Photo via deadline.com
By Keith Walther | Rose Law Group Reporter
To put it bluntly, this is easily the second worst film of the year right behind “Honey Don’t!,” and quite possibly the worst football movie ever made. “Him” is supposed to be a psychological body horror film, but the only thing horrific about it is that it was made in the first place. The story is non-existent, and it plays out like an overly long rap video with satanic imagery and symbolism.
Top quarterback prospect Cameron Cade (Tyriq Withers) is said to be the next big thing. However, before he can be the GOAT, he must go through an intense QB boot camp with his childhood idol, Isaiah White (Marlon Wayans). Little does Cameron know that this training will quickly resemble “Dante’s Inferno” with each exercise becoming another layer of hell. Between Isaiah unwilling to relinquish his fading glory and the vultures circling looking for their pound of flesh, Cameron realizes it’s not only his life on the line, but his soul.
Shock value cinema is on display in copious amounts, but what isn’t on display is a cohesive storyline. Director Justin Tipping is seemingly lost and out of his depth constructing this film as it is all over the place, never settling on one particular idea to develop and mold into a story. Instead, the scenes are a collection of grisly images haphazardly thrown together with a soundtrack of pulse-pounding music. He introduces shocking brutality for the sake of shock without even an attempt to explain their existence. Without character development and a plot, the continuous displays of violent gore evoke zero emotional connection except for disgust.
Tipping touches on a multitude of different themes without fully exploring any of them. Clearly, he was wanting to show the many hardships an elite, franchise quarterback must endure on a regular basis to get on top and stay on top. Here’s the world’s smallest violin playing for the people making hundreds of millions of dollars, what a tough life. Tipping layers this with satanic and cult-like imagery to convey the evilness of the industry. This is an obvious attempt to make the movie seem smarter and deeper than it is, culminating in a bizarre ending of a stylish grotesquerie. The only thing Tipping convinces viewers of is how much of an incoherent mess the film truly is.
As for the acting, Tyriq Withers did a better job in “I Know What You Did Last Summer” earlier this year if that tells you anything. There are multiple moments when his vacant stares show his understandable confusion with the script. He simply does not have the chops to lead a major motion picture, at least not yet.
Ironically, the one and only bright spot of this movie is Marlon Wayans, who delivers the best and most intense performance of his career. This is the same actor responsible for truly dreadful films like “White Chicks” and “Little Man.” He’s spent a majority of his career in lighter, more comedic roles, so this is a definite change of pace for him. Even though there is no direction to the story, his performance is riveting with an electric passion he has never before shown. It’s truly a shame his efforts are wasted on an atrocious production such as this.
The fact that Jordan Peele attached his name to this movie as a producer to increase ticket sales is shameful. “Him” is a football movie, a horror, and a psychological thriller, yet succeeds at none of those genres. The only thing this movie is good for is brain trauma, so don’t be surprised if you experience long bouts of drooling and unintelligible speech after enduring this nightmarish spectacle.
This movie earns:
