I was excited by the previews of this, long before the pandemic subsumed it into the dearth of films, with Scott Cooper bringing his down-to-earth punished-by-the-world drama to the horror realm. Unfortunately, I was mistaken. It is hard to recollect a more dour and depressive structure and synthesis for a film and Cooper’s working class aesthetic chewed up and spat out this script, the characters, and any enjoyment to be found.
There is not a single moment of joy, levity, or brightness, throughout the runtime. Allowing the horror to inform or be informed by real world tragedy can bare fruit, but the devastating slog of child abuse, sexual abuse, economic depression, natural resource vampirism, methanphetamine addiction, broken homes, dysfunctional schools, childhood trauma, dead parents, child abandonment, bullying, alcoholism, and rampant depression sucks the whole drama and its participants into the mire of defeat and hopelessness. It could desperately have used connections to the story that weren’t soul crushing. The audience is so beaten, both down and over the head with metaphor, that once the monstrous antagonist fully appears, it seems better for all if they are just put out of their misery; characters and audience.
If the material wasn’t difficult enough, there seemed to be issues with the cut of the film. Chunks of story and connecting material was left on the page or cutting room floor, not allowing for a smooth flow of story and action.