Slender Man (2018) – Film Review
Think about every horror movie you’ve ever seen. Now, think of every time that concept was ruined by a PG-13 rating, because the content was cut down to expand the audience.
Now, throw all that out the window…because Slender Man is actually good.
Levels of chilling (even writing now, and thinking back to the movie, I’m getting goosebumps) that I haven’t experienced since The Babadook in a mainstream horror flick—more recently in Hereditary, but see my review on that for more—and genuine, worked-out story that is respectful to the lore while charging its own path, what Slender Man really wowed me with was the level of scary.
Are there still those unshakable horror tropes—jump-scares, shock sequences, and unanswered questions? Yes, but they’re all used to effect.
I guess it’s not so much scary as it is unnerving, and that starts with the creature. Javier Botet (Stephen King’s IT (2017), Mama) as Slender Man is great, and a lot of his performance is practical. Yep—a blank, featureless face-mask, prosthetic fingertip extensions, a form-fitting suit to accentuate his lankiness and, dare I say, slenderness. I even feel like one scene was done with a puppet or some kind of animatronic, based on how it moved, but I’ll have to check back on that during a second viewing. He also has a cameo out of the suit, which was neat; he’s never in a film, usually, without creature effects of some kind added, if even digitally. With parts such as Alien (gag) Covenant—in which he was, sadly, uncredited as the Xenomorph, as he was the best part about that trainwreck—and the Crooked Man in The Conjuring 2 also under his belt, Botet is bringing modern, practical FX horror back to life with his chilling, full-body performances, and I love it.
The rest of the cast, surprisingly, is actually alright, too.
(I know I’m sounding a bit cynical, here, but it’s always the cast that I first lose any sense of compassion or sympathy for in one of these.)
Joey King (White House Down, The Kissing Booth), whom, I hope, has a long and fruitful career ahead of her, is great—as always. Which is why I felt a great slap in the general face region when it turned out she wasn’t the heroine here, despite being top-billed. No, that title goes to Julia Goldani Telles (Bunheads, The Affair), whom carries the story through to shocking, twisted fruition. Jaz Sinclair (When the Bow Breaks, Paper Towns) also makes an appearance, if just to fill a trope role, as does Annalise Basso (Captain Fantastic, Oculus), whom I wish was in more of the movie. Other than that, we really don’t have a cast…which I like, for two reasons. One, it’s a primarily-female cast—showcasing real, raw teen interactions and life outside of the scholastic sphere, and the consequences of these girls who unwittingly go up unprepared against an otherworldly malevolence. Two, having a limited number of players greatly increases the chances of me caring about more of them; more names, less sympathy to go around. There are side-characters, sure, but they’re not worth mentioning…because the whole of the main cast does so well with it, including Botet.
The score lends to the whole “psychological” aspect, getting right under our skin to heighten tense moments, and give shocking ones more impact. I’m still recalling shots of this movie days after watching it, which is a very good thing. No nightmares, but Slender Man has never been so much scary, to me, as he is fascinating, inspired, imaginative. So new, yet so rooted in the lore that it feels old—the perfect concept to bring to the big-screen…although, I’d’ve waited until closer to Halloween. Maybe not on Halloween (as we all know what’s going to take that cake), but late-September, at the very least. *Shrugs* Anyway…
Shot on-location in Massachusetts—but made very much to look like the Pacific Northwest—this movie has a very autumnal vibe. If my theatre manages to keep it that long (unlikely…), I’ll probably end up seeing it again closer to the equinox. I loved the surreal dream sequences, experimental concept horror, the large number of practical effects, and the simplicity of the story. The filmmakers didn’t try to make Slender Man something it isn’t, or twist the lore for their own ends. It’s presented very much as a fan-telling of a terrifying and original internet creepypasta.
Some threads never get fully-explored, but were probably cut for time; teens rarely have an attention span longer than 90 minutes LOL. A few throw-away characters (Sinclair), but the piece gets right going—no faffing-about with unnecessary build-up or fake-outs, just all Slendy, all the time. I’d actually consider him a side- or co-protagonist—the “lanky lead”, as it were.
A perfect theatre movie, I enjoyed Slender Man…and it’s about damn time. So many times have I been let down by PG-13 horror flicks; good to finally have one in the books that was actually done well. It subverted my expectations—actually showed me a good time. Before this, they were all fan-made Slender films—on YouTube—that were the ones to watch.
Final ‘Risk Assessment: *****/
Next review: The Meg
