David Martellock

(spoiler review) Might be good for a newbie to horror, but not for a seasoned veteran. Good stuff: it's pretty well shot, if a bit cold and detached. You don't really connect to or feel for the characters. Homelander is very good at characters that seem wholesome on the surface and disturbing/evil underneath. Which he does well here. The child acting is pretty good too. Honestly kinda liked the creepy parents in general also, telling him that something they know is real is in his imagination. 2 stars for that. -3 for overall disappointment at climax. Some plot points are embarrassingly cliche. Disturbing drawing in class for instance. Bullied quiet kid. Concerned teacher investigates ECT. I think the thing that really got to me though was how disappointing the creature design was... How did she cause that huge blood splatter with just sharp teeth?? Give her long legs or a disturbing body plan instead of just being the kid from the exorcist with a big mouth. Literally only show the creature one time and spend the money for an actual disturbing monster. Ugh, what a letdown.

Spoilers: Many reviewers don't get the powerful release of her working through her personal grief in the film. The simple ending, "i want you to love me", and her going, "I do". Even after seeing that all the horror that this creature, representing masculine energy in her life, specifically her husband's, had to bring her, she recognized that she did love him on some level, even if she didn't want to be with him. That's what working through the layers of complex trauma and grief look like. Yes, there's a commentary on patriarchy if you want to see it that way. But if you're looking for that, and you're looking to get mad about it, of course you are going to have a bad time. I personally loved it. ESPECIALLY the body horror. Hell there's almost a sense of cosmic horror. Great film