Year of Release: 2019
Director: Ciaran Foy
Starring: Kelly Reilly, Lili Taylor, Charlie Shotwell, Max Martini, Sadie Sink, Deneen Tyler, Katia Gomez
Genre: Horror
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 3
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Synopsis and Review:
Netflix continues its steady release of feature films, with a new horror feature which hails from Paramount Pictures, and director Ciaran Foy. The film follows the story of Eli, a young boy with a medical condition which prevents him from being outside (the contact with air, makes his skin almost burst into flames). His parents discover a miraculous cure, which comes in the shape of Dr. Horn, who has been successful at curing others with similar ailments. Eli and his parents arrive at the mansion where Dr. Horn practices, where they are informed that for in order for the treatments to be successful, there's three intense stages Eli has to go through. From the onset there's something ominous about the mansion, and Eli starts noticing reflections in the mirrors, ghosts, which start manifesting themselves with progressive intensity. As the treatments continue, Eli becomes more fragile, and the ghosts manifest themselves more demonstrably, much to his parents disbelief. In the meantime he makes a friend with a neighboring girl, who warns him of the prior patients whose fate is unknown. Eli manages to discover that all the prior patients died, but upon confronting Dr. Horn and his parents, what he discovers is beyond everything he could have imagined.
Ciaran Foy made his directorial debut with Blumhouse's "Sinister 2", and after a television foray, this is his proper follow up. The film has a big reveal towards the end, however it's a film that at a first glance, tries to be a mix of Jeff Nichols's "Midnight Special" with Alejandro Amenabar's "The Others", but one where these influences and styles never really marry or gel effectively. While the film starts promisingly with a quick showcase of the constraints plaguing Eli's young life, once the story arrives at the mansion, it quickly takes a different turn, only to once again take a very different turn by the third act. It its attempts to be so many things, the film ends up not establishing credible characters, none of which have much to define them, from the parents, to the staff, to Eli himself. We never really understand how he lived before, or get much context into his existence prior to when we witness them on route to the facility. Once the supernatural events start taking place, they're also staged without much inventiveness. The director smartly cast Kelly Reilly and Lili Taylor in pivotal parts, but sadly not even them can bypass the somewhat inert script. For all the talent assembled, this is a sadly missed opportunity.
Ciaran Foy made his directorial debut with Blumhouse's "Sinister 2", and after a television foray, this is his proper follow up. The film has a big reveal towards the end, however it's a film that at a first glance, tries to be a mix of Jeff Nichols's "Midnight Special" with Alejandro Amenabar's "The Others", but one where these influences and styles never really marry or gel effectively. While the film starts promisingly with a quick showcase of the constraints plaguing Eli's young life, once the story arrives at the mansion, it quickly takes a different turn, only to once again take a very different turn by the third act. It its attempts to be so many things, the film ends up not establishing credible characters, none of which have much to define them, from the parents, to the staff, to Eli himself. We never really understand how he lived before, or get much context into his existence prior to when we witness them on route to the facility. Once the supernatural events start taking place, they're also staged without much inventiveness. The director smartly cast Kelly Reilly and Lili Taylor in pivotal parts, but sadly not even them can bypass the somewhat inert script. For all the talent assembled, this is a sadly missed opportunity.
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