An absolutely derivative shadow of last year’s Smile, doubly tragic for being inspired by one of Stephen King’s bleakest and terrifying short stories. This movie does not have the courage or conviction to commit to the darker elements of its source or inspiration, attempting to mask shortcomings through glossy effects and copious jump scares. There is some quality here in the casting and production values, especially with the younger actors who are extremely capable, even if limited by a weak script. The direction is decent, with some very effective shots that make great use of dark corridors and ambiguous shadows; however, these invariably end in a telegraphed jump scare with accompanying discordant crash, and the entire exercise comes off as rote. This is an absolute object lesson in ‘less is more’ as each scene where the monster is concealed in darkness plays far more effectively than where it is revealed in all its questionable design. There’s far too much bad CG and baffling choices, again aping ‘Smile’ but without the metaphorical subtext, to leave much of an impact. Honestly, the memories of the climax began to fade and blur even before the credits rolled because I had seen it all before, and rendered better on every level. Including a superior adaptation of the source made in 1982 freely available on youtube: here
The Boogeyman (2023)