It is always risky centering a film around a mentally challenged character. If the actor is not up to task, the film will fail and certainly offend. Luckily the actor does a very good job while occasionally straying into the land of over-the-top, but that may be a result of direction. The performance is commendable, the actor inhabiting all manner of unconscious ticks and gestures that give consistent weight to his performance. The rest of the actors are passable, but seem far less invested and scenes between periphery characters tend to drag the movie down. This movie is full of some very interesting visuals and ideas, some of which executed remarkably well. Effects are used sparingly, but to excellent effect creating some truly unsettling visuals. Unfortunately, this film suffers from a lack of script polish that hampers some of the more ambitious notions. There's an intentional surrealism that while often effective tonally severely hampers the narrative. The last act gets a little ahead of itself and swerves into confusion and madness, but still ends effectively. As a director's first film it is quite well done making one lament the tragic back-story to this film sadly more fascinating than the film itself. While flawed, this is an interesting and unique debut effort and recommended for those looking for something different.
The Evil Within