I saw this movie a couple of years ago but yesterday I decided to watch it again. After being very disappointed by the HBO series Lovecraft Country I wanted to find a good Lovecraftian film to watch. It was either this one or In the Mouth of Madness and I ultimately decided on The Void because I had only watch it 1 time.
Most of the story happens inside 1 hospital that is about to close for good so there aren't that many staff currently working there. There are certain random events that happen that can make people think the writing was sloppy because minutes before the crazy stuff begins, a cop arrives at the hospital with an injured man he found in the street, and then 2 thugs arrive at the hospital looking for that very same man.
If these 2 arrivals didn't happen, the crazy stuff would probably have continued its course as well, so it is a hell of a coincidence that these people arrived at the hospital just minutes before it became hellish. Anyways, after this weird combination of characters is in the hospital then crazy things will begin to happen such as the appearance of hooded people surrounding the building and good Lovecraftian monsters and atrocities that will torment everyone.
These monsters and atrocities are very well done, Lovecraft fans will probably feel satisfied because it is clear a lot of work was put into creating serious looks for these beings. The strongest scene in the film doesn't last very long but it could have perfectly been from the movie Event Horizon.
The film's weakest point is how it selects the characters that will get trapped in the hospital. There are 2 characters whose presence seems too forced, and 1 character's knowledge about what's going on felt forced as well. I mean, what are the chances that this person has this supposed secret knowledge and happens to be in this hospital by accident while all the craziness is happening? The answer would be almost zero chances but for me, this didn't prevent me from enjoying the excellent Lovecraftian horror this movie provides.
The movie does have twists but nothing too surprising. It just scratches the topic of cosmic horror but at least it shows very puzzling scenes, especially at the ending which is something that I would have loved to know more about.
If you like the horror genre and especially if you like Lovecraft, this is a film you certainly should watch. It does have shortcomings when developing the setting, but the type of horror it explores is cool and not very common to find. It is a good watch for sure.
The best
- Mysterious ending with strong cosmic horror.
- The hooded people were intriguing.
The worst
- The combination of characters in the hospital was far fetched. Horror masterpieces don't feel far fetched.
More information: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4255304/ Review: AAA In numbers: 7/10