Never Let Go

On paper, a decent concept, visually gripping but thats pretty much where it ends.

Hallie Berry plays a great part as 'Mamma' with her 2 young loyal sons living in a her shadow as she pretects them from the unknown her has lost all reality.

The run down house that plays the safe haven and backdrop of the movie is almost a character in the moving playing a part in the story arc, the looming dense forest is daunting.... But for everything else?

Young boys to give credit put in great performances, they mesh well with Hallie, and its beautifully short for all artistic feels but its a story that has a very disappointing cliff hanger, save your money.

Never Let Go is a family drama, a supernatural horror film and a psychological thriller all at once. It stars excellent actress Halle Berry as well as child actors Percy Daggs IV and Anthony B. Jenkins. The film's plot is similar to M. Night Shyamalan's The Village. The story revolves around a mother and her two children who have taken refuge in a cabin in the woods. They live in complete isolation and suffer from starvation. The mother keeps telling her children that evil forces surround their home. The only way to avoid a grisly fate is by being tied to a series of ropes that are installed in the cabin's basement. As the children grow into teenagers, they slowly start to doubt their mother's stories. When they finally decide to let go of the ropes, a dramatic series of events occurs.

This movie has several noteworthy strengths. First and foremost, the plot is clever and comes around with several twists and turns throughout. While the general idea of the story isn't new at all, it has been executed with enough wit to keep genre fans entertained from start to finish.

Another remarkable strength is the acting in this film. Halle Berry excels as fragile, obsessive and strict mother. The two child actors convince throughout as well with one of them portraying a son who truly believes his mother's tales while the other one showcases a more rebellious, independent and free-spirited attitude. The two actors complete each other splendidly. Both of them should have great careers ahead of themselves.

The locations have also been chosen with care. The old cabin truly underlines the simple, regressive and difficult lives that the three protagonists are living. The forest with its old trees, rough rocks and colourful moss is the perfect setting for a tale of isolation.

However, this film isn't without flaws. The movie's pace is particularly slow and especially the film's first half needs resilient, optimistic and mature viewers who are open to give this film time to grow. They will be rewarded with a more dramatic second half.

This movie is missing truly gripping scenes. A gloomy atmosphere is present from start to finish but the film plods along without any notable highlights. This is a very mild drama and thriller that would have benefitted from a few more intense sequences.

At the end of the day, Never Let Go is a family drama, supernatural horror movie and psychological thriller that convinces with a clever plot, strong acting performances and fitting settings while suffering from a particularly slow pace and a lack of intensity. Never Let Go is thus recommended to mature, optimistic and resilient genre fans only.

This film is currently sitting at a 5.7 and I think that's criminally low. Not sure if anybody paid attention to the ending shot but that answers the question in no uncertain terms.

The question is whether or not the danger in the forest is real or just a figment of Halle Berry's imagination. It's a layered, heartfelt story of a woman and her two children living in isolation and what may very well be a case of a mother having ruined her life along with her two young sons due to untreated schizophrenia. Are there scary things in the woods? Are the ropes really protecting them? At different points in the film it's impossible to decide and it does keep you guessing until the end.

Halle Berry is competent as always but the two young actors are real standouts here. They've got some heavy lifting for such young inexperienced actors and they do a shockingly good job. From about the midpoint on they are essentially carrying the film.

Aside from some all around great acting the practical efx on the monsters in the Woods is refreshing. There is some small amount of CGI, but there's plenty of good old fashioned blood and makeup to make these creatures just strange looking enough to be mildly spooky.

Overall Never Let Go has a lot going for it. It's not the first film to toss around the question of whether or not mental illness is at the root of the horror. I admit it's a widely used trope in this genre. But this movie handles it more competently than many others. And again it's helped out by some great child actors. I'll be expecting to see more of those boys in the near future.

Solid 7/10 for me.

How far would a mother go to protect her kids? Here's another psychological thriller for your viewing pleasure. NEVER LET GO is about a mother (Halle Berry) and her two sons Nolan (Percy Daggs IV) and Sam (Anthony B. Jenkins). They live in a cabin in the woods, separated from a now dead world. There is an evil presence around them, and they only way to be safe in to be tied to a rope that's connected to the foundation of the house. This poses many questions: What the hell happened? Why can only the mom see the evil? What happens if the evil touches you? Is this a subtle metaphor for COVID? Is it even real? I like how when the audience has these questions, the kids also have questions. This movie kept me guessing for the majority of the time. The acting is great for everybody. The atmosphere is dense and feels claustrophobic. Apparently, it was filmed right here in the woods of Vancouver, BC. The story could've gone a few different ways, and I would've chosen something different. The jump-scares are annoying, but I enjoyed the scares that came from the background of shots. With so many movies coming out this season, this one could be seen at home all cuddled up with a blanket and some snacks. Remember, don't listen to Elsa from FROZEN, and NEVER LET GO.

I was really put off this movie due to the rating, and most of the reviews I read on here, but I was bored and decided to give it a go anyway.

I was pleasantly surprised, it was a lot better than I thought it was going to be. It keeps you guessing throughout and has some decent horror scenes in it. Now, an Evil Dead this is not, but if you can enjoy a horror film without the need for gore, then give this a chance.

I thought this was really similar to "Knock at the Cabin" more psychological, it keeps you thinking and guessing all the way throughout and I actually quite enjoyed it.

Halle Berry's performance was great, so was the 2 young lads, their performances didn't feel forced.

I don't usually leave reviews, I usually only leave ratings, but felt I had to defend it due to some of the poor scores it's received. Give it a chance and don't let the misleading ratings put you off. It might be for you, it might not be, but it's nowhere near as bad as some of the scores would suggest. 7/10 for me.