STUDIO: Universal Pictures RUNNING TIME: 1hr 49m AGE RATING: 18
STAR RATING: 4 Stars
VERDICT: A delightfully deranged ride, Radio Silence are back with a bang
I believe Radio Silence’s Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett are some of the greatest horror directors working right now. I have loved every single project the Radio Silence duo have helmed. And this is no different. Returning to their roots after a stint helming the ‘SCREAM’ franchise, ‘Abigail’ isn’t able to reach the heights of their most recent standalone feature ‘Ready Or Not’, but it does come pretty damn close. However, any directors working today would be lucky for me to call a four star film, their “worst” project. That’s just how good they are. In ‘Abigail’ we see them are their finest. Working with game casts, a witty script and an amazing location. I would take ten more of these. I really would!
If there is one thing audiences will remember after watching ‘Abigail’, it’s the titular child star. Alisha Weir is the standout for the movie. Her performances as the wickedly demented Abigail will go down in history as not just one of the greatest child actor performances ever, but one of the best horror performance of all time. Period. Weir is a remarkable performer. She possesses more energy, more star quality and more showmanship in her little fourteen year old body than I see in many of our greatest actors. I knew she was a find in ‘Matilda’, but she’s on another level here. Expect to see her on the silver screen in pretty much every major franchise going forward. Every single casting director in Hollywood should be calling her 24/7 to get her in for an audition. She commands this film. She owns this film. And it’s thanks to her that it works as well as it does. In twenty years time we will look back on this film and remember the birth of one of our brightest stars. And I hope she continues to work in the horror genre! She really is cut out for it.
As for her co-stars, very solid performances across the board. However, however much it pains me to say it, our protagonist Joey portrayed by Melissa Barrera is actually the weak link. I thought her turns in Matt and Tyler’s ‘SCREAM’s were really good. Especially ‘VI’. However, this performance just feel a little phoned in. I really love Barrera. I love what she stands for, and I want nothing more than to see her succeed. But this isn’t it for me. Maybe it’s because she’s given the poorest role to work with? With the weakest material? Basically playing the “straight man” of this wacky cast. Whatever it is, I wasn’t all that interested in her here. Which is an absolute shame. Luckily, the film around her is strong enough to pull her through. And hopefully the box office of this movie will too.
Apart from Weir, the other standouts are actually Kathryn Newton and Dan Stevens. Colour me surprised! I haven’t truly loved Newton in any of her work before, I thought she was pretty strong in another horror comedy ‘Freaky’, but I found ‘Lisa Frankenstein’ absolutely unwatchable and ‘Ant-Man III’ an absolute chore. Newton does the opposite of Barrera here. Mainly because she actually get the bulk of the scripts wittiest lines to deal with. As does an equally amusing and scene stealing Kevin Durand. Newton comes alive here. And I suddenly see what her fans see in her. I hope there’s more like this from her in the future. Alongside her, Dan Stevens is an obviously dependable actor. And I look forward to seeing him continue to be batshit insane in this summers ‘Cuckoo’. Stevens oozes charisma, and he can chew scenery with the best of them. If this isn’t the movie that gets casting directors to sit up and take notice of this guy, I don’t know what is.
I also have to get a special mention to Angus Cloud. A real talent, taken far too soon. And whom this film is dedicated to. He is so dynamic, so absolutely brillant, that it kills me we don’t get too see what he would’ve cooked up as he grew older. Here, he is electric. A real star. What a swan song for one of our greatest young performers, who will be sorely missed.
As for the film as a whole; the comedic elements, just like in Ready Or Not’, are supremely well done. And are probably the strongest asset for ‘Abigail’. The film does end up playing like a straight up comedy, instead of a comedy horror though, and I do take a slight issue with that. I really wish the horror sequences had been ramped up a little more. As most of the set pieces here have moments borrowed from, or pretty much the entire sequence entirely playing homage to, sequences in ‘Ready Or Not’. Meaning if you’ve seen that movie, and you really should’ve, the horror elements aren’t as dramatically satisfying as I’ve have liked.
The pacing is also a little off. Rendering the first act a little bit too clunky, and the final act a tad too unsatisfying for my taste. Revealing a major twist in marketing is always a risk. And there is no way ‘Abigail’ could’ve been promoted without it. But when it takes what feels like a good forty five to fifty minutes into the movie to get to the carnage we were promised, you certainly feel a little shortchanged. Luckily for ‘Abigail’, the middle two acts are absolute blasts. And lead to one of the most fun cinema experiences I’ve had in a hot minute. Everyone is game. The gore is good. And the location itself, is absolutely stunning. I only wish we got there a little sooner, as I felt myself clock watching wondering where the demented blast I was promised was. Luckily for me, it eventually arrived. And when it did, I had a huge grin on my face.
I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that like ‘Ready Or Not’ before it, ‘Abigail’ is gonna become a huge hit. It plays like a deranged midnight madness screening at a horror film festival, and would’ve played really well to the crowds that gather for horror festivals like FrightFest. It is a little bit more slick than the gory and gnarly ‘Ready Or Not’, and I do miss some of those more hardcore elements. However, the film we did actually receive is so much fun that you walk out forgetting any criticisms you had throughout it’s runtime. See it on a big screen, go late at night, gather your own “rat pack”, and you’ll have an absolute blast.
Reviewed by Lewis Powell
ABIGAIL is in cinemas from the 19th April
Film Focus Reviews 