Smile

This movie had me scared and on edge from start to finish. It's been a long time since I saw a horror movie this good.

The story is a bit cliche at some points, but it is well written and well made most of the time. The acting is great as well, which is not always a common thing when it comes to horror movies. It is very well directed and the atmosphere is really eerie.

The first girl to die in the movie probably had the most unpleasant smile I have seen in maybe my whole life. Especially when the therapist started seeing her in the darkness as a hallucination. That really gave me the chills. Then there were some smiles that were not very scary, like the patient Carl. The pacing of the movie was excellent. It got more and more creepy as the story progressed. The ending really etched into my brain, and I actually thought I was gonna have nightmares that night, which does not happen to me very often. The day after I saw this movie, a car passed me by, and the old man driving looked at me and smiled. The only thing I could think about was this movie.

This was Parker Finn's first feature film. I really hope he makes more films like this one. A good start on his writing/directing career. Well done!

Rose Cotter is a therapist in an emergency psychiatric ward. One day, Laura, a young student, is brought in for observation. After witnessing the brutal suicide of her professor, she seems to be suffering from extreme post-traumatic stress disorder. As Rose talks to Laura, the girl gets increasingly frightened, claiming an unseen entity is about to kill her. Suddenly, she becomes calm, smiling unnaturally, before slitting her own throat. Afterwards, bizarre events convince Rose that the entity is now stalking her; and that she is its next victim.

An unnerving horror, Parker Finn's 'Smile' is a creepy examination of the lingering effects of trauma. Finn's narrative contends that trauma effects every aspect of one's life, and can be passed onto others through one's actions. Although comparisons to David Robert Mitchell's 'It Follows' are inevitable, Parker's handling of the film's thesis feels fresh and innovative. Traumatic effects- such as hallucinations, paranoia and guilt- are interwoven cleverly into Finn's narrative, adding to the psychological horror therein.

The film is suspenseful, having a heady atmosphere of dread throughout. Although the ending is underwhelming, the journey there is an engaging, sinister one. Finn makes excellent use of jump-scares- which often feel like a cheap way to make viewers jolt. They don't here, as they intensify the paranoid state Rose is in. His characterisation is strong, as is his dialogue, and we believe and sympathise with Rose; even if we're unsure whether or not we can trust her version of reality. Culturally relevant and unsettling, Finn's film makes for a wild and devilish ride.

For a horror to be successful, good sound design is necessary; Finn's sound department have created an immersive and disquieting environment of terror. Cristobal Tapia de Veer's score adds to the discomforting atmosphere, becoming chaotically dissonant as Rose descends further into paranoid fear. Reminiscent at times of Dario Argento and Goblin's score for 'Suspiria,' Tapia de Veer's work enhances the film's impact immensely.

Similarly, Charlie Sarroff's unconventional cinematography heightens the picture's uneasy ambiance. Distinct and creative, his utilisation of low angles, handheld shots and zooms fosters a sense of unpredictable instability. Under Finn's direction, his implementation of lighting creates contrast and mood, while his composition of images also adds to the film's horror. He uses symmetry, asymmetry and negative space to create imbalance, tension and emptiness; depending on the needs of the scene. Striking and memorable, Sarroff's work is captivatingly disturbing.

Furthermore, Lester Cohen's minimalist production design creates a stark, cold world for Rose to navigate. Cohen uses simple, sparse sets and props to create a sense of realism, emptiness and isolation. Moreover, Alexis Forte's costume design adds to the film's horror, as her use of colours, fabrics and differing styles creates contrast, character and symbolism. Additionally, the picture is well edited by Elliot Greenberg, whose work gives 'Smile' a rapid, tense pace that vastly intensifies proceedings.

Sosie Bacon stars as Rose, delivering an impassioned, nuanced performance, acutely showing Rose's psychological disintegration. Feverish and powerful, Bacon's work is not to be forgotten. Alongside her, Kyle Gallner plays Jake, a cop who is Rose's ex-boyfriend, and the only one who believes her story. A steady presence throughout, Gallner does fine work in a role lesser actors would have overplayed. Robin Weigert and Gillian Zinser- as Rose's psychiatrist and sister, respectively- both impress with their range and ability, while Caitlin Stasey is terrific in the all too small role of Laura; portraying her immense fear astutely.

An entertaining, tense horror about the devastating effects of trauma, Parker Finn's directorial debut 'Smile' lingers in the mind long after the credits have rolled. Boasting an engaging narrative dealing maturely with its themes, an atmospheric score and striking production design, it is a riveting watch. Although the ending is anticlimactic, the compelling performances from the cast- especially Sosie Bacon- keep you on the edge of your seat throughout. Creepily captivating, this film will surely not leave you with a frown.

Smile is quite engaging and partially scary horror flick embedded with plenty of jump scares,traumatic scenes and conversations. Though the horror part was completely relied on the jump scares. The director has more focused on traumatic incidents ensuring the disturbing intensity to the audience throughout the film,Though it feels a bit dragged down the trauma has successfully ensured a disturbing experience but the horror part could have sdealed better,there are moments that some jump scares,violent Visuals and an extended smile-devil scenes that improvises viewers experience in horror aspect yet it didn't compell so hard. Rosy as a victim could have faced a few more tragedies rather than spending the most of the screen time on the the discovery of the curse. As the plot is quite thin and straight forward there's nothing so exciting to watch as far as the plot is concerned but the director has somehow ensured the disturbing parts to be hindered around the middle. But yet lack of unexpected plot Twists is the major drawback in the film. The climax is well made but it's quite predictable doesn't excited much except the smiling devil doing some gymnastics over rose and her old house. All over Smile is worth for getting you on a disturbing mood and ensuring the horror part in most of it's runtime but still the drama part and the sad conversations are so extensive and could have been cut short replacing them with some creepy moments.

One of very few horror movies that managed to surprise me this year. When the trailer came out, I thought it was gonna be another dumb, incompetent mess.

I was proved wrong.

From the very start, everything from the directing, performances to the cinematography and sound design were absolute stunning. How a low budget managed this feat was beyond me but the film was simply mesmerizing to look at.

The horror was quite effective with jumpscares and dreadful moments, albeit some cheap ones but not that distracting. They were able to build up the tension so well and never intended to tone it down right till the very end. The plot was simple enough to interlink all relevant characters to make me care about them, although some could complain 90% of the characters were just filler and I might agree with that. However, the protagonist was good enough to carry the whole show.

One thing that may not sit well with a lot of audience was the use of mental illness. Smile handled it decently but don't expect Oscar worthy exposition. And no, it wasn't exactly the main theme so try not to quit halfway through because there would be surprises by the last act of the film.

Give it a go. I'd say it was well worth the time for horror fans like myself. This was not just some Annabelle or Insidious sequels but something more.

Very decent horror movie kinda dating back to the mid/late 2000s. If you enjoyed the Ring, Hereditary, It follows, you will very much love this.

If you're a horror movie fan you can probably see the ending coming BUT at least it's well executed.

Crazy camera angles, acting is good, definitely had me anxious watching threw my hands a few times (jump scares) it's also VERY analytical with huge PSTD, clinical diagnosis, mental characteristics in different characters

Some cons were the extended background information they would give which made the movie feel alittle more longer

There would most likely be a sequel or two but I doubt they'd be as good as this

Would I watch again? Probably not they heavy graphic suicide scenes (I get it that's part of the plot) BUT it's well worth a watch at least once.