Shudder Saturday: The Final Wish (2020)

I didn't read up on what The Final Wish was actually about before I started to watch it. The title made me think (not without reason, I would say) that it would be another telling of The Monkey's Paw. It isn't, but it's not entirely dissimilar to that classic horror tale. 

Michael Welch plays Aaron Hammond, a young man who heads home to help his mother (Kate, played by Lin Shaye) after the passing of his father. Aaron also reunites with Lisa (Melissa Bolona), but Lisa is now in a relationship with the ever-ready-to-be-abusive-local-cop Derek (Kaiwi Lyman) so it's probably best if Aaron just catches up with some other friends, Tyrone (Jean Elie) and Jeremy (Jonathan Daniel Brown). There's also an old item that catches Aaron's eye, something that he soon starts to suspect is helping to make his wishes come true. But at what cost?

Directed by Timothy Woodward Jr., and co-written by a trio of writers, The Final Wish is a perfectly enjoyable, and well-made, horror movie. It isn’t too intense or gory, it’s a bit predictable, and the cast are decidedly okay, but it passes the time well enough, and works well in what it is setting out to do. The biggest problem with it is the fact that those involved didn’t just fully commit to doing The Monkey’s Paw, instead thinking the tweaks and additions would be enough to make it feel a bit fresh and unique. They don’t.

Welch is perfectly fine in the lead role, and he has to sell some aspects of his character that aren’t really made as obvious as they should be. The rest of the cast are largely easy to forget, sadly, with both Elie and Brown left to hang around in scenes that could have used a bit more punch. Bolona has to portray someone stuck in between passive and assertive, which she does well enough, and Lyman has the most fun out of everyone, playing his nasty bastard character as a full-on nasty bastard. Shaye is always welcome, and one or two scenes certainly make this worth watching if you enjoy her work.

People don’t just want the same thing over and over again, that is correct (although sometimes, as I have said before, there is a certain comfort in the familiar), but when you have such a classic concept at the heart of your tale then it makes sense to either completely rework things, maybe going a lot wilder with main plot points, or attempt a modernized presentation of something very traditional. The Final Wish falls between these two stools, to the detriment of the final product. It is good, good enough anyway, but never becomes any better than that.

6/10

If you have enjoyed this, or any other, review on the blog then do consider the following ways to show your appreciation. A subscription/follow costs nothing.
It also costs nothing to like/subscribe to the YouTube channel attached to the podcast I am part of - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCErkxBO0xds5qd_rhjFgDmA
Or you may have a couple of quid to throw at me, in Ko-fi form - https://ko-fi.com/kevinmatthews

Netflix And Chill: Acts Of Violence (2018)

Cole Hauser plays Deklan, an ex-military man struggling to deal with PTSD (as shown in a scene with him talking to arguably the worst psychotherapist I've ever seen in a movie). Deklan has two brothers, Brandon (Shawn Ashmore) and the soon-to-be-married Roman (Ashton Holmes). All should be happy in their household, but it takes a dark turn very quickly when Roman's fiance, Mia (Melissa Bolona), is kidnapped by men who specialise in trafficking young women they keep drugged and enslaved. The police (even a determined detective played by Bruce Willis) have their hands tied, so it is up to Deklan to lead the trio on a mission that will return Mia alongside her loving partner and eliminate the ruthless head bad guy (Mike Epps).

There are a lot of scenes in Acts Of Violence that feel weak, including that introduction to the character played by Hauser. The script, by Nicolas Aaron Mazzanatto, is a grab bag of cliches and improbabilities. It's hard to believe that any villains would want to keep Mia alive when she keeps doing her damnedest to cause them so much trouble (she's shown as a beautiful woman who is also admired for her fighting spirit). But accepting improbabilities is often par for the course when it comes to action movies on the lower end of the budget scale. Considering the decent cast, I can only imagine that the money not spent buying another lazy turn from Willis had to be spent wisely.

Director Brett Donowho is comfortable enough at this level of moviemaking. I've seen at least one other movie from him, A Haunting At Silver Falls,  enough to know that he can take average materal and turn it into an average feature. There are good moments here, and the action isn't done too badly, for the most part, but he can't ever do enough to raise the material up.

The good news is that some of the cast try harder than Donowho. Hauser is great in his role, and his journey is sketched out in a surprisingly believable way, for the movie he's in. Ashmore is also very good, and Holmes isn't bad, although he's the weakest of the three. Bolona struggles to make a decent impression because she has to work in some of the more ridiculous scenes, but everyone else onscreen shows that they have a stronger pulse than Willis, who is onscreen just enough to remind viewers that he's constantly teetering on the brink of going full Seagal with every role that he is given nowadays. Epps is a decent baddie, and has a number of suitably loathsome henchmen helping him, so that helps.

If you're looking for an action thriller with a plot based around a good dollop of righteous vengeance then this will do the job. There are many better films you could choose, but also many worse ones, so this should be almost slap bang in the middle of any list of potential viewings you might prepare for yourself.

5/10

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