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You probably grew out of your fear of the dark years ago, when you were still just a kid. But if you decide to watch the dark and eerie supernatural thriller Lights Out, you may just end up racing to the store on your way home from the theater to stock up on some new nightlights.
Lights Out follows a troubled family as they battle an otherworldly threat. Even before her husband’s brutal murder, Sophie (Maria Bello) had withdrawn from her loved ones, locking herself in her dark bedroom and speaking all night to an unseen companion. But things have only gotten worse for Sophie and her young son, Martin (Gabriel Bateman), who lives in fear of the being that haunts the dark corners of their house. And when his older half-sister, Rebecca (Teresa Palmer), is called in to help, it brings back memories of her own haunted childhood.
From the opening scene, Lights Out is the kind of scary movie that plays with darkness and light—and it won’t be long before you’ll become suspicious of any shadowy corners of the screen. The terrifying way in which the film’s sinister spirit unfolds out of the darkness and the clicking and scraping of her deadly fingers will make you hold your breath each time the screen darkens—and let it out a bit whenever the characters walk out into bright, beautiful daylight. And the fact that you’re watching it in a dark theater with other moviegoers who are just as anxious and expectant as you are just adds to the creepy fun.
But there’s more here than just a ghost story. There’s also a psychological aspect that focuses on Sophie—on her past, her battles with mental illness, and her strained relationships with both of her children. And that gives the film a little more depth and drama than the typical movie about things that go bump in the night.
Fortunately, it’s all dark and suspenseful (and short) enough that audiences won’t pay too much attention to the finer details—which is best, since the more you think about it, the more questions arise. The story here a chilling one—and it has some wonderfully scary moments—but, with a little more attention to the details, it could have been even more powerful.
Lights Out isn’t an especially memorable horror film, but it’s short and scary and loaded with eerie anticipation. You might want to plug in some nightlights and make sure your flashlights are in good, working condition—because, after seeing it, you’ll probably end up shying away from creepy basements and dark shadows for a few days.
Listen to the review on Reel Discovery:
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