Sketch

This 2024 film by Seth Worley, was inspired by his short film, "Dark Colors". This is a surprisingly entertaining film. It seems to be by it's marketing to young moviegoers, but it has a darker set up. Advertised as a comedy fantasy, it's more of a black comedy arched more to horror.

The premise is about a family in mourning, a father and two children. One child, "Amber" who is a reclusive and very artistic youth, who gets bullied. Her anger is driven out onto paper as sketches. This is where the film is oddly for young viewers, images of imagined violence with monsters and their special abilities.

The other child, discovered a "magical" magic pond near their home. It has special water, and does wondrous as well as horrible things. Then Amber's angered sketching begins to take form.

I feel what makes this film a tad terrifying, is the sound effects. This film may drag with its story, but the visual effects are superb along with monster creations.

As far as the cast Tom Hale plays the widow parent, "Taylor Wyatt" and along with the strong lead by young actor, Bianca Belle as "Amber". The director calls it a mix of "Jurassic Park" and "Inside Out" but it feels more like "Goonies" meet "It: Chapter One" kids!

Lastly, the film's overall effects are pretty mesmerizing as a youth led cast steer the sequences, giving off more serious tense scenes (look out for the school bus segment).

As silly and infantile "Amber's" monsters appear, Worley's orchestrated scenes (not depending on gore effects or jump scares) really evolve them into menacing entities . Its soundtrack and sound effects, help to deliver some terrifying seconds with the monsters. In some ways echoes Joe Dante's 80s segment with cartoon-like monsters from "Twilight Zone, The Movie".

I saw Sketch before its release, at a preview where the only facts that the audience knew about the film was the rating (PG), the length, and that 'the film is not a horror movie." I was pleasurably surprised at the result: a loving and stirring lesson about family communications, grief, joy, and life.

For whatever reason, the first quarter of the movie is not as engaging as it might have been, though we learn a lot about the characters and their family situation. This information turns out to be crucial for understanding the rest of the film, and frankly, that first quarter could have been stronger. But that's for the writer/director to ponder. If you go to this movie and expect that we need to learn through exposition a lot of backstory, that's ok, because the payoff later on is whimsical, beautiful to view, a bit scary for very younger children but very fulfilling for older children and maybe tweens.

It shows the depth of imagination, the proper channeling of emotions, the way that both kids and adults learn about themselves in the world, and how to navigate potentially fearful situations.

PS - stay for the closing scenes during the credits, so you can discover how to participate in some of the CGI magic of the film.

Funny. Hilarious. Smart. With a giant, beautiful heart and soul!.

Seth Worley is a genius, and Sketch is his masterpiece.

Tony Hale brings remarkable depth to his role-delivering moments of comedic brilliance that remind us why he's so beloved, while also nailing the emotional weight of the film in ways that bring tears to your eyes.

D'Arcy Carden perfectly balances the tone of Sketch with a dynamic performance and masterful craft.

The young ensemble cast-many making their big-screen debut-are the magic at the heart of this film.

The writing? Impeccable.

The direction? Masterful.

The acting? Flawless.

In every way, Sketch is a must-see summer movie meant to be experienced in theaters.

I was cynical at first and thought I wouldn't enjoy this film, but my kids wanted to go so I brought them... and it ended up being the most fun I had in theaters in recent memory! I haven't laughed as hard or frequent in a film in years! My kids were legit on the edge of their seats and one turned and said, "Woh! This movie is intense!"

Brings back the glory and inspired storytelling of the 80s and 90s. The screenwriting, directing, acting and editing was all spectacular! Worthy of the big screen and I feel sorry for anyone who misses out on this movie going experience!

I usually skip out on angel studios movies because of how religiously biased they are and the bad editing and subpar acting, but this one was actually done right. The acting was good, plot was good, characters written well, and overall a lot of fun. Highly recommend for a fun movie night at the theater with your family or by yourself(me) because all ages would enjoy this movie. Don't get me wrong, angel studios has a tendency to make a mid movie, but this one felt like more than a cash grab for christians.