Creepy haunted doll movies are a must, right? Normally I seem to enjoy them but I’ve only ever stuck to the classic Chucky doll to get my dose of a doll running around and murdering people.
But recently, I’ve discovered something maybe even better than “Child’s Play,” and it’s “The Boy.” When this film came out I was completely oblivious of its existence and ever since then, I’ve never actually heard of it. I’m reading a book written by my previous professor Russ Meeuf called “White Terror, The Horror Film From Obama to Trump” and it had a brief mention of the film so I figured I’d put it on my list to watch. Scrolling through Netflix just a few days ago — I found it. So — I clicked play — and the rest is history.
Normally my expectations for a horror film are fairly low considering budget is usually low, the acting is usually terrible and the kills can be a toss up.
But I was super impressed with how this film managed to get practically everything right.
And I think it had to do with the writing.
Not knowing much about this film to begin with, the basic plot is about a woman needing to get away from her current life and who takes a nanny job. (Which is relatable in its own sense. I feel like everyone wants to run away from their problems for a bit)
Only, she isn’t nannying a human boy, she learns she is actually a nanny of a doll. Well, she thought the parents were absolute crazies for treating the doll like it was alive. Waking up the doll, dressing the doll, reading to the doll, and even giving it food?
I actually wonder what happened to the real food that was given…besides the point, weird things happen while she is babysitting at the house. There are certain rules she must abide by for the doll and if she doesn’t — she will be punished.
Without giving away too many spoilers at this point, the pace of the movie was spot on. The plot felt like a mystery needing to be solved rather than a horror movie. I couldn’t help but ask myself questions like who is this boy? What is with the doll? Why do the parents seem to treat it like it’s a human? Every scene had a purpose which was looped back to later on in the film and I think that helped it from not being boring.
The jump scares worked well and I even got freaked out at times (which is rare for me watching a scary movie).
I think the acting was really good too, Lauren Cohan I think played a great final girl and a spectacular scream queen for this film. She was constantly believable and having her heartbreaking background of having an ex who beat her and gave her a miscarriage — makes her a character you just want to protect at all costs.
Horror films get it wrong when the main protagonist is so annoying and you just want them to die. But this wasn’t the situation at all, and it made the film that much enriching.
As far as the plot goes, I LOVED the twist near the end when you find out what really happened to the boy. The film goes to scary, to just cringy in a matter of minutes and gives you goosebumps. Especially with how messed up this family really is.
The ending was fairly good too, even though they left the door open for a sequel (which the sequel was terrible) I think it ties up the story in a neat little bow.
Overall, I was super impressed with the film and wish I knew about it sooner. I recommend it to anyone who likes creepy doll films and wants to get a little scared watching a movie at night. If you haven’t seen it — stream it on Netflix.
Have you seen “The Boy” (2016)? What do you think of the film? Do you think it’s underrated and deserves more cinematic credit? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
Spooky Reviews 