Movie: Abigail
Cast: Alisha Weir, Melissa Barrera, Dan Stevens, Angus Cloud, Kathryn Newton, William Catlett, Kevin Durand, Giancarlo Esposito
Director: Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett
Rating: 3/5
Duration: 109 min.
The film begins attractively enough: with a girl practicing her ballet routine in a theater and then preparing to return home. At the same time, we see a group of 6 criminal experts gathered together, unknown to each other, preparing for the task of kidnapping the little dancer to demand a large ransom. We can assume that she could be the daughter of a billionaire and so are criminals. But they have received orders and the loot is enough to quell their curiosity about the victim. The deed is done and the group almost makes it out of the girl’s house, taking her to the designated location several miles away.
The premise is simple and cliché, but what happens next makes it interesting. It’s supposed to be a 24-hour job and each expects to receive $7 million as a reward. The decoy is strong enough to hold them captive in a mansion that literally turns against them. In the first two hours they discover that she is the daughter of a tough guy named Kristoff Lazaar. Urban Legends has him as an omnipotent power that can achieve even the impossible. But Lazaar is not the only problem they face…
This movie is wonderful. The plot may not have a complex twist, but the basic story is enough for the team to generate a torrent of blood and gore, the likes of which we’ve rarely seen before. This team has made ‘Ready Or Not’ and two ‘Shout‘ films before this and has proven to be efficient in terms of genre. The characters, although they are not supposed to identify each other and are given Rat-pack names, play a guessing game and their backstories are inadvertently revealed. Then comes the action and once it starts there is no respite. The blood begins to flow with absolute joy! The comedy lands even amidst all that red mud, blood suckers and decapitated bodies galore. The action and gore sequences are exactly what the horror fan would have asked for. And there is no way to avoid that spill…
Melissa Barrera shines as the main protagonist whose story draws you in and allows you to empathize with her plight. Dan Stevens, as the unpredictable, foul-mouthed ex-cop, does well to give the proceedings an edge, Kathryn Newton, as the gum-chewing computer nerd, elicits laughs even when she’s fighting the biggest horrors. Giancarlo Esposito and the late Angus Cloud also do well in smaller roles. Ultimately, it is Alisha Weir as Abigail who steals the show with her vulnerability and vampiric power. She is so believable that she makes the whole experience totally fun! Sound effects, blood, guts and gore hit you in the face after the interval. And it’s just not something any of the characters can run away from. The narrative managed to remain flexible, engaging, fun and campy, with the fear factor earning a lower but mandatory score. The Radio Silence collective and directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett have together created a most entertaining watch even as it descends into blood-soaked kitsch.