If you're in for an easy cheesy time with a small portion of gross, this campy horror should be right up your street.
Director Brandon Espy proves to use he has some fairly good taste in horror, taking inspiration from classics such as Nightmare on Elm Street (Dream Warriors and onwards, I'd assume) and Sam Raimi's Evil Dead 2, with a sprinkle of Candyman, to mash together a familiar yet still original horror experience.
Elvis Norasco brings us Mr Crocket, a candidate for everyone's future nightmares. He delivers the punches with what he was given, and certainly amps up the energy every time he's onscreen. With enough development, he could soon become a horror culture classic (provided we have any sequels on the horizon, of course.)
Jerrika Hilton comes in strong as our leading lady, again giving us the best with what she was given. Her performance is solid from start to finish. Kristolyn Lloyd, in a supporting role, was exceptional, proving that minimal screen time means nothing when you have what it takes.
The practical effects and horror puppetry are both very welcome additions, proving that there's genuine hope for the creative industry, and that CGI doesn't always belong in a horror film. I only wish we'd seen more of it.
The films shortcomings are simple, the writing needed some fine-tuning, some dialogue felt a little basic, and it would have been fun to explore some of the horrors behind the world of Mr Crocket a little better. While I also liked the setting in the early 90s, I could have done with just a tiny bit more 90s nostalgia bait (I'm a sucker for it, what can I say, if you're gonna go 90s, go hard or go home, right?)
Over all, it was a fun experience. I almost wrote it off because of the terrible reviews and I'm glad I didn't. Is it a perfect horror movie? Nope. Will it entertain you if you're bored? Maybe. The only way you'll really know is if you give it a chance, I know I'm glad I did.
⭐⭐⭐(1/2)
