339. Smile; movie review

 

SMILE

Cert 18

115 mins

BBFC advice: Contains strong bloody violence

"Oh, no," I thought. "Here we go again with a hackneyed horror."

However, it turned out that Smile was a cut above and I would even go as far as saying it deserves to be the surprise hit of the year.

The premise is pretty basic - people kill themselves in front of someone after being haunted by a malevolent spirit.

Thereafter, the witness faces the same fate.

Parker Finn's debut feature stars Sosie Bacon as a hospital-based therapist who watches helplessly as an emergency patient commits violent suicide.

The patient (Caitlin Stasey) has told her that she is being pursued by an entity which manifests itself through an unnerving smile on those around her.

Ironically, she smiles seconds before she dies.

The incident unnerves the therapist and it also becomes clear that the baton has been passed to her.

Thus, the bulk of the film comprises her becoming more and more unhinged as she tries to fend off her own demise.

Her erratic actions bemuse her husband (Jessie T. Usher), so she turns to a former boyfriend who is also a cop (Kyle Gallner).

Oh, and there is the small matter of the therapist's own very difficult past and the gradual character exploration adds to the tension.

Bacon is compelling as the movie's desperate subject and Finn also does well to reel the viewer into believing that he is going down cliche street and then introducing some neat surprises.

Smile is not perfect but I can certainly see why horror fans have flocked to make it a huge hit - pulling in more than $200m on a budget of less than $20m.

With those figures, a sequel is inevitable.

Reason to watch: Intriguingly different horror

Reasons to avoid: Some well-worn paths

Laughs: None

Jumps: Two

Vomit: None

Nudity: None

Overall rating: 7.5/10

Did you know? To promote the film, Paramount placed paid actors in different public settings sporting the movie's signature, unsettling grin. Several actors began randomly appearing behind home plate at different Major League Baseball games and even during a broadcast of ABC's Good Morning America.

The final word. Parker Finn: "I wanted to make a film that was really craft-focused, that was creating an experience that was quite unique, that was also a character-driven story exploring the human condition. But was also going to make an audience jump out of their seat and scream a lot." Indie Wire

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