The Boy ** (2015, Lauren Cohan, Rupert Evans, Diana Hardcastle, Jim Norton, Ben Robson, James Russell) – Movie Review

Lauren Cohan stars as Greta, young American woman who comes to UK for the first time on the run from her past and takes a job with a creepy elderly couple, Mrs and Mr Heelshire (Diana Hardcastle, Jim Norton), as nanny to their eight-year-old son.

She is befriended buy the local deliveryman grocer Malcolm (Rupert Evans), who takes a shine to her. But very soon she has a big shock – her new English family’s boy turns out to be a life-sized doll! The Heelshires treat him like a human boy and eventually leave her alone in the house with him, with a a list of strict rules, which she promptly violates. Soon she believes the doll is alive!!

The novelty of the story is a good start, but thereafter writer Stacey Menear’s undemanding horror thriller has some difficulty keeping up the level of shocks, jolts and surprises, leading to it being draggy at times and feeling a bit slow and over-long. Just like the film’s bland title, creepy dolls are very generic, even if they are being treated like humans. Nevertheless, Menear throws in everything he knows to keep it involving, details and developments that make it just that little bit different and just that little bit unpredictable.

And the movie keeps going smoothly and confidently along, thanks to the polished direction of William Brent Bell, some sharp editing (Brian Berdan), some good visuals (cinematography by Daniel Pearl), an attractive score (Bear McCreary) and the decent performances of the four main actors. Though you’d hardly go too far out of your way to see it, it ends up a reasonably satisfying experience, and not too bad a chiller.

© Derek Winnert 2016 Movie Review

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