It Lives Inside

So-so but acceptable horror movie full of thrills, chills , and shocking scenes starring an adolescent and by a sinister ghoul who goes amok. This Bishal Dutta's feature film directorial debut deals with an Indian-American teenager (Megan Suri) lives in an idyllic suburb with her conservative mother (Neeru Bajwa) and her assimilated father (Vik Sahay) . Sam's cultural insecurities grow due to her estranged friend, Tamira (Mohana Krishnan), who mysteriously carries around an empty mason jar all the time. Along the way, the teen is struggling with her cultural identity has a falling out with her former best friend and, in the process, unwittingly releases a demonic entity that grows stronger by feeding on her lonelines, shattering her reality and life .

This gloomy terror film contains thrills, intrigue, chills, and it connects with India religion, supernatural legends, Gods and Devils from India. Terror film about an ancient demon goes bersek, this is an American supernatural horror film written and directed by Bishal Dutta and starring Megan Suri. Genuinely scary moments overcome some obvious plot devices; this is a juicy gothic material fashioning an iconic monster providing screaming , chilling and eerie scenes. Bishal Dutta, baptized as the new Night Shyalaman by some critics, places the center of this horror film on Samitha, a young Indian, who lives in the USA and rejects her origins in order to fit in at school, what she does not know is that her roots can save her from a terrible threat. This horror films combines deadly rituals, a demonic entity starts targeting on teens, grisly killings and terrifying visions. During the presentation of the film at the prestigious Sitges Horror Film Festival, in its official section director Dutta declared: "Horror is the perfect genre to portray the insecurities of adolescence". As the director explained: ¨A ghost story that his grandfather told him was the origin of the film that explores, through Indian history and demonic forces, the drama of a young emigrant who seeks to find the balance between her dreams and the new culture of the country in which she lives¨.

It Lives Inside(2023) was mediocrely directed by Bishal Dutta and nothing special, that's why it is full of terrifying situations that we had already seen before and even better. The film debuted at the 2023 South by Southwest film festival, and was released by Neon on September 22, 2023. Getting several nominations and prizes, such as: Sitges - Catalonian International Film Festival , 2023 Nominated Official Fantàstic Competition Best Motion Picture Bishal Dutta. Leo Awards 2024 Nominado Leo Best Casting in a Motion Picture, Kris Woznesensky , Kara Eide, Daniel Cardona, 2024 Nominado Leo Best Sound Motion Picture Sandra Portman (supervising sound editor) Nolan McNaughton (sound designer) Rob Coxford (re-recording mixer) Daniel Cardona (re-recording mixer) Eric Mouawad (dialogue editor) Shawn Miller (sound mixer) Craig George (sound effects editor) , Bishal Dutta 2024 Nominado Leo Best Direction in a Motion Picture. Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival Bishal Dutta 2023 Nominado Narcisse Award Best Feature Film. SXSW Film Festival Bishal Dutta 2023 winner Audience Award Bishal Dutta. Golden Scythe Horror Awards Megan Suri in It lives inside (2023), 2024 Nominado Golden Scythe.

It Lives Inside had an interesting premise or at least it could have being slightly different from most other Hollywood movies of this kind. But it chooses to stay in its lane and work its way through many well-known horror movie tropes. The movie is sadly rather forgettable and does not stand out a bit. There is a mostly invisible entity following our protagonist killing everybody she comes too close to. In the third act the creature is made visible which I have to say looked pretty cool and I enjoyed those visuals overall. Also I have to give the movie that it has some scary and eerie scenes that were really tension filled. But overall this movie did not manage to convince me to ever watch it again I think. The fact that the movie is PG-13 should have given me a hint that this can't be that great. [5,5/10]

A solid tone that is unique through cultural representation yet it's full of recycled & unoriginal tropes. The screenplay is safe without anything bold or daring. The score & high school setting fits in a fun way.

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. A solid tone that is unique through cultural representation yet it's full of recycled & unoriginal tropes. The screenplay is safe without anything bold or daring. The score & high school setting fits in a fun way.

. .

. A solid tone that is unique through cultural representation yet it's full of recycled & unoriginal tropes. The screenplay is safe without anything bold or daring. The score & high school setting fits in a fun way.

Right from the opening with its macabre long take, "It Lives Inside" establishes a sense of dread that persists throughout this descent into hell. Competent but derivative, the final result takes us into familiar formulas and a predictable rhythm that prevent us from fully immersing ourselves in the madness.

The direction allows for terrifying imagery and creative camera movements, which are, however, trapped within a poorly woven script. The demonic presence is there, the great strength of this film lies in the grim atmosphere soaked in red and black. Indian customs and Hindu mythology add personality and richness to the film, which is greatly appreciated even if the potential is not fully realized.

There's something to be said about the work on the practical special effects, considering the production budget. Despite a certain lack of originality, the supernatural manifestations follow one another, delivering an allegory about depression and an interesting message about cultural acceptance. A feeling of déjà vu? "It Lives Inside" borrows current themes that appear in several modern horror films and stumbles slightly in execution. Eventually, we fall into a zone of predictability and a trap of clichés that prevents the final work from reaching its full potential.

Also worth noting is the presence of the young lead actress, Megan Suri, who should catch Hollywood's attention after her performance. All in all, it's an intriguing mix of satanic incantations, cultural immersion, and teen horror that should find its audience upon its theatrical (or streaming) release.

The opening scenes were fiendish, giving a tantalizing glimpse of what the movie potentially had in store, which immediately excited me since I didn't know anything at all about the movie. Surprisingly, it didn't take long to dive into the gruesomeness, and the jump scares had a desired effect in the packed theater. The cultural background of the movie made it unique, Indian mythology was a departure from the usual Hollywood horror stuff.

I think the film's great at creating a gripping atmosphere, but it falls slightly short of delivering on it. At its core, it felt like a breath of fresh air, but once it finds its groove, it started following a more formulaic plot, losing some of its originality. Some plot points felt glossed over.

Connection between characters wasn't very strong, I didn't really care for them as much. More focus on Tamira's character at the start would've helped. The ending, while still fine, felt unsatisfactory to me. When i thought of my favorite part of the movie, it was undoubtedly the gripping opening scenes that didn't shy away from the gore. I had hoped for a more intense, slasher-like turn that never materialized. The climax didn't quite meet my expectations. It's a worthwhile first viewing, but I doubt its replay value.

The film doesn't suffer from major flaws but rather minor imperfections. Overall, I enjoyed it, but I believe it had untapped potential. Maybe that's because it's a directorial debut, but for a first effort, it's still quite commendable.