TOOTH FAIRY / CERT: 15 / DIRECTOR: LOUISA WARREN / SCREENPLAY: TOM CRITCH, SHANNON HOLIDAY / STARRING: CLAIRE-MARIA FOX, CLAUDINE-HELENE AUMORD, MANY JAI MONTANA / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
It was only a matter of time before everyone’s favourite childhood fantasy figure, got the horror treatment. Santa Claus has been shown to be evil in 2005’s Santa’s Slay and the twisted Norwegian tale 2010’s Rare Exports, so it is the Tooth Fairy’s turn, well why not – we just need a feral Easter Bunny to complete the destruction of childhood icons. To be fair it is an enticing prospect, a magical entity with a lore everyone knows, wreaking havoc, could be a lot of fun. Unfortunately, director Louisa Warren, who has made three films about evil scarecrows and clearly has a passion for British iconic symbols, can’t quite formulate the film she wanted, due to amateurish acting, lack of budget, and an inconsistent plot.
The Tooth Fairy herself is introduced in a dramatic opening montage, unfortunately in full detail, considering she looks like a ‘90s WWE wrestler, complete with hooded cloak and unconvincing mask, it would have made more sense to tease her gradually. But here she is, terrorising a young family on a farm, the mother sacrificing herself by setting a stable alight, trapping the fairy, while the 3 children pour sugar around the door to keep her in. We cut to 30 years later and the daughter of one of the surviving children Clara (Claire-Maria Fox), is visiting her mother with her nephew in tow. They don’t get on after the death of her sister and the mother to the child. Straight away this is strange as the actor who plays the mother looks the same age as Clara, her acting is also completely off, she is wooden when she needs to be emotional and far too expressive when she is saying simple lines, and it really takes you out of the movie experience. Anyway Joe (Montana) shows up, the father to the boy and old flame of Clara and you’re wondering where the horror is. But luckily a random tramp living on the property, discovers the Tooth Fairy in the same barn she was left in, complete with hanging candy canes. She promises him money for a tooth, he foolishly agrees and proceeds to have his teeth smashed out with a hammer, ok that is pretty horrific!
As the Tooth Fairy goes after the surviving family members, her technique to be fair is varied, she disguises herself as a nun, controls young children and breaks necks. This is the strongest section of the film, yet it is also confusing, as it isn’t clear what her powers or end game are. She could just be any generic monster, killing people – the gimmick of teeth is quickly lost to standard deaths. We are also in danger of entering into community theatre style acting, when a priest comes to their aid, he is clearly played by a man of about 30, but he plays him as ‘old’, complete with groaning voice and sprayed on grey hair, an older actor clearly wasn’t available.
British independent filmmakers should always be supported, but apart from a couple of decent deaths, there is very little to recommend here, now about that Easter Bunny…
