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Join UsStar Cast: Wyatt Russell, Kerry Condon, Amélie Heoferie, and Gavin Warren
Director: Bryce McGuire
What’s Good: The initial premise is fascinating, and just there, you can imagine the movie going to a very compelling and scary place.
What’s Bad: The film doesn’t know what to add to its premise to take the story somewhere that doesn’t feel cliché or overdone.
Loo Break: There are many, especially during the second act when the movie tries to make you feel like it is scary when it is not.
Watch or Not?: There are many better options if you are looking for a horror film. This film is a pass.
Language: English (with subtitles).
Available On: Theaters
Runtime: 98 Minutes
User Rating:
The horror genre is passing one of its most significant low points, as there was once a time when it was the realm of experimentation and the creation of very iconic and influential characters that would chase us in our nightmares.
Night Swim Movie Review: Script Analysis
The horror genre is passing one of its most significant low points, as there was once a time when it was the realm of experimentation and the creation of very iconic and influential characters that would chase us in our nightmares. It seems those times are long gone, and the only horror films that are being made right now rely on only in the formulas that have worked in the past, which is natural; it happens in every single storytelling medium, however, when at least 90% of the output is just the same movie being endlessly rehashed, then we have a problem.
Night Swim is just the latest example of this problem, which is a shame coming from one of the most prestigious and successful horror studios today, the Blumhouse Studios. Being such a thriving creative house makes you think that such success would give the studio a chance to do something new and fresh, but no. So, when the movie starts, and we see the classic setup of the family passing through hard times, only to be challenged by some supernatural horror, you know exactly what will happen. As the movie progresses, every single one of your predictions will be fulfilled one after the other. By the time the movie ends, you will realize that the film made no effort to create a surprise or even take the story in a fresh new direction.
Some scenes and setups are just too cookie-cutter, and they are seen in every single horror movie of the past two decades; it is pretty jarring that the film expects to scare us with a story that dares to go to scary places and uses the infamous jump threatens as much as it can. The genre has way overdone all these elements, and their effect has been diminished to the point that they feel entirely pointless. This makes the film feel so old, even though it is a recent production.
The way the script also works with the characters is incredibly flat because, for once, the characters all feel like they were taken out of a stock character folder and thrown into the plot. There isn’t a single unique characteristic to these characters, and they behave exactly as you expect, making the entire story feel entirely artificial. The dialogue is dull, making the characters’ interactions lifeless. When the teenage daughter gets the classic plot you expect, you know you have seen this movie countless times before.
Night Swim Movie Review: Star Performance
The most disappointing thing about the movie is not only that the plot and the script are content with just doing the bare minimum, trapping itself in the most generic mold, but also the fact that it traps its actors in these generic roles from where there is no hope of improving them, no matter how hard they try. This means that the two most prominent names in the movie, Wyatt Russell and Kerry Condon, feel wasted in a film like this, playing the boring roles of a father and a mother going through a rough patch.
Russell has proven to be a charismatic actor at this point. He doesn’t reach the heights that his father reached his peak, but Wyatt is establishing his brand, which is pretty good; here, the role is too plain to make you feel anything, especially towards the end of the film. Meanwhile, Condon is an Oscar Nominee, an award she should have won, but now we find her in a movie like this where her exceptional talents also feel wasted. Both actors try their best, but the material doesn’t resonate enough.
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Night Swim Movie Review: Direction, Music
Not everything is terrible about the film; there are a couple of nice shots here and there, especially one sequence underwater that feels like it could be a sign of something terrifying, but like with everything else, the movie is afraid of going there. Nevertheless, the film is well shot and has the shape of a movie; that might not be much, but being competent when starting and finishing a film is a considerable achievement. So, this is a movie. Is it a good one? Not really, but it is a movie, and making them is challenging.
Mark Korven takes the role of composer for this film, and while he is a pretty talented musician and composer, more than his abilities are needed to take the material to the next level. This is a shame because we know Korven can do it, but his score feels just as generic as the rest of the film, as it cannot create the atmosphere it needs to.
Night Swim Movie Review: Last Words
Night Swim is a disappointment, and it is just the latest example of a genre that is just eating itself alive by copying itself endlessly. We know that there are daring and brave filmmakers out there doing the best they can to take the genre to the next level, but Hollywood seems ultimately against change, and as this movie tanks at the box office, we can only hope that it serves as a warning that something’s got to give.
Night Swim Trailer
Night Swim releases on 05th January, 2024.
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For more recommendations, read our Poor Things Movie Review here.
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