Carl Roberts 
“A decent enough chiller that despite a good premise and genuine thrills, is let down by some wooden acting” We review Five Nights At Freddy’s!
Five Nights At Freddy’s is the big-screen adaptation of the video game franchise of the same name. Scott Cawthon created the game and here, contributes the story, and the screenplay, and is on producing duties alongside Jason Blum. His creation makes its way onto the screen just in time for Halloween. Featuring Josh Hutcherson, Elizabeth Lail, Mary Stuart Masterson, and Matthew Lillard, the movie brings to life the characters of Freddy Fazbear, Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy. With a good premise and some decent shocks, the film should be a great chiller for the spooky season. But is it worth taking a trip to Freddy’s for some fun or should the film have stayed shut down?
THE PREMISE
Mike Schmidt, a troubled security guard, accepts a night-time job at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, a once-successful but now abandoned family entertainment center, where he discovers its four animatronic mascots – Freddy Fazbear, Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy – move and kill anyone that is still there after midnight.
THOUGHTS
It is a bit of both, to be honest. The film is an enjoyable frightener that boasts some impressive chills, some good jump scare moments, and the title characters themselves come to life with evil aplomb. However, the film takes an age to get going, with a very slow twenty-five minutes before anything meaningful happens. Add to that, a wooden performance from the lead and you’ll find yourselves not enjoying the film as much as you should. And the opening to the film has us scratching our heads and thinking ‘Why?’. It doesn’t have any real bearing on the rest of the film as a whole.
That’s not to say the film is bad. It certainly isn’t. There is so much here to like and enjoy. The animatronic characters themselves are brought to life brilliantly. They fill the screen when they appear and we can’t help but actually love them, despite some nasty things they get up to. The scares are good without being over the top, and some of the characters are interesting and worth cheering for. And the film is mainly bloodless for the most part. Considering director Emma Tammi shot the film with a PG-13 rating in mind, she pulls off something that most of the audience can enjoy.
THE RATING
As the film is rated PG-13, we don’t get much in the way of any real violence. But Emma Tammi manages to push the rating to the limits. She has shot the film in a way that while it is scary in places, it is inferred rather than shown. But here the U.S. and UK ratings systems differ. In the United States, what the film contains is easily constrained within a PG-13 rating. The UK, however, has given the film a restrictive adult 15 rating.
The reason for this is simple. In the UK, anything to do with children being harmed will automatically get a film a higher, more restrictive rating. And that isn’t fair because here, despite some scenes that will scare younger children, the higher rating is unjustified in my opinion. It also precludes the audience the film is aimed at. Cuddly characters who turn nasty at times before becoming friendly again would appeal to younger viewers. Sadly, the film, in the BBFC’s eyes, is too strong for a 12A rating and not strong enough for a 15 certificate. But it is justified.
THE CAST
The cast gives pretty good performances. With one exception. Josh Hutcherson. The film needs a strong lead, one who can convince us that there is real danger, to get us on their side from the start. Hutcherson doesn’t. For the main part, he gives us a soulless, wooden performance. You can argue that Mike’s story is one that Hutcherson’s performance is accurate. Not so. The actor at times looks bored in his leading role. For a character we are supposed to side with, to feel fear for, and to cheer on, we find ourselves not really caring about his fate. It shouldn’t be this way. When he does finally show us some emotion, it is too little, too late.
Elizabeth Lail as Vanessa, a local police officer is the total opposite. As a supporting character, she actually shines through. Whenever she is on screen, the film gets a life to it. Vanessa’s story plays a vital part in the proceedings and Elizabeth Lail gives it her all. It is a charming, enjoyable performance that, although leaning towards a darker side for the character from the halfway point, is one that we find ourselves engrossed in. Her scenes with the young actress Piper Rubio as Abby, Mike’s younger sister and the animatronic characters in a charming sequence have us beaming from ear to ear.
PIPER RUBIO AND KAT CONNER STERLING
Piper Rubio as Abby, Mike’s younger sister is a revelation from the start. For one so young, she commands our attention throughout. Abby has a medical condition almost bordering on autism which means Mike struggles on a day-to-day basis to take good care of her. Piper Rubio grabs our hearts from almost the first second we meet her. Her innocence at what is happening all around her is more than enough to endear her to us. Seeing what she experiences during the film through childlike eyes gives the movie a refreshing boost. And makes for a character we will remember as the end credits roll.
Kat Conner Sterling as Max, Abby’s babysitter is a character I would have liked to have seen more of. Max comes across as someone who truly cares for Abby, to be a big sister-type figure in her life. Without giving away any spoilers, Max has a secret, a darker side that will lead to her eventual fate. The film could have benefitted from Kat Conner Sterling having a more substantial role, one that would have made the film better than it is. It is not to be, however. And that is a shame.
MARY STUART MASTERSON AND MATTHEW LILLARD
Mary Stuart Masterson gives us a slimy performance as Abby and Mike’s aunt Jane. For those of us of a certain age, we remember the actress for her 80s roles in fluffy romantic comedies, and coming-of-age movies. Here, she is just plain mean and nasty as the scheming woman who is fighting Mike for custody of Abby. Not because she loves or cares about her, she just wants the benefit cheques that Mike gets for Abby’s care. Her plan for how to get Mike to hand custody over leads to a sequence that shows us exactly what the animatronic characters can do. Although her role is a brief supporting one, Mary Stuart Masterson shows us again what a fine actress she is.
Matthew Lillard on the other hand has what amounts to a cameo role as Steve Raglan, Mike’s career counselor. Anyone going in thinking the actor has a significant role throughout proceedings will be disappointed. But when he’s on screen, Lillard is a welcome addition to the cast. When the film was announced, rumors swirled that he would be playing the character of the franchise’s main villain William Afton. The question on everyone’s lips will be ‘Is he?’. I know the answer and I’m not telling!
THE DIRECTION AND THE WRITING
The direction from Emma Tammi is quite assured. She knows what she has with the film and runs with it. The film, in her hands, is deftly handled while the death scenes are shot extremely well. While we do get to see some nasty, gruesome sights during these scenes, she pulls a brilliant move by having one character’s demise seen in shadow. What happens to this character is brutal but the decision to shoot it in shadow makes the death even more frightening. The way the director handles everything, from the way the scenes are lit to the neon inside Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza itself give the film a polished and colorful look.
The screenplay by Emma Tammi co-wrote with Scott Cawthon and Seth Cuddeback from a story by Cawthon, Chris Lee Hill, and Tyler MacIntyre is pretty good. It features all the horror tropes that a PG-13 film can get away with, without it becoming repetitive. Scott Cawthon manages to bring his creation into live-action with a script that knows exactly what it is. It doesn’t quite manage to stick the landing completely but it does just enough to keep it on the right side of entertaining. It is in the same vein as M3gan earlier this year (Read our review here.) Not that that’s a bad thing in itself.
CONCLUSION
A decent enough chiller that despite a good premise and genuine thrills, is let down by some wooden acting. It is a good movie for Halloween and for teen audiences but sadly, although it’s fun, is nothing we haven’t seen before. Fans of the game the film is based on will lap it up in their droves, as they rightfully should. There are a few jump scares involved but the film is hardly frightening. And that really is a shame because what it contains has enough to send some members of the audience home with nightmares. One jump scare early on is repeated twice more. Instead of jumping the second time, we wait for it. The third time happens during a mid-credits stinger involving a cameo from YouTuber CoryxKenshin. However, this third time is played for laughs, which it manages to do well enough.
Make sure you don’t leave before the credits have ended. Although the mid-credits stinger is the only one, audiences should listen out near the end of the credits. I’ll let you make up your own minds as to what it means, To me though, it shouts ‘SEQUEL!’. Not that I would mind a second visit to Freddy’s in the near future. The film does enough to make us want a second helping of fun, fear, murder, and enjoyment at seeing animatronic characters terrify human characters. To that end, the film does what it has to do, and does it well enough to justify a second movie. Do yourself a favor, and take a trip to see Five Nights At Freddy’s. It will sate your hunger for a while. And will leave you asking for more.
Five Nights At Freddy’s is out in the UK now. And will open in the United States on October 27th from Universal Pictures.
Trailer Source: Universal Pictures
Introducing Carl! As the News Editor at Future of the Force, Carl has been an invaluable member of our team since early 2016. His expertise and dedication have made him an integral part of our editorial staff. Beyond his professional role, Carl is a fervent supporter of Liverpool F.C. and an avid follower of pop culture. He has a deep passion for Halloween, Friday the 13th, and the iconic movie franchises Star Wars and Star Trek.
He can be found either at his neighborhood cinema, enjoying the latest releases on the big screen, or at home streaming the newest blockbuster movies.
