Abigail (2024) Dir: Matt Bettinelli-Olpin & Tyler Gillett
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The opportunity to watch this film came about rather unexpectedly, but I was still more than happy to get to watch it. I had heard it was a fun vampire horror from the directing duo of Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, who are known for their work in the Scream franchise.
I could definitely see the stylistic similarities between this and the Scream films of Bettinelli-Olpin and Gillett. The visuals were a good example of this - there were some very nicely shot scenes, although these were, in fairness, scattered amongst a good deal more average ones.
I enjoyed the mix of horror and comedy, which was balanced enough that the film still felt scary, while also having a number of moments that legitimately made me laugh. It gave me the impression of at least some level of self-awareness, which honestly aided the film and my enjoyment of it.
The writing was, admittedly, pretty mediocre. The screenplay was littered with clunky exposition dumps and generally poor dialogue, which was a shame because really the audience didn't need to know half the exposition anyway. In addition, some of the twists were a little questionable, coming across as though they were done more for shocks than to provide any real substance.
The story worked well enough for what it was. I quite liked the juxtaposition between the first and second halves of the film, although, it certainly walked a fine line between horror and absurdity, occasionally dipping into the latter a little more than I'm sure was intended. That said, I don't think it detracted from the film's entertainment value - I certainly had a good time.
Melissa Barrera is fast becoming a staple final girl of modern horror, and deservedly so. She was really decent once again in this lead role. I think she manages to play troubled protagonists really well, this film included. She definitely elevated my enjoyment of it, that's for sure.
Alisha Weir was so much fun to watch. Not only did she nail the innocent child side of her character, but once the shackles were off and she could really have some fun, she was even better. I thought she was all sorts of entertaining, and she most assuredly held her own with the older and bigger names around her.
Dan Stevens had a bit of an interesting time of it, in his key role. I thought he had some fairly strong scenes throughout his time on-screen, but there were also a number of them where I felt he definitely fell short of what he could have done.
I think that both Kathryn Newton and Kevin Durand were hilarious in their supporting roles, and definitely deserve credit for their comedic timing and willingness to not take themselves at all seriously when it was required. They both made me laugh a lot with their antics, without taking away from the rest of the film.
I'll also mention the other members of the supporting cast, because honestly they all deserve at least a name-drop; William Catlett, the late Angus Cloud, Giancarlo Esposito and Matthew Goode.
Overall, while this wasn't the best film ever by any stretch of the imagination, it was so much fun. I honestly had a great time watching it, both because, and in spite of, its silliness. Sure, it has plenty of issues, but the most important factor; the entertainment value of the film, left it in good stead.
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