‘Splat Pack’ member Alexandre Aja steps out of his B-movie, thrill and violence-filled comfort zone for a film that, though a solidly claustrophobic and fun horror blockbuster watch, is ultimately missing the Crawl and Piranha 3D filmmaker’s signature splash of pulpy horror. Never Let Go will likely draw comparisons to A Quiet Place and Bird Box, even as it fails to rise to the excellence of the former, nor does it stoop so low as to warrant any parallels being drawn with the latter.
The Halle Berry vehicle doesn’t attempt to reinvent a classic horror premise: an isolated house in the woods, a family unit trying to survive, and a vague sense of evil lurking in the periphery. In a world where civilisation has crumbled to the torment of a nondescript, malicious spirit, a mother (Berry), her twin sons (Percy Daggs IV and Anthony B. Jenkins in their screen debuts), and their loyal mutt continue life in their remote home, living off the land and only able to leave the security of the house if they remain tethered to it by ropes. However, when one of the boys starts to doubt the existence of the evil only their mother can see, their relative safety is compromised and their fragile peace reaches a tipping point.
Aja and screenwriters KC Coughlin and Ryan Grassby deliver an intriguing premise, clean and anxiety-inducing scenes (one in particular will have you white-knuckling your seat), rounded out by solid performances from the leads—the child actors unfalteringly balancing the story’s emotional weight opposite a committed, near-feral Berry. It’s later that the narrative falters, as it becomes repetitive or stalls entirely. The question of whether the evil is real or a figment of ‘Mamma”s imagination can only provide Never Let Go with so much mileage, even as it opens the door for some truly frightening scenes of domestic strain. It’s unfortunate, too, that as a dramatic development occurs a little over the halfway mark and Aja amps up the pyrotechnics, action, and body horror for the film’s last act, Never Let Go fails to retain the tension it’d been building so effectively, and completely loses its ability to scare its audience.
It is a feature packed with contradictions: complicated even as it lacks substance, incredibly tense even as it falters, with an ending that’s borderline silly despite the film taking itself seriously. And still, the performances are committed, the cinematography is attractive and atmospheric, and the soundscape is wielded with great skill. While this reviewer can’t quite decide whether Never Let Go would have been better as an ultra-serious, Gothic chamber piece or as an all-pulp, jump-scare extravaganza, and if it fails to make a lasting impact, Aja’s latest is nonetheless an entertaining, polished horror for both horror junkies and the more casual cinemagoers looking for some spooky-season viewing.
NEVER LET GO releases in cinemas from September 27th. Watch the trailer here.
