Prime Time: The Devil's Mouth (2026)

A shark movie. Kathryn Newton in the lead role. Available for "free" as a streaming service choice. The Devil's Mouth ticked all of the boxes I wanted ticked for an easy weekend viewing option. Sadly, I should have taken more notice of the fact that it was directed by Jeff Wadlow, a man who has all of the directorial talent of a sentient vanilla latte.

A group of friends are holidaying in Thailand. All seems well until of them ends up encountering a large school of jellyfish while swimming in the sea. This is understandably unnerving, making her even more wary than usual when they head out on a trip to swim and dive around in an impressive submerged cave system. It's all freshwater in there, which should make things safer, but a recent storm has brought in some of the nearby seawater. And something big and dangerous that doesn't belong in the cave environment.

Newton does well in the main role here, Sara, whether she's being surrounded by jellyfish or finding reserves of courage as the film moves on to a predictable enough finale. It's a shame that nobody else is quite as good as her though. Lana Condor tries her best, playing Max, but she's hampered by a screenplay that makes it hard to overlook how much of the events are directly caused by her, mainly due to her main characteristic being the ability to always get her own way. Nico Hiragao, Gavin Casalegno, and Tommi Rose are the other main members of the friend group, and may as well have "chum" tattooed on their foreheads, Tayme Thapthimthong is pretty good as the the cave guide, Wat, and Harrison Luna plays someone clearly placed in the narrative to add an extra potential victim.

It's fair enough to complain about the majority of the writing by Aja Gabel and Myung Joh Wesner, especially when it comes to the lack of any decent character work, and how many times will I have to suffer through shark films that put an emphasis on their ability to see prey? (sharks can see, but I doubt one of them ever struggled to find a meal because they couldn't find an underwater branch of Specsavers) But they're not responsible for how truly ugly and dull this is. That travesty lies squarely at the feet of director Wadlow and cinematographer James Kniest.

Things don't start off too badly. There's a bright sun and some clear water being enjoyed by the main characters. It's a party vibe, and viewers know, given the title, that the carefree nature of the onscreen antics and sunny skies will be juxtaposed with whatever is about to come along once we get into those caves. That's fine, going from light to dark as things turn deadly, but those making this film should have really figured out a way to deliver a variety of light sources. This was unwatchable in places, and I could only make out what was going on when I temporarily turned up all of the available brightness settings on my TV. Wadlow wants to make a shark movie with no small amount of The Descent mixed in, but he should have spent more time studying that film to figure out how to better plan his shot choice and lighting levels. 

I don't go into any shark movie nowadays with high expectations. I'm the same when it comes to straight-to-streaming movies. So I can tell you that I was simply hoping for this to be a diverting enough 106 minutes. It failed to achieve even that modest aim. And I know that I'm not the only one so displeased by it.

3/10

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Imaginary (2024)

Considering how weak many of his movies are, I have seen quite a few of the movies directed by Jeff Wadlow. I would recommend some of them, others I would encourage you to avoid, but he certainly seems to be doing a good enough job to be allowed to keep helming some slick, and often fairly bloodless, mainstream horror movies. He also co-wrote this screenplay with Greg Erb and Jason Oremland, which allows me to feel no guilt as I put most of the blame on him for just how weak and dull this is.

DeWanda Wise is Jessica, stepmother to a moody teen (Taylor, played by Taegen Burns) and a younger little girl (Alice, played by Pyper Braun). Her partner, the father of the girls, is a man named Max (Tom Payne), but the movie gets him out of the way very quickly, ensuring that he has no actual character development while the focus stays on Jessica and the girls. Alice starts to spend more and more time in the company of an imaginary friend, Chauncey, and her behaviour becomes more troubling. It also quickly becomes obvious, to Jessica anyway, that Chauncey may not be as imaginary as most imaginary friends.

While they have been in the industry for some time, nothing in the filmographies of Wadlow, Erb, or Oremland made me optimistic about Imaginary, and I was right to approach it with caution. I am not saying this to be pithy or clever, but the biggest thing working against it is a lack of real imagination. The first half of the movie feels like every other horror movie we have seen featuring a woman trying to develop some kind of bond with step-children who are starting to pull further away from her. There is a sinister undercurrent to the childish playtime of young Alice, and a number of conversations start to hint at the fact that Jessica may be forgetting a time in her life when she was acting very much like Alice. All very predictable and obvious stuff, and the big finale delivers nothing to make the slog worthwhile, hampered by a lack of scale and an inability to dive fully into the darkness.

Wise is decent enough as the central adult, doing everything that is asked of her as things get slightly more ridiculous with every minute of the runtime, Burns is a very standard moody teen, and Braun is almost a typical little girl, although she suffers at the hands of writers that make her a bit too unpleasant every now and again. Betty Buckley is a neighbour who helps to reveal details from the past, Samuel Salary is the hospitalized father of our lead, and one or two others appear to either receive a fright or look bemused by the developing situation.

I am sure that this will still do enough to satisfy mainstream cinema patrons who want some chills and thrills during their visit, but I don’t see it having any appeal for anyone who has already started to take a deeper dive into the delights and terrors offered up by the horror genre. Visually lacklustre, written with barely enough energy to transition effectively from one scene to the next, and lacking the ability to even make the most of the jump scares, this is a complete waste of time, especially when there have been one or two horror movies from the past decade that feature more terrifying imaginary friends causing terror and havoc.

Not the worst horror film I have seen this year, but it certainly puts itself forward as a strong contender.

3/10

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Netflix And Chill: The Curse Of Bridge Hollow (2022)

There are a couple of ways to summarise The Curse Of Bridge Hollow. I could tell you that it's a bit like another (unoffocial) Goosebumps movie. I could tell you that it's family fun nicely in line with the atmosphere and thrills of the spooky season. Or I could tell you that I watched it last year and forgot to review it until this year. That's not intended to condemn the film, but it does hint at it feeling more like a pleasant distraction as opposed to something more substantial. I'm glad I waited a year to rewatch and review this though, because I think I actually enjoyed it more this time around.

Priah Ferguson plays Sydney Gordon, a teenager who moves into a new town with her parents (played by Marlon Wayans and Kelly Rowland). While her parents seem happy about the move, Sydney is less than pleased. At least the residents of the town seem to be having fun as they get into the spirit of Halloween, but things turn dangerous when a curse starts to bring most of the many Halloween decorations to life. It isn't long until Sydney and her father are battling against spiders, zombies, killer clowns, and more while they try to figure out how to break the curse.

Written by Todd Berger, Robert Rugan, and John R. Morey, with only Berger having a decent selection of feature screenplays already under his belt, this is easygoing entertainment that manages to keep everything weighted more towards the fun than the scares (although those killer clowns may creep out a few viewers). It's not for the very young, but most teens who aren't yet ready for the illicit thrills of higher-certificated content should get a real kick out of this once it all gets going. And it's paced well enough to get going without too much pre-amble. You get to know the characters and the town, but things don't ever really settle down once the consequences of the curse start to become clear to everyone suddenly in danger. 

The cast do well to boost the material, with Wayans good fun in the role of "uptight dad" while Ferguson easily proves herself as a very capable young lead. Rowland gets a lot less to do, but she's fine, and it's a wise move to give supporting roles to John Michael Higgins, Lauren Lapkus, and Rob Riggle, all of whom are allowed to add some humour without being overused. Abi Monterey, Holly J. Barrett, and Myles Perez play three other teens who befriend/help our lead, and they also do a good job.

Jeff Wadlow directs with a steady hand, also making great use of special effects and CGI that blend together to make the all-too-lively Halloween decorations feel nicely textured and realised. Most importantly, no one thing overshadows anything else, which means that nothing feels unbalanced. That goes for the cast, the FX work, the chuckles and the chills, and the father-daughter bonding moments amidst the fight against frighteners.

If you're after some spooky family entertainment, or you just fancy watching something yourself that isn't aiming to turn you into a nervous wreck or a traumatised mess, then The Curse Of Bridge Hollow is a good choice for this time of year. I'm glad that I made time this year to rewatch it, and maybe this review will remind others that it is still tucked away on Netflix (as it is all too easy to forget when they spend so much time pushing their newer content to the top of the main page).

7/10

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Fantasy Island (2020)

Do you think it would be fun if someone decided to make a movie version of The Love Boat, but then decided to take the basic premise and twist it into a slasher movie? I am guessing probably not, at least not if you are familiar with the show, and have a fondness for it. The same goes for Hotel, although that was much more of a soap opera. But the same might go for Fantasy Island, a film based on a brand name that will satisfy neither fans of the TV show nor younger viewers who won't know what they're letting themselves in for.

The plot starts off simply enough, after a prologue scene showing someone being terrorised. A bunch of people arrive at Fantasy Island, where they hope that their fantasies will come true. There's Gwen (Maggie Q), a woman who thinks that her fantasy will allow her to make up for a past mistake, Melanie (Lucy Hale), a woman who wants revenge on a school bully (Sloane, played by Porita Doubleday), Patrick (Austin Stowell), who wants to play soldier, and brothers Brax (Jimmy O. Yang) and J. D. (Ryan Hansen), who just want to party hard. Michael Peña is Mr. Roarke, the head of the island, and the one ensuring that people stay the course as their fantasies play out, even if they turn into something unexpected.

Re-uniting some of the people who gave us the much more enjoyable Truth Or Dare (director Jeff Wadlow, who also helped to write the screenplay with Jillian Jacobs and Christopher Roach again, and Hale in a central role), Fantasy Island is just about the most ridiculous and pointless mainstream thriller/horror I can think of in recent years. I guess there's a vein of black comedy running through it, which may help viewers who respond to it more, but it certainly wasn't enough to help me find everything more bearable.

The cast are an admirably diverse selection, I guess, but the one thing they have in common is a level of blandness that doesn't help lift the weak material. Maggie Q ends up becoming the foremost character, working things out ahead of others and trying to change the situation for the better, but that doesn't make her any more interesting. Hale is good though, and she's someone I tend to enjoy in the main roles I have seen her in, and Yang and Hansen work well together, bringing more of the fun moments in the first half of the film. Stowell is saddled with an annoying strand that shows him desperate to have a moment of heroism, and Peña speaks in platitudes while smiling enigmatically. Thankfully, Doubleday is another person I just tend to automatically enjoy onscreen, and there are supporting roles for the always-welcome Michael Rooker and Kim Coates.

It just goes to show you that you can pretty much do anything you like with a well-known brand name and nobody will question you if they think enough teens will go to see it. This makes all the wrong choices, from the lack of characters you want to root for to the downright stupid final act, but thinks all will be forgiven when it moves along slickly enough while occasionally winking at those who remember the TV show. All is not forgiven. And my fantasy has now changed from me being locked in a room with Scarlett Johansson and twelve jars of strawberry jam to simply never having to endure a sequel to this.

3/10

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Bloodshot (2020)

Be warned, there will be some minor spoilers in this review. I will say, however, that I will only mention elements shown in the trailer, while trying to avoid revealing anything major, although the film is predictable enough as it plays out that you'll always be a couple of steps ahead of it.

Vin Diesel is Ray Garrison, a typically Vin Diesel kind of guy. He's a skilled, tough, soldier who gets the job done and looks forward to returning to his wife (Talulah Riley) after every mission. But things take a sharp turn into disaster town when Ray and his wife are caught by a group of extreme villains, and both are killed. And that's when the plot really begins. Ray wakes up, confused. It turns out that he's been brought back to life by Dr. Emil Harting (Guy Pearce), and he's been given a substantial upgrade. He is stronger, and any injuries are swiftly repaired by nano-technology. The first chance he gets, Ray heads off to find those who killed his wife. But is he after the right people? And why does he wake up in the same confused state, being treated the very same way, once he thinks he has completed his objective? All is very much not as it seems.

Bloodshot is a typical feature debut from someone who has spent years working on the visual effects of various projects, and that is exactly the background we have for Dave Wilson (billed as David F. Wilson). The only other thing directed by him is the excellent , and visually stunning, "Sonnie's Edge" episode of Love, Death & Robots. The visuals here aren't bad, but they're not good enough to make up for the weaker elements of the film, and there are too many weaker elements.

First of all, Vin gotta Vin. I don't know why he always has to be the best in the room, but we know that he does. So you know how this story is going to play out from the very beginning, even as it tries to squirm and swerve around various plot turns. Eiza González does okay in the lead female role, KT, and Pearce is a good presence as the scientist who obviously has a nefarious agenda, but everyone else is either forgettable (Sam Heughan plays Jimmy Dalton, a potential antagonist with nothing to make him stand out, aside from the special effects) or underused (Toby Kebbell). At least Lamorne Morris livens up the proceedings, playing a computer programmer who may be able to help Vin if he is allowed to live long enough.

Although I am unfamiliar with the comic book that this is based on, I can only hope it isn't as dull as this. The script, by Jeff Wadlow and Eric Heisserer (the latter has the better overall filmography, but also helped to give us the remake of A Nightmare On Elm Street), feels like it is 50% exposition, 25% the usual ego-stroking that Vin Diesel needs, and 25% decent set-pieces. That's not a recipe for success.

As long as you don't expect greatness, there's just enough here to entertain. It might make the second part of a good double-bill for the few people who also somehow enjoyed Babylon A. D. Everyone else should keep bumping it lower on any list of planned viewings.

4/10

You can buy the movie here.
Americans can buy it here.

Truth Or Dare (2018)

You all know how the game of Truth Or Dare works. People take turns. You either have to tell the truth or perform a dare. The truths normally stem from embarrassing questions about who you have a crush on or what you've done in your sex life, the dares can range from attempts at limbo to making out with strangers to, well, whatever your crowd thinks is going to test your mettle.

Truth Or Dare works pretty much the same way in movie form, except it's anyone around you who can tell you when it is your turn, the truths exposed can be much more damaging, and most of the dares are deadly.

That's really all you need to know about this glossy horror film aimed squarely at the teen market (there's a bland and attractive cast, a lack of any real gore or bloodshed, and a repeated special effect that, as so many others have already pointed out, simply looks like a quirky photo messenger filter). It's not bad - says the man who remains, at times, one of the most easily pleased viewers you could hope for - but it doesn't do enough to keep most horror fans happy, aside from those who may be very new to the delights of the genre.

There's nothing inherently wrong with Lucy Hale (who plays the nominal lead character), Tyler Posey, Violette Beane, Hayden Szeto, or any of the other young cast members. They're just far too easy to forget as soon as the end credits roll. In fact, I'll go so far as to say that it took me a good 15-20 minutes to start identifying most of the individuals separately, instead treating them as one mass of potential victims without any personality until one or two had been pushed off the mortal coil.

There's also nothing majorly wrong with the direction from Jeff Wadlow. He doesn't ever present things with any style or panache, but he shows a basic level of competence, making the film a relatively painless experience (in good and bad ways), helped along by the pacing.

The biggest problem here is the script, and the essentially juvenile nature of the central premise. There have, of course, been other movies based on childish games, but there are some games that are often carried through to adulthood (even if we should know better) or that we can look back on with fond memories of the time when we could be more innocent/idiotic/delete as applicable. Truth Or Dare just isn't one of those games, and I'd be very interested to hear back from anyone who thinks otherwise. It's a game expressly designed, it would seem, to drag people out of their shells, and maybe even get them some heavy petting. Turning it into a tame teen horror means that you end up with something that just isn't all that much fun. Writers Michael Reisz, Jillian Jacobs, Christopher Roach, and Wadlow let down both the cast and the viewers, eyeing up the biggest possible audience demographic without doing enough to truly please anyone in it.

Lots of people will sneer at this, and some will absolutely hate it, but it's far from the worst example out there of the kind of horror that doesn't show off the genre at its best but does make enough money at the box office to potentially fund three or four other genre movies, and one of those may even appeal to more than just teens.

5/10

Pick up the shiny disc here.
Americans can buy it here.