My husband was lucky enough to win tickets to an advanced screening - and we both love horror so were excited to attend. This movie started off strong with extreme horror juxtaposed by nostalgic familiarity. However, as the plot progressed I felt that certain aspects that I was excited about were never fleshed out in full, and the plot was left feeling simple. It had all the potential to be an incredibly creepy horror with a dive into the psychology/human psyche, but instead I felt that it relied on simple paranormal themes to create spooks. I would have loved to see the themes of isolation, vulnerability, and danger-in-your-own-backyard further explored. I also think the villan in this story relied too heavily on cosmetic creep rather than creating a truly and deeply disturbing character. Ultimately, the film felt bare-bones for me. I still enjoyed watching it, and I do have to say that cinematically it is stunning. I left thinking perhaps the book by Joe Hill had more of these aspects explored but wasn't translated to film, but was disappointed to see that isn't the case either. Just like a good romance is all about the yearning, a good horror is all about the dread - and this didn't take the time or effort to build that through character depth and plot complexity.
Review of The Black Phone
