The Boogeyman

This could have been a great horror film. The dread is there, the sets and lighting is perfect. You never really get a good look at the creature, and I felt that worked towards making the film much more suspenseful. The acting is all servicable and the characters feel real, for the most part. My issue with the film was how closed up the father was towards his wifes death and talking with his daughters about it. Seemed very unrealistic for how close they all seemed and only frustrated me in the end.

The pacing was also very off. The opening seemingly took forever to get to any of the good stuff, and when it does get there, we're thrown from scene to scene with almost no set up to it. Some of it felt like they were just throwing ideas for scary scenes at us. Almost as if they had no connection to the story other than the creature and the protaganists.

The film actually started out as a 1.5/5 stars but worked it's way up to 3/5 by the end of it. If the director and writers didn't put the effort into making us care about the characters, then it would've stayed a 1.5, but thankfully, they grew on me and by the end of the film, I was hoping they would make it out alive.

Overall, not a bad film. Slightly above average, but just be aware that it is not a perfect horror film and it does have it's fair share of problems and pacing issues throughout.

3 bumps in the night out of 5.

The Boogeyman is a horror movie inspired by a Stephen King short story. The film revolves around Sadie Harper (played by Sophie Thatcher) and her younger sister Sawyer, who are struggling to cope with the loss of their mother. Their father, a therapist, attempts to assist them in dealing with their grief, but their household becomes a site of mysterious occurrences.

Directed by Rob Savage, known for his work on "Host" and "Dashcam," the movie is completely unoriginal. The plot feels predictable and derivative, borrowing elements from other horror films. The story progresses slowly, resulting in very few genuine scares.

The themes of grief and trauma are present in the film but are not explored in depth. The movie's overall tone aims for darkness and sombreness but fails to establish a pervasive sense of dread or suspense. Sophie Thatcher's performance as Sadie is commendable, delivering a solid portrayal of her character. However, the remaining cast members are forgettable, and their characters remain underdeveloped throughout the film.

The director, Rob Savage, demonstrates some competence with a few visually striking scenes. Nevertheless, the movie lacks a distinct visual style to set it apart. The score is forgettable, failing to leave a lasting impression, while the cinematography is serviceable but unremarkable.

The production design and special effects in The Boogeyman are decent but cannot salvage the movie's overall poor quality. The editing suffers from sloppiness, resulting in disjointed and poorly paced scenes. The dialogue lacks inspiration, with characters frequently delivering exposition and relying on clichéd lines.

The Boogeyman is an easily forgettable horror movie that struggles to deliver genuine scares or explore emotional depth. Its derivative and predictable nature, underdeveloped characters and slow-paced plot contribute to its lacklustre impact. The film fails to establish a distinct visual style despite a few visually striking moments. Unless you are a diehard horror genre fan, it is best to avoid this one.

I probably would have liked this film...if I could have seen it.

Look, I know horror movies rely on darkness, and that it's necessary sometimes. That is one thing this movie did right - kept the titular creature mostly out of sight. Nothing is less scary than too much CGI.

However, when the majority of the film is dark to the extent that you can barely see anything, I find I'm too hacked off to be scared.

That's a shame, because as far as I could make out, the acting was decent, as were the script and story (hit or miss when it comes to Stephen King adaptations). A widowed father, a shrink, takes a walk-in who tells him a harrowing tale of kids dying at the hands of something supernatural, after which his own daughters start to experience spooky shenanigans.

There is the old trope of the parent taking far too long to believe their offspring, and a house in which any given light source only affects about a six inch circle around itself, but I think these would have been minor irritants if the filmmakers had considered that their audience might like to occasionally be able to work out what's happening on screen.

As it is, this was a semi-decent movie which had the potential to be better.

Full disclosure: I haven't read the story on which "The Boogeyman" is based, so I can only assess it on its own merits. It was okay, as I expected. Like many horror movies of recent years, grief plays a major part of the plot. Of course, most of the horror comes from jump scares.

As for the cast, they do a fine enough job, considering what they have to have work. The title character does turn out to be freaky in some scenes.

All in all, this is a movie that you'll probably enjoy enough. I wouldn't say that there were any scenes that stuck me with solid memory, but you do have to admire the intense scenes.

So, it's nothing great, but if you're willing to spend the day with some friends and watch something scary, this should be fun.

Fairly enjoyable dark and creepy, jump scare fest.

Its a terrible title - makes it sound like an 80's straight to video affair.

Get past the title and what you have is a fairly enjoyable horror movie.

Theres not much any horror fan won't have seen many times - something goes bump in the night, the person experiencing it is not believed, things escalate... Jump scares.

Its fairly well done. It got a little silly towards the end that took me out of it a bit, but for the most part its enjoyable.

I doubt I'll watch it again or see it as a milestone film, but not every movie is a classic - some are just an enjoyable way to spend 90 minutes or so.

Refreshingly it is only 90 ish minutes rather than the current trend for over long posterior numbing.