This review contains spoilers.
After eight years, the long-awaited “Five Nights at Freddy’s” movie based on the games of the same name from developer Scott Cawthon officially comes to theaters on Oct. 27.
Written by Scott Cawthon and directed by Emma Tammi, the movie follows Mike Schmidt (Josh Hutcherson) as he attempts to make ends meet by working as a security guard at the long-closed and haunted Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza after the death of his parents leaves him in charge of his younger sister Abby (Piper Rubio).
Cawthon, who also developed the game, independently released the first “Five Nights at Freddy’s” in August 2014 as a PC game. Since then, he’s worked on the franchise’s nine mainline games and even written 15 novels tying the world together.
The movie’s script feels too convoluted, and the dialogue is stale. It features nuggets of great ideas and plenty of cool moments, but they feel rushed and too much like setups for future movies. Every time the film introduces a new idea, the script leaves it in the dust almost instantly. Ultimately, the script feels held together by segments of fan service, yet these moments oftentimes stand out as the stronger beats within the story.
The dialogue and plot points reference the games, almost as if Cawthon intended to wink at the viewer every few minutes. While fantastic for fans of the franchise, those who know nothing about the decade-long narrative may feel lost.
Bland performances from Hutcherson and Elizabeth Lail as Vanessa fail to make the audience care about them and their relationship. Their deliveries felt monotone, leaving viewers unsatisfied with the explanation of their purpose within the narrative, resulting in emotionally charged moments that fall flat.
The best performances come from Rubio and Matthew Lillard as the big bad child murderer, William Afton. Lillard expertly blends the roles of an eccentric career counselor by day and a malicious serial killer by night, reminiscent of his iconic performance as Stu Macher in the ‘90s horror hit “Scream.” Unfortunately, his limited screen time will leave audiences wanting more.
Colors make for an important selling point of any movie, and “Five Nights at Freddy’s” employs a questionable palette that doesn’t quite utilize the source material’s style to its fullest potential. The entire movie feels dull with too much emphasis on earthy tones like grays, reds and greens, underrepresenting vibrant colors used in the games to recreate the franchise’s ‘80s aesthetic.
Jim Henson’s Creature Shop, crafted Bonnie, Chica, Foxy and the titular Freddy Fazebear in an expert fashion. This feels especially impressive due to the movie’s $25 million budget. The fluffy, lovable, murder robots feel straight out of the ‘80s with their clunky mechanical joints and strike a balance between terror and maximum huggability with their soft exterior and cold-hearted endoskeleton interior.
The only drawback to these puppets comes from their limited mobility. While the characters’ arms, heads and joints give the impression of clunky animatronics, not once do audiences see the main cast of murderous robots physically move from one point to another. The camera only shows the animatronics in waist-up shots, and any action sequence involving the animatronics meticulously avoids demolishing the suspension of disbelief.
“Five Nights at Freddy’s” makes for a mixed bag that prioritizes fans, but often leaves newcomers lost. For young kids, this serves as a perfect horror entry point, but for hardened horror veterans, it lacks effectively scary moments. While not a perfect film, the long-awaited project serves long-time fans well, but won’t grab the attention or praise of newcomers.
3 nights out of 5 survived
