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| Images courtesy of Shudder |
The loss of autonomy over one’s body is a terrifying thought. Whether it’s paralysis, being comatose, or having involuntary movements, it’s many people’s worst nightmare. Classic horror films have played upon this common fear over the years, ranging from Ash’s arm going rogue in Evil Dead to full-blown possessions like Regan’s in The Exorcist. In one of Shudder’s most recent original films, Brandon Christensen’s The Puppetman becomes the next in line to explore the idea of people’s bodies acting against their will – and while it’s not necessarily a “classic,” it does an adequate job in displaying some unsettling scenarios.
David (Zachary Le Vey) is a killer on death row convicted of brutally stabbing his wife to death as their young daughter hid in terror. While it seems like a clear-cut homicide case, David insists that he didn’t have control over his body when the murder happened and hasn’t wavered from his story. This has earned him the moniker of “The Puppetman” in the public eye. Years later, as David is awaiting lethal injection, his now teenage daughter Michal (Alyson Gorske) is in college, trying to avoid all the headlines about his impending execution. Her friends try to support her despite her ever-growing quirks, but don’t always do a great job at it. Her roommate Charlie (Angel Prater), for instance, records Michal sleepwalking and scratching herself bloody instead of helping her.
Michal’s done an alright job of leaving the past behind until occurrences start feeling all too familiar. Her friends start to become driven to commit suicide by a sinister force inhabiting their bodies, and it instantly reminds Michal of what happened with her father. Her friends decide to see a psychic to get to the bottom of these strange happenings, and learn that a cult might be at the root of what’s haunted Michal her entire life. Will Michal solve the mystery of her dark past before everyone she loves dies, or will history continue to repeat itself?
The Puppetman has a simple air about it that works in its favor. It’s never overly ambitious, has a fairly straightforward plot, and always feels vaguely familiar, but not necessarily derivative. It knows exactly what it is and delivers on it for the most part. Its Final Destination-esque kills steal the show and are genuinely disturbing and mostly well-executed, delivering cringes and even a few nervous laughs as characters meet their demise. That said, its simplicity doesn’t make it a particularly memorable watch. Sure, it’s competent and acceptable, but it’s never stand-out.
Part of the film’s main problem lies in its missed opportunities. When the supernatural cult element of the film is fully introduced, it could have been explored in a more creative, compelling way, but instead it’s treated almost mundanely. Equally frustrating is how long it takes to introduce this plot point, which causes the pacing to feel imbalanced. The way the story culminates is equally underwhelming, going out with a whimper instead of a bang and presenting a ham-fisted climax that feels inorganic and ultimately disappointing in the way that it’s presented.
College kids slowly being killed off one by one is hardly a new concept in the realm of horror and teeters on the line of cliche. Nevertheless, The Puppetman handles the material well enough to make it serviceable. Both Michal as the main character and the body-inhabiting antagonist are handled well enough to maintain interest, and aesthetically speaking, the cinematography and camera work are polished enough to elevate it a bit from the standard low-budget fare audiences might expect from a film like this. Give The Puppetman a chance, but don’t go into it expecting a masterpiece.
-- Andrea Riley