The Void is one of the most impressive horror movies I’ve seen in a while. It is not a thriller nor is it a slasher, but an unapologetic-ally straight up gory, sci-fi horror movie. Picture the love-child between Clive Barker’s Hellraiser and John Carpenter’s The Thing and you will get something that screams the essence of The Void. I want a sequel. Hell, I want a franchise. I want to spend Halloween ten years from now in the living room with the lights off watching “The Void VII: Even More Void” and I don’t feel guilty admitting that. The entire film is reminiscent of an 80’s monster movie and I can’t get enough of that. Have you ever watched an 80’s horror movie and thought, “Why can’t movies be made like that nowadays?” Well, it’s as if the directors thought the same thing and said, “Yeah, why not?” and then proceeded to create this gem.
If you’re having doubts to the validity of my feelings toward the movie, just give it twenty minutes. If you’re not impressed within the first twenty minutes of the movie then I’m afraid there’s just no reasoning with you. The use of practical effects over special effects is amazing and so underutilized in today’s horror films, and I’m so excited to see it in all of its glory once again. Instead of flooding the horror market with another found-footage or cheap, unoriginal slasher, these guys made something enjoyable. Obviously pulling inspiration from past movies, but not to the point where it comes off as copying, they pushed all the right nostalgia buttons in my brain. Oh yeah, that’s the spot.
Right from the beginning, we’re thrown into a plot that’s already in motion. Things are happening and you try to keep up, and simultaneously try not to jump out of your seat and scream “What?!” at the TV. If you’ve seen the trailer, you know there’s a cult of crazy people and people die and, well, not much else. Let me tell you there’s so much more to this film. I’m not going to give away any spoilers, because I want the surprises you experience to be as genuine as they were for me, but I will say the majority of the movie takes place in a hospital. This fact is not a detriment to the movie, more of a praise to the filmmakers for showing just how much can be utilized using only one location. John Carpenter’s The Thing took place entirely on a research base in the Arctic, but you don’t care because the movie keeps hold of you and doesn’t let you worry about such details. This, for me, was no different.
Suffice to say, this movie will definitely make my Halloween horror movie lineup this year – possibly every year. I hope these guys keep making movies, and I selfishly hope they keep making The Void sequels. By the way, this movie was directed by the guys who made “W is for Wish” in “ABC’s of Death 2” and worked in the art/makeup department for “Suicide Squad” and the “IT” remake. I’m finding that the best horror movies as of late are coming from not only newcomers to horror, but newcomers to film-making altogether, and I think that’s great.
This movie is…
I give it two gross tentacles up!
(I’ll let you determine what that means)
Cheers and goodnight.
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