Someone apparently decided that 'Paranormal Activity' + 'Pulse' + 'The Grudge' = good movie. Sadly in this case the math was way off.
There are interesting ideas here but the execution is lacking. Credit where it's due; Sebastian Stan gives an impressively edgy performance and Tom Felton shows there's more to him than Draco Malfoy (it's a shame he isn't given more to do). Ashley Greene... looks pretty in her underwear. In all honesty she wasn't given much to do here - despite ostensibly being the lead. The cinematography is good - and that's about it.
What should be a straight-forward plot is jumbled by unnecessary elements and images that seem to be included simply because someone thought they'd 'look cool'. It's not enough to take inspiration from great and/or successful horror movies, you need to understand why they were so great and/or successful - and first-time director (and writer) Todd Lincoln apparently doesn't. The opening five minutes hold promise, but it's downhill from there. I like atmospheric chillers, but this is short on atmosphere and the chills are non-existent. 5/10
There are interesting ideas here but the execution is lacking. Credit where it's due; Sebastian Stan gives an impressively edgy performance and Tom Felton shows there's more to him than Draco Malfoy (it's a shame he isn't given more to do). Ashley Greene... looks pretty in her underwear. In all honesty she wasn't given much to do here - despite ostensibly being the lead. The cinematography is good - and that's about it.
What should be a straight-forward plot is jumbled by unnecessary elements and images that seem to be included simply because someone thought they'd 'look cool'. It's not enough to take inspiration from great and/or successful horror movies, you need to understand why they were so great and/or successful - and first-time director (and writer) Todd Lincoln apparently doesn't. The opening five minutes hold promise, but it's downhill from there. I like atmospheric chillers, but this is short on atmosphere and the chills are non-existent. 5/10