benefit of the company. As the focus of Brandon Cronenberg’s latest sci-fi horror Possessor, Vasya has a special gift for her craft. However, with each host that she inhabits, Vasya becomes increasingly broken by her experiences, leading to violent memories and urges that she must suppress in her ‘real’ life. When she accepts a mission to kill the head of a major corporation (Sean Bean), her host Colin (Christopher Abbott) begins to fight back against his unknown mental assailant, causing Tasya to lose control and potentially remain trapped in a prison of his consciousness.

Possessor is a visceral and unsettling sci-fi horror that explores what it means to suppress our darkest urges. While the cast does an excellent job encapsulating Cronenberg’s vision (Seriously, when has Andrea Riseborough ever left a role wanting?), the real story to Possessor is Cronenberg himself.  Featuring complex characters and stunning (and often disturbing) visuals, Cronenberg continues to show maturity behind the camera.  With each long take and slow pan, his slow-burning lens becomes a predator, carefully stalking its prey with an almost soothing intensity. Then, in times of violence, Cronenberg goes the opposite direction, forcing the viewer to watch the unflinching horror that sits in front of them. At the same time, his use of bleeding and blinding colour palette paints a primeval portrait of the inner tensions of Tasya’s victims that blurs the lines of reality. In doing so, Cronenberg’s use of colour and camera almost become visual narrators, not only providing a backdrop for the story but plunging the viewer within it.

With this in mind, Possessor provides Cronenberg the opportunity to explore the fragile nature of identity in a world where we can become anyone in a digital space. As Tasya moves in and out of her hosts, she must fully immerse herself in their world. Not unlike the digital identities that we inhabit on a daily basis, Tasya’s experiences allow her to explore the lives of her psychological victims. However, she also loses a piece of her soul in the process. As a result, though she is hardly in love with her work, neither can she fully separate herself from it either. With each mission, the damage that she has caused continues to take a toll on her. 

Plagued by violent memories, her experiences in the minds of others cause Tasya to struggles to understand what it means to be fully human (or fully herself) anymore. While her husband and son welcome her home, her family brings her little joy. Violence has become her vice and she uses it to feel alive. To Vasya, the ‘jobs’ have become opportunities to experience closer personal connections in the midst of a disconnect—and gruesome—life. (One particular example of this comes when, after a particularly brutal mission, Vasya is asked why she used a knife to kill her victim, as opposed to the recommended gun.) In this way, Cronenberg’s view of identity focuses less on how we mature and grow from experiences but rather the perils of losing ourselves in the process and the damage that we may leave in our wake.

Though terrifying in its brutality, Possessor is far more than another example of graphic body horror. Never one to shy away from complex issues, Cronenberg again is willing to explore the instability of the mind at a time when we consistently put on social masks. By following Vasya’s psychological descent, Possessor reveals what can happen when the foundations our identities are shaken by taking on the roles of others. 

Possessor is available on VOD and in theatres now.

The Lodge: Snowed in Psychologically

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The new psychological horror by directors Severin Fiala and Veronika Franz, The Lodge follows Aidan (Jaeden Martell) and Mia (Lia McHugh), two children who have been raised in the Christian faith. When their mom commits suicide, they are forced to stay with their dad, Richard (Richard Armitage) and his fiancé, Grace (Riley Keough), a young woman with severe psychological issues that require heavy medication that result from her dark past involving a Christian cult. During the cold Christmas break, Aidan, Mia, and Grace are forced by Richard to stay together at their family’s lodge for some quality family bonding. Secluded and isolated from the rest of civilization, strange things start to happen as the power goes out and supplies go missing. As a result, everyone in the lodge slowly begins to losing their minds waiting for Richards return so they can head back to town.

With that premise, one would initially think that The Lodge is a classic horror movie that’s set in a “bottle”, mimicking more recent horror movies like The Visit. As the film begins, the movie focuses on Aidan and Mia’s perspective but, once they’re at the lodge, it shifts to Grace’s point of view. As the mysteries begin to unravel, the film has enough twists and turns to keep you guessing along the way. Are the kids somehow doing these things? Is Grace being influenced by her past cult? Or is Aidan and Mia’s dead mother haunting them? 

The Lodge also carries an underlying theme of repentance. As a survivor of a Christian cult led by her father, Grace witnessed dozens of people who committed suicide or killed because they were labelled as sinners. Although she survived in order to spread the word of her father’s teachings, Grace has tried to move past her horrible past. However, after discovering her horrible past, the kids despise her, unable to accept her. Because of her past, the kids try to punish Grace by cutting the power, taking her medication and food, and trying to trick her into believing they’re all in purgatory and must repent for their sins. (It’s actually ironic that, by viewing Grace as the sinner that must repent, they become the sinners.)

To its credit, The Lodge is unpredictable in its storytelling, keeping the audience surprised along the way. Through its set design, it’s able to successfully create a claustrophobic purgatory in the cabin itself. While the family remains stuck in the cabin with no supplies, power, internet, or connection to anyone of the outside world, they soon find that trying to leave is impossible as they’re surrounded by think layers of snow on thin ice. By their use of bleak lighting and menacing shadows, Fiala and Franz leaves their family slowly drifting to an icy hell with no escape. For that reason, The Lodge was a horror movie that was great at keeping you surprised as the story unravels into an interesting take on a classic horror movie theme.

The Lodge scares moviegoers in theatres beginning Friday, February 21, 2020

LA 92 – 25 Years & The Wounds Are Still Fresh

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(Photo by David Butow/Corbis via Getty Images)

Once upon a time before I became your friendly neighborhood ScreenFish Film Analyst, I was a college student studying theater at Grambling State University.  At the close of my freshman year on campus, “the yard” – our pet name for the campus – was all abuzz with thoughts of SpringFest, our annual celebration marking the close of the semester full of concerts featuring top R&B & hip hop artists, parties on and off campus, and nonstop debauchery. Unfortunately for me, who like many other students hailed from Los Angeles, our plans for big fun took a sharp detour.

For on this day, April 29, 1992, a Simi Valley jury acquitted four police officers who were videotaped while beating unarmed motorist Rodney King. The tape told the story. The batons lashed at the man’s body with full force. As comedian Eddie Griffin stated on an episode of “Def Comedy Jam,” even “Stevie Wonder could see these [men] were guilty!” Yet they beat the rap.

And then a few angry citizens of South Central LA beat down buildings, police cars, store owners and truck drivers who happened to be at the absolute wrong place at the most unfortunate of times.

Twenty-five years later, the pain of that day was revived in my memories thanks to the National Geographic documentary LA 92. Premiering Sunday April 30 at 9/8c, the film, directed by Dan Lindsay & TJ Martin merges archival footage from the 1965 Watts riots with the events leading up to the 1992 riots.  Both incidents were sparked by police brutality. Both had LAPD brass defending the actions of their officers accused of their crimes. Both bore the fury of outraged citizens who were tired of the seemingly never-ending cycle of violence and suffering at the hands of those mandated to protect and serve.

The film doesn’t merely focus on the Rodney King beating.  It also depicts the killing of Latasha Harlins, who was killed by a Korean store owner for allegedly stealing orange juice. The store owner was found guilty of voluntary manslaughter – but served no jail time for shooting this unarmed teenager in the back of her head while leaving the store.  This incident, along with the acquittal of those four officers, made those early 90’s Black citizens of LA conclude that their lives did not matter.  So after the infamous NOT GUILTY verdict was announced – and despite the pleas for peace coming from LA’s First AME Church – the city burned.

And, to be clear, it was THE ENTIRE CITY that burned, not just South Central LA.  The riots touched down in Koreatown and the outskirts of Hollywood as well.  But, of course, South Central was the epicenter as witnessed by the horrific assaults that took place at the intersection of Florence & Normandie…which was five minutes away from my house.

(Photo by Steve Grayson/WireImage)

As stated earlier, the film features one hundred percent archival footage.  All images are captured from VHS/Beta/Videotape footage from back in the days.  The anger of the citizens was captured. The filmmakers, in my opinion, made a huge omission in telling this story.  If EVER there was a golden opportunity to merge in NWA’s controversial classic “F The Police,” this was it.   That song was the battle cry of those LA residents who were fed up by the boys in blue who felt that their badge gave them “the authority to kill a minority.”  LA hip hop artists did not hesitate to put on wax their tales of police brutality and harassment.  Ice Cube’s “Black Korea” even gave a bold prophecy of what would happen if other Asian store owners continued to harass their Black clientele and take matters into their own hands.  Those musical examples are missing from the film; with orchestral music in their place.  Those glaring oversights make the film ever so incomplete in telling this story.

Twenty-five years later, I’m out of college, raising a family in the LA suburbs, about to make a MAJOR relocation to Dallas, TX.  But watching this documentary was like ripping a Band-aid off of a wound that was not quite healed.  Because as I watched those events from yesteryear, I couldn’t stop thinking about Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Saundra Bland, Philando Castile, all the other victims of police brutality, and all the subsequent riots across the country because of the blind eye of justice – DESPITE the videographed evidence. The documentary closes out with Rodney King’s forlorn cry asking “Can’t we all just get along?”

Twenty-five years later, it doesn’t look that way.  The anger still burns in the nation. The wounds are still fresh. The pain has not gone away.

3.4 Learning THE CRAFT

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Hallowe’en is here! In a spooktacular episode, Steve invites Allen Forrest on the show to talk power and identity in 1996’s cult classic, THE CRAFT.

Want to continue to conversation at home?  Click the link below to download ‘Fishing for More’ — some small group questions for you to bring to those in your area.

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A special thanks to our Allen Forrest for joining us!

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Lights Out–Overcoming Darkness

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Call it the potato chip effect.

If one is delicious, fifty must be amazing.

Or maybe you could label it the exercise effect.  If running three miles is healthy, running fifty must be exponentially more invigorating.

And you could most certainly call it the horror movie effect.

If the first one was good, the five sequels will be even better.  If the original kills were gruesome, the subsequent deathblows will mind-warping-ly nauseating.

Whatever you call it (big surprise, we’ll be referring to the horror one), it’s the idea that bigger is better and that if some were sufficient, more must certainly be glorious.

Nobody seems to ascribe to this philosophy than the aforementioned horror screenwriters and producers.  But sometimes, it’s not even about compounding carnage or exponential eviscerations.

Sometimes, it’s just about taking a really great, really small, really simple idea and blowing it way out of palatable proportions.  The latest example is Lights Out, a pale one-and-a-half hour upsize of a stellar two-and-a-half-minute indie film.

The original short film premise was simple: a woman who appears to live alone is preparing to go to bed.  When she turns the lights off, she glimpses the silhouette of a shadowy figure at the end of the hall.  When she flips the lights back on, the figure is gone.  Another flip to darkness, and the shadow appears again.  Lights on, no shadow.  Lights off…you get the drift.  She finally makes it to the bed, and turns out the lights.  Then her door shuts on its own.  As she cowers beneath the covers, she timidly sneaks a hand out to click on her nightstand lamp.  Gradually, she peeks her head out to find the door open.  She breathes a sigh of relief, figuring she’d imagined the whole scenario.  Just then, she glances back to the nightstand to find a hairy, toothy goblin waiting for her.  He extinguishes the lamp and the credits roll. It’s a wonderful final-gotcha’-jump scare that works beautifully; so much so, that it’s garnered 3.5 million YouTube views.

So naturally, someone thought it would be worth capitalizing on.

Hopes were high as horror wunderkind James Wan (director of the highly successful The Conjuring films) was tapped to produce the big screen adaptation.  But not even he could save it from being a much more convoluted and unnecessary version of the source material.  The gimmick works great for a three-minute film, but wears thin after the big screen opening scene.  Though it wants to be part supernatural thriller, at its core, Lights Out is a fright film based solely around the jump scare (and there are plenty included in case you missed the first three or four).  The problem is, the jump scares cease being scary before we ever get to any of the supernatural explanation that seems rushed and incomplete.

It turns out that struggling single mom Sophie (Maria Bello) has been tormented by this lights on/off specter since she was a little girl in a mental institution and by the time the film begins, her fragile psyche is at a tipping point.

Martin decides it may be better to sleep with the lights on.

Husband Paul (Billy Burke) and daughter Rebecca (Theresa Palmer) left because they couldn’t handle her decline or the genuine manifestation of the very real, physically hostile shadow creature.  Sophie’s son, Martin (Gabriel Bateman), her last vestige of hope for a familial connection, goes to stay with his estranged sister the dark figure begins to accost him.

Sophie reveals her long and storied history with Diana.

It’s then up to the kids to try and save mom from Diana…who turns out to be little more than a disappointing comic-book-style villain (SPOILER ALERT!!!): as a girl she suffered from a severe skin condition that left her physically vulnerable to light; an unsuccessful light-therapy cure attempt killed her, but left her ghost with the ability to thrive in darkness only—once the lights are on, she disappears.

Bad news Rebecca: you're only holding a tube light, not a lightsaber.

It comes off as an interesting premise, but not a scary one (but man, the crazy disco parties they could’ve had if they’d installed a strobe light and The Clapper).

The shadowy Diana waits in the corner...where's a lava lamp when you need one?

There is an underlying sense of family dynamics and a subtle allusion to the return of the prodigal—though it’s not the kids who have journeyed into the far country even though they’re the ones who left.  The true wanderer of the film is Sophie, because she’s allowed her strange relationship with Diana to overshadow her relationship with her family.  And when that light bulb finally goes off, Sophie realizes she may have to make the ultimate sacrifice to keep her kids from being overcome by the darkness.  In our side of reality, it was Christ who made the sacrifice, giving his life to save us from the all-too real horror of sin and death.  John employs a stunning visual to illustrate this miraculous gift as he personifies Christ this way:

“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” (John 1:5). 

It is only through Christ’s work of salvation that we–or our world–can defeat the darkness.  And fortunately for us, it really is as simple as flipping a switch: believe, repent and follow.  Step toward the light.

And fortunately for the team behind Lights Out, it cleared $148 million worldwide and has been greenlit for a sequel.  So like it or love it, get ready: the sun’s not going down on the franchise anytime soon.

Crunch all you want, they’ll make more.