Here we go again. Before I Wake is another horror movie featuring a creepy adopted kid who can make creepy stuff happen. This is what I thought before I hit the play button. And yes, I fully knew what I was getting myself into. Since I don’t watch movies alone a lot of the times, horror movies with creepy kids are kind of a sure thing. You know what’s going to happen, the only question is how it’s going to happen. And how good the jump-scares are going to be. However, after watching the movie we’re going to talk about today, I have to say I’ve changed my opinion about it. After all, the director is none other than Mike Flanagan.
Yes, the same Mike Flanagan who made The Haunting of Hill House, Midnight Mass, and The Fall of the House of Usher. And just last week we got the news that he’ll be in charge of the next sequel in The Exorcist franchise. I mean, he can hardly fuck that up as anything is better than The Exorcist: Believer. So, Before I Wake is not exactly your garden variety creepy kid horror movie. It adds fantasy elements to the formula reminiscent of Guillermo Del Toro’s movies. Pan’s Labyrinth and Devil’s Backbone are two good examples. So, it’s safe to say that if you like those two movies, you’re going to like this one as well.
I should tell you it also deals with loss and illness. So, if that’s something you find triggering or if you’re looking for a classic horror movie, maybe you should skip this one. I mean, it’s nothing too heavy but depending on your mood and circumstances, it can be a deal-breaker. On the other hand, maybe you’re looking for exactly this type of movie. We will be following Jessie and Mark, a married couple, who after the unfortunate death of their only child decide to adopt. Eight-year-old Cody Morgan ends up with them despite his troubled past. You see, two families already tried adopting poor Cody but in both cases things went south pretty quickly.
And it’s not going to take long before Jessie and Mark realize that something odd is happening. Before I Wake is a suggestive title, you’ll have to admit. I know that some of you will be thinking the same thing I was thinking: did Mike watch Solaris? Moving on, we open strongly with a father holding a gun pointed at his poor Cody before settling into a more slower pacing. Once things start happening, it’s pretty easy to predict in which direction they’ll be going. All the characters make all the decisions you think they’re going to make. At least this is what I thought, as a veteran horror movie fan.
The fantasy elements help with this predictability. On that note, for a movie without a big budget, I have to say that the special effects were excellent. The CGI was believable while the practical effects were even better. There will be a couple of effective jump scares and the creature, yes there will be a creature, was quite frightening. The finale, however, was quite messy and it left a lot of questions unanswered. At least it was nasty and fucked up, I have to give them that. I kind of wish we spent more time in this nightmarish world but then this would’ve been a straight-up horror.
In the end, with the running time of just ninety minutes Before I Wake is solid movie. In the lead roles we have Thomas Jane who was excellent but Kate Bosworth needed to put a bit of emotion into her performance. Jacob Tremblay was okay as Cody. Finally, if you’re looking for similar movies do check out Dragonfly.
Director: Mike Flanagan
Writers: Mike Flanagan, Jeff Howard
Cast: Kate Bosworth, Thomas Jane, Jacob Tremblay, Annabeth Gish, Jay Karnes, Dash Mihok
Fun Facts: Although the movie was supposed to hit the theaters in late 2016, when Relativity Media filed for bankruptcy everything was halted. Netflix came to the rescue and bought the rights after that.
Rating:
IMDb Link: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3174376/
