It Comes at Night (2017)

Secure within a desolate home as an unnatural threat terrorizes the world, a man has established a tenuous domestic order with his wife and son. Then a desperate young family arrives seeking refuge.

Director:

Trey Edward Shults

Writer:

Trey Edward Shults

Stars:

Joel Edgerton, Christopher Abbott, Carmen Ejogo

1 win & 11 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Joel Edgerton	...	Paul
Christopher Abbott	...	Will
Carmen Ejogo	...	Sarah
Riley Keough	...	Kim
Kelvin Harrison Jr.	...	Travis
Griffin Robert Faulkner	...	Andrew
David Pendleton	...	Bud
Mikey	...	Stanley
Chase Joliet	...	Man #1
Mick O'Rourke	...	Man #2

Storyline

Secure within a desolate home as an unnatural threat terrorizes the world, the tenuous domestic order he has established with his wife and son is put to the ultimate test with the arrival of a desperate young family seeking refuge. Despite the best intentions of both families, paranoia and mistrust boil over as the horrors outside creep ever-closer, awakening something hidden and monstrous within him as he learns that the protection of his family comes at the cost of his soul.

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Plot Keywords:

paranoia | pandemic | infected | forest | post apocalypse | 

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Genres:

Horror | Mystery | Sci-Fi

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence, disturbing images, and language

Did You Know?

Trivia

The painting featured in the movie at the beginning is titled, "The Triumph of Death".

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Goofs

After the dog returns, Paul asks Travis about any physical contact he had with Andrew. Despite clearly recognising the risk from touch, and ordering Travis and Sarah to 'wash up' and quarantine themselves, he wipes his own hands repeatedly over his face and beard.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Sarah: Can you hear me? Dad, can you hear me?
Bud: [nodding a weary yes]
Sarah: You don't need to fight it. You can just let it all go. Everything's okay.
[pan reveals that she is speaking with a mask on]
Sarah: I love you, dad. I do. I'm so sorry. Oh, god...
[gets up to go]

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Connections

Referenced in Half in the Bag: Under the Silver Lake (2019)

User Reviews

Disjointed, confusing and unresolved.

I am a fan of post-apocalyptic movies and for the first 20 minutes this film shows promise, good visuals and mood. But then it crawls repeating the same shots and mild shocks until after the hour mark. At this stage you are left wondering when the real story is going to start. Plot elements are started but then abandoned. A little mystery is a good idea in this genre, it heightens the fear but at some point you need an actual narrative to draw it all together.

The ending did force a climax but it seemed botched somewhat by the director so you are left wondering exactly what happened.

The biggest failing is I didn't feel interested enough in the characters to care enough about them during the attempted resolution.

I understand that the budget would have been small but that is no excuse. The camera work was fine. The frights were well done and the tension was well maintained but it gets boring when repeated. The actors did a good job though some were miscast. It was the writing and direction that let the story down.

For a better example of a post apocalyptic movie with a similar setting look at One Hundred Mornings.

Details

Official Sites:

A24 Official Facebook

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 June 2017 (USA)

Also Known As:

It Comes at Night

Filming Locations:

Woodstock, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$5,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,988,370, 11 June 2017

Gross USA:

$13,985,117

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$19,735,344

Company Credits

Production Co:

Animal Kingdom, A24

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1