I do like the horror genre and whilst plenty of horror films are made it is slim pickings when it comes to ones that are good. There's only a handful (if that) each year that stand out. 'Lights Out' thankfully is one of these.
The film is as generic as a horror movie can be - Family in peril, check. Ghost/Monster/Creature terrorising, check. Jump scares/Death. Obligatory backstory reveal to said Ghost/Monster/Creature, check. End fight/battle, check - which is not a bad thing at all because most horrors work from this formula. It is how this formula is presented and what new ideas are brought which makes or breaks whether a film is good or bad and new to feature film director David F. Sandberg shows that not only has he a couple of new ideas to bring to the table but he knows how to work the formula to keep things tense and scary.
Running at a short length of 81 minutes the film throws you straight in for a scare ride, introducing Diana straight away as the malevolent character which can only be seen when the lights are out. The use of this idea is simple but very effective especially in scenes where characters are turning the lights on and off. There were people sat in the cinema who were genuinely hiding away from the screen because they knew something was going to happen when the lights went out.
The acting was believable and the kid who played Martin did really well at actually looking scared and run down. The story went by at just the right pace and some of the transition shots between scenes by the director were really refreshing to see as it stood out (well at least to me) rather than a traditional editing between scenes.
Overall this was good film, well scripted and shot and fun for a few scares. I'll be keeping an eye out for anything else by David F. Sandberg
The film is as generic as a horror movie can be - Family in peril, check. Ghost/Monster/Creature terrorising, check. Jump scares/Death. Obligatory backstory reveal to said Ghost/Monster/Creature, check. End fight/battle, check - which is not a bad thing at all because most horrors work from this formula. It is how this formula is presented and what new ideas are brought which makes or breaks whether a film is good or bad and new to feature film director David F. Sandberg shows that not only has he a couple of new ideas to bring to the table but he knows how to work the formula to keep things tense and scary.
Running at a short length of 81 minutes the film throws you straight in for a scare ride, introducing Diana straight away as the malevolent character which can only be seen when the lights are out. The use of this idea is simple but very effective especially in scenes where characters are turning the lights on and off. There were people sat in the cinema who were genuinely hiding away from the screen because they knew something was going to happen when the lights went out.
The acting was believable and the kid who played Martin did really well at actually looking scared and run down. The story went by at just the right pace and some of the transition shots between scenes by the director were really refreshing to see as it stood out (well at least to me) rather than a traditional editing between scenes.
Overall this was good film, well scripted and shot and fun for a few scares. I'll be keeping an eye out for anything else by David F. Sandberg