Sick (2022)

If you think back to the peak days of the global pandemic of 2020 then it makes sense that it would inspire a slasher. Everyone was paranoid, many were isolated from others, and the majority of people were wearing masks anyway. This is the fertile ground explored by writers Kevin Williamson and Katelynn Crabb in Sick. 

After an obligatory opening sequence of tension and death, Sick starts properly when we meet two friends, Parker (Gideo Adlon) and Miri (Bethlehem Million, credited as Beth Million), who are about to quarantine together at a remote house by a lake. They are soon joined by DJ (Dylan Sprayberry). And . . . someone else.

The one thing I knew about Sick was that Kevin Williamson was involved. It's always going to get noticed when such a big name in the slasher sub-genre has a hand in another slasher movie. His involvement had me keen to see this, but I also knew to control my expectations. This was, after all, a slasher movie set during a period of time that many of us would probably prefer to forget. Thankfully, Williamson and Crabb set things up nicely, and gain some goodwill by having the first line of dialogue be someone asking about toilet paper in a store, and there's a tone throughout that respects what we all went through in 2020 while also highlighting how crazy it all was. Many people were driven a bit crazy by the whole situation, and I count myself among them.

Having been familiar with the work of director John Hyams in the action genre, it was a pleasant surprise to see his name pop up here. That's on me, considering his previous forays into thriller and horror territory (with at least one feature and some TV work to his credit, including the fun Z Nation and the fantastic Chucky show). Hyams works well enough with the material, although he doesn't get to show off any of his usual style and ability here. Backgrounds are used well, particularly during the many times that characters in the foreground are oblivious to movement behind them, but the main premise makes it a struggle for Hyams to keep things tense and lively enough throughout the 83-minute runtime.

Adlon and Million are decent in their roles, although it would have been nice to have some more established named placed in the middle of the proceedings, and Sprayberry makes the best of what he's given. Marc Menchaca and Jane Adams are both good value, and Joel Courtney gets to play someone who casts as large a shadow over everything as any masked murderer.

Despite dipping slightly in the middle, Sick works well thanks to a strong start and a great third act. The motivation for the murders is actually quite brilliant, and I was smiling at how obvious and well-handled it was as everything started to fall into place. There's nothing new here, but it feels fresh because of the specific time period. Although I would warn people that, obviously, this isn't necessarily something you'll enjoy if you're still recovering from the collective global trauma that saw so much pain, insanity, and death in such a relatively short period of time.

7/10

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Shudder Saturday: Witch Hunt (2021)

The second feature from writer-director Elle Callahan, after the very enjoyable Head Count from 2018, Witch Hunt is pretty much exactly what you might expect it to be from the title. It's a film set in a modern version of the USA where witches are very real, but their existence is not tolerated. Anyone found to be a witch is dealt with by a special law enforcement agency, and causing trouble can lead to an immediate death penalty.

Gideon Adlon plays Claire, a teenage girl going through normal teenage girl times, but with the added stress of living in a household where witches are being sheltered and helped in their attempts to get themselves smuggled over the border to Mexico. Claire's mother, Martha (Elizabeth Mitchell), knows the danger she is putting her family in, Claire also has two younger siblings, but she very much believes in doing the right thing. Besides, they're very careful. Young Fiona (Abigail Cowen) and Shae (Echo Campbell) are the latest witches to be sheltered by the family, and a determined witch-hunter/agent (Christian Camargo) may end up causing them a lot of problems.

Many people didn't like Witch Hunt, certainly not as much as I did, and a very quick search online turned up a couple of reviews that were practically vitriolic in their criticism of it. Some thought it was clumsy and annoyingly simplistic, an obvious metaphor not handled anywhere near as well as they wanted it to be, while others seemed to be annoyed by a script that they viewed as illogical and full of major mis-steps. I am sure some were also annoyed by the fact that, despite the title and one or two impressive scenes showing updated versions of old tricks for dealing with alleged witchery, Witch Hunt isn't really a horror movie. It's a drama, a very pointed and relevant one, that happens to be wrapped in, well, a spooky cape and pointy hat.

Adlon, Cowen, and Campbell are all very good in their roles, often feeling more like one close family unit once they start to bond with one another. Mitchell is an excellent matriarch, offering support and optimism for those who end up in her care. She risks so much for strangers because she knows what the situation means for everyone, especially other women who may one day find themselves inadvertently on the wrong side of these new laws. Camargo may not have a massive amount of screentime, but his every moment is loaded with tension and menace. He's an excellent addition, and his character essentially gives a face to the inhumanity and coldness of the legislation. 

I liked almost every part of this, and I think Callahan knows exactly what she was doing. Some moments play out like Mean Girls, other moments are riffing on Thelma & Louise (namechecked in a conversation between two main characters at one point), but the main point, more than the comparison to the struggle of illegal immigrants, is something that Callahan pins down for almost every minute of the runtime. Coincidentally or not, considering the political horror of the last year or so, the film has now become even more inspiring. It's about men fearing women, and about how women can, and should, support one another in fighting back against that, as opposed to being turned on one another. Maybe I am reading too much into it, because the social pushback recently has seen women becoming more oppressed and shouted down in a way that has forced them to create a network of information and support not entirely unlike the underground resistance shown in scenarios like this, but it's there nevertheless. And there has always been a different reason for the witch hunts over the years, all of them allowing nasty cowards to mistreat and get rid of women they view as threatening to them.

Does every scene make sense? No, but I don't think they have to. While witches are onscreen, we can assume that not everyone seeing events unfold is necessarily seeing the same thing. There are also moments that just show teenagers behaving like teenagers, and when have they always thought everything through fully and adhered to arbitrary rules given to them? I know I certainly didn't at that age. And if I had some awesome witch powers . . . yeah, forget it, I'd be sitting on a ducking stool within a week (note - the "ducking stool" scene in this is absolutely fantastic).

While far from perfect, this is a step up from Head Count. And I liked Head Count. I hope others check out both of Callahan's features, and I hope some end up agreeing with me on how good they are.

8/10

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The Craft: Legacy (2020)

Written and directed by Zoe Lister-Jones, The Craft: Legacy is a film I had been putting off watching for a while. The trailer didn't really sell me on it. Nor did the fact that it was making use of a title that many view as a beloved 1990s teen horror. I have never loved The Craft as much as many others do, mainly because I've never been a big fan of Robin Tunney and I've also never been a teenage girl, but I can absolutely see why so many enjoy it. Especially female viewers. It's also helped immensely by a wonderful performance from Fairuza Balk (although pretty much all of the non-Tunney leads are great).

The Craft: Legacy doesn't have anything that the original had, in terms of working for the intended audience or having any of the cast members stand out. It's not quite as bad as the last incarnation of Black Christmas, but it's close.

Cailee Spaeny is Lily, a new girl in town. She has moved with her mother (Helen, played by Michelle Monaghan) as her mother looks to start the next stage of her life with her partner (Adam, played by David Duchovny). It's not long until Lily becomes the sought-after fourth for Lourdes (Zoey Luna), Frankie (Gideon Adlon), and Tabby (Lovie Simone). Working together, the girls can cast quite a spell or two on those around them.

It's slightly disheartening to find that this movie really is just as bad as the trailer made it out to be. It's a cynical attempt to cash in on a couple of potential markets, and it's extremely lazy throughout. It says something that a few of the better moments involve Monaghan and Duchovny, the main adults, when things should really have been set up to showcase the younger stars.

Not that the cast do a terrible job. They're just poorly served by a script that gives them no chance to make any real impact. Spaeny is at the centre of the plot, but could hardly feel less like a vital lead character. As the other three have to act in orbit around her, everyone suffers. Nicholas Galitizine doesn't do bad in his role, a young man named Timmy who becomes a much more sensitive soul after a spell is cast upon him, but it never has any ring of truth to it.

The fault seems to lie squarely with Lister-Jones, who may have taken this job as a stepping stone to something that interested her more. She doesn't seem to have any handle on the characters, or the material, and the final result is a teen drama with supernatural elements delivered by someone who seems completely disinterested in what's going on.

Given a different name, this would have come and gone without anyone noticing. But tie it to The Craft and there's much more reason to dislike it (not least of which is a third act bit of plotting that will make most viewers roll their eyes).

3/10

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Blockers (2018)

Blockers is a comedy that looked pretty awful from the first trailer. The rest of the advertising I saw for it didn't make it look much better. Then people went to see it and I started to hear some say that it was actually quite good. Some even said that it was very funny, with particular praise going to John Cena for his performance. I was willing to give it a go, and started to feel more optimistic about it. Well, it wasn't as bad as those trailers made it out to be, but it wasn't great either.

Cena, Leslie Mann, and Ike Barinholtz play three parents who discover that their daughters (Kathryn Newton, Geraldine Viswanathan, and Gideon Adlon) have made a pact to lose their virginity on prom night. Yes, this is a nightmare scenario for most parents. So they set out to put a stop to things. Well, Cena and Mann want to make sure nothing happens. Barinholtz is the cooler (aka less responsible) parent who tags along because he doesn't want the others embarrassing his daughter. And that's the premise.

Directed by Kay Cannon, making her feature debut in this role (although she has a number of decent credits as a producer), and written by Brian and Jim Kehoe (who have one previous feature and a couple of shorts under their belts), Blockers is handled slickly and professionally enough. The characters are sketched out quickly, although they're not the deepest, and the various elements that will cause more problems for the parental pursuit are made glaringly obvious. This is not a film that cares for subtlety.

Cena IS very good in his role, and he's the funniest of the three concerned parents. Barinholtz can be slightly irritating at times, due to his character, but also does well. Mann gets the short end of the stick, given the least of the comedic material as the writers instead focus on her stress and overprotective nature (similar to the way Cena is shown, but his ends up creating more laughs). That's a shame, because Mann can be very funny with the right material. What proves to be a pleasant surprise is that the film doesn't focus on the parents as much as you might think. It also gives plenty of time to Newton, Viswanathan, and Adlon, showing how they differ from one another and complement one another in their close friendship. All three young women do well, although it seems as if, once again, the writers had less to give the one of them (Newton, playing the daughter of Mann's character, funnily enough). You also get to find out more about their dates for the evening, and another potential love interest (Ramona Young) for one of the three, despite the fact that she is hoping to forge ahead and see if sex with a guy will change how she feels about her sexuality.

Considering the main premise, Blockers takes time to consider what the younger characters are going through, in terms of friendship, peer pressure, being on the brink of adulthood, and relations with their parents. It also manages to move deftly enough from the comedy to the sweeter moments, which come along, predictably enough, in the final act. What it doesn't do so well is provide the big laughs. You get a lot of chuckles, which are fine, but there aren't any great set-pieces here, and the script isn't smart and/or tight enough to make up for that.

Enjoyable enough, especially if you find Cena likable, but it's not one I can see anyone revisiting too many times.

6/10

You can buy the blu ray here.
American friends can buy it here.