The Black Phone review

 

Child abduction. It's a truly terrifying thing to even think about but with this new horror movie from director Scott Derrickson. It tells the chilling story of a child kidnapper who is called ''The Grabber'' he's almost like a boogeyman of the area with tales of him being told between children at the local school. It's a pretty small town and word travels fast as the legend grows and the body count of missing children gets higher and higher things soon take an even more sinister turn when The Grabber's latest victim actually fights back or at least attempts to. The Black Phone is a dark and twisted horror / thriller. It does take quite a bit to get going which is the only real complaint I had with the movie as a whole. The opening 30 or so minutes is a bit of a slog but it does build on it's characters well which plays into you caring about them later. 

Ethan Hawke who plays The Grabber is truly terrifying in his role. He's far too calm to the point where it's just so unsettling and spine chilling. It's an outstanding performance in a movie that is full of outstanding performances especially some of the child actors who are superb. The movie hangs on their performances as they have to make you feel for them and want to get away from this truly twisted manic and it's successful in that aspect. 

The Black Phone is a tense, atmospheric very original horror / thriller. It has a lot of things going for it like Hawke's performance and the setting and time period which just fits perfectly. It's a hit for Blumhouse that's for sure. If only more horror movies tried to be more original and take risks the genre would be in a much better place. The Black Phone is well worth checking out!

★★★★