By Keith Walther | Rose Law Group Reporter
You’ll want to demand a refund after watching this failed production. “Never Let Go” is another poor horror film from Lionsgate with a premise that is weak and unrealistic. The story and direction drag this film in the mud, never generating interest or entertainment value with attempted jump scares that make viewers sneer in annoyance more than anything.
As with many horror films, it is set at a lonely house in a remote wooded location, where Momma (Halle Berry) resides with her young twin boys, Samuel (Anthony B. Jenkins) and Nolan (Percy Daggs IV). There, they are surrounded by an insidious evil with the sole desire of possessing and killing the little family. However, there are some inexplicable rules the evil spirit must abide by, such as it cannot invade the house because it is made with some sort of magical wood. In addition, as long as the three residents are tied to a rope that is connected to the house, then they can roam freely outside without fear.
Unable to forage for enough food, the family becomes increasingly desperate as the hunger pains start taking their toll. Nolan begins to question the supposed evil that only their mother can see, leading to risky decisions that put all of their safety in jeopardy. All it takes is one touch from the demonic presence and doom is a near certainty.
Basically, “Never Let Go” is like a weird game of tag in which the three participants must avoid being touched at all costs, and as long as they stay at home base, they’re safe. And it quickly loses interest, much like that game. Alexandre Aja has proven time and time again that he is not a good director in the horror genre with projects like “High Tension” and “Piranha 3D” in his filmography. Once again, he fails to accomplish the most basic of horror tenets like generating suspense and fear. In fact, the pacing he incorporates is so slow despite breaking it up into three acts, that he lulls the audience into indifferent boredom. When Aja tries to spark some life with poorly timed and obvious jump scares, it provokes more disgust than fear.
One of the biggest problems is Aja never presents any kind of backstory to this malevolent presence, which eradicates any kind of buy-in from the audience. He further confuses the plot with numerous and unnecessary jump cuts of random visuals that have to be repeatedly explained through the dialogue. Making matters worse is the atrocious lighting and cinematography he employs, especially during night scenes, making viewers think they were supposed to receive infrared goggles upon entering the theater. The director does provide an interesting shocker towards the end of the movie, but by then, the audience is already asleep or blinded with repulsion.
Halle Berry has always been one of the worst actresses to ever win an Oscar, but her overacting tendencies actually work pretty well for this role. Throughout the film, she had to maintain a questionable character, forcing viewers to seesaw whether she was telling the truth about this evil force or if she had succumbed to insanity. She does a fine job of riding that line without giving it away one way or the other, leaving something to mystery.
Even the child actors, Anthony B. Jenkins and Percy Daggs IV, do not contribute to this movie’s downfall. Their performances were decent, showing surprising depth for kids that young. Anthony B. Jenkins especially has a solid screen presence that could lead to special things for his future in this business.
Despite commendable performances from the cast, “Never Let Go” is one horror flick you won’t want to grab onto in the first place. It is a highly forgettable film with a weak, unexplained premise that only induces drowsiness. Luckily, this will only be in theaters for a week, two max, lessening your chances of stumbling into this time waster.
This movie earns:
