Eric Thomas

This was quite good. Pretty much what I was expecting. The balance of horror, action, and adventure is spot on. It ties in with the franchise well, but it can be enjoyed by those without prior knowledge of the franchise as well. The pacing was not bad for a 2 hour movie. It did a great job of picking up the intensity at a steady pace. It didn't feel terribly slow, or too quick at any point. Fede Alvarez was the reason I was excited to see this, and honestly, this was the first movie I've seen in theaters in about 5 years. His Evil Dead (2013) was good enough to get me excited for this, as well as set some fairly high expectations. He seems to bring series back to their roots, without remaking the same movie. They can be quite similar, and tow the line between new, and remake. But, he is quite masterful at making a new installment of a franchise feel both familiar, and fresh at the same time. I enjoyed the casting as well. They don't chase after big names, and that's great in my book. The cast all seemed to be fine choices for their roles, and the few leads really did a great job in my book. There are a few scenes that really got me excited. The creativity, and execution of ideas in this film really left little to be desired. As far as horror goes, it's not terribly scary. There is a fair bit of action, and it really didn't feel like just a horror movie. The blend of suspense, adventure, action, and horror really makes it difficult to label. It is certainly not only after scares. There are some attempts at jump scares, but not many. There is also a fair bit of gore, as anyone familiar with the franchise should expect. It was enjoyable for me, and I was not disappointed. I can definitely call myself a Fede Alvarez fan after this one. I'm sure I could say much more about this movie, but I think I'll leave it at that.