by Josh Sewell
The most effective horror movies don’t simply revel in the gore resulting from a zombie attack or an ax-wielding psychopath. Those villains might be scary in the short-term, but the fear usually evaporates once the lights come back on. The genre entries that make a real impact are those where the terror serves as a metaphor for more relatable concerns like loneliness, anxiety or – in the case of the immigrant family at the heart of writer-director Bishal Dutta’s debut feature It Lives Inside – the loss of one’s culture via assimilation.
Sam (Megan Suri), the Indian American teenager at the heart of the narrative, is desperate to fit in at school. In an effort to be accepted by the cool kids, she chooses to reject her family’s traditions and conform. That includes cutting ties with her former best friend Tamira (Mohana Krishnan), who has started to exhibit strange behavior, like muttering to herself and carrying around an empty mason jar like some kind of talisman.
When Tamira suddenly disappears after she and Sam have an argument, Sam learns her former friend had uncovered a legend about a terrifying mythological demon. This causes her to wonder if it’s more than just a story, which could mean Tamira is in grave danger. To save her and defeat the demon, Sam must come clean to her parents (Neeru Bajwa and Vik Sahay) and a sympathetic teacher (Betty Gabriel), and then pray they believe her.
When it comes to horror, I’m generally not a big fan of brutal slashers or torture porn. I tend to gravitate more toward the psychological scares found in flicks like The Shining, The Silence of the Lambs and Get Out. In that respect, It Lives Inside is right in my wheelhouse.
While there are some gnarly kills – particularly a creative one involving a swing set – and a couple of near-misses, most of the film’s unsettling tone comes from the visually striking cinematography (courtesy of Matthew Lynn), Wesley Hughes’ eerie score, and the creative story Dutta conceived with Ashish Mehta. The opening sequence is a tense attention-grabber, establishing the story’s stakes as well as the mysterious creature’s deadly nature.
That helps since the action slows down a bit during the first act as viewers are introduced to Sam and the dual nature of her teenage existence. Namely, a home life with a traditional Indian mother who wants her to speak her native language and a social life in which she’s desperately afraid of being “othered” by her self-involved classmates.
When the horror elements really kick in, the tension doesn’t let up – mostly because Dutta takes a cue from Steven Spielberg’s Jaws, choosing not to show the creature in full until the big finale. When that happens, it’s a genuinely cool reveal, one that appears to be done with practical effects rather than generic-looking CGI. (Remember when every monster looked like the bland gray Cloverfield alien for a while? I’m glad we’re done with that phase.)
It Lives Inside does have a few issues: like I said, it takes a while for things to ramp up and Dutta doesn’t seem to trust the audience to pick up on the obvious metaphors (admirable as they are). He keeps hammering them home with heavy-handed clumsiness, although everything clicks into place by the end.
Fortunately, the powerful finale helps smooth over the narrative’s earlier hiccups. There’s an incredibly effective close-up that leaves the story open to interpretation – just in case the flick does well enough for a sequel. (Even if it’s financially successful, I hope this is a one-and-done. I think turning it into a franchise would diminish some of the characters’ sacrifices.)
Aside from Dutta’s storytelling abilities and creative eye, the film’s other strong point is the terrific cast, which is packed with talented young actors. Suri is fantastic as Sam, convincingly selling a teenage girl’s desire to fit in, as well as the frustration she takes out on her well-meaning parents.
Krishnan is also quite good in a role that could’ve easily been the stereotypical creepy girl; instead, her performance (combined with the compelling screenplay) makes her character a more tragic figure. Bajwa doesn’t get much to do for the first two-thirds of the flick, other than play the conservative, set-in-her-ways mother, but the finale allows the actress to add further depth and complexity to her role.
Although it’s not technically spooky season yet, It Lives Inside serves as an early welcome to my favorite time of year. Hopefully the movie is received warmly enough (reviews have been decent so far) that audiences get the chance to see it on the big screen through Halloween.
It Lives Inside is rated PG-13 for terror, violent content, bloody images, brief strong language and teen drug use. Opens in theaters on September 22.
Grade: B
Sam (Megan Suri), the Indian American teenager at the heart of the narrative, is desperate to fit in at school. In an effort to be accepted by the cool kids, she chooses to reject her family’s traditions and conform. That includes cutting ties with her former best friend Tamira (Mohana Krishnan), who has started to exhibit strange behavior, like muttering to herself and carrying around an empty mason jar like some kind of talisman.
When Tamira suddenly disappears after she and Sam have an argument, Sam learns her former friend had uncovered a legend about a terrifying mythological demon. This causes her to wonder if it’s more than just a story, which could mean Tamira is in grave danger. To save her and defeat the demon, Sam must come clean to her parents (Neeru Bajwa and Vik Sahay) and a sympathetic teacher (Betty Gabriel), and then pray they believe her.
When it comes to horror, I’m generally not a big fan of brutal slashers or torture porn. I tend to gravitate more toward the psychological scares found in flicks like The Shining, The Silence of the Lambs and Get Out. In that respect, It Lives Inside is right in my wheelhouse.
While there are some gnarly kills – particularly a creative one involving a swing set – and a couple of near-misses, most of the film’s unsettling tone comes from the visually striking cinematography (courtesy of Matthew Lynn), Wesley Hughes’ eerie score, and the creative story Dutta conceived with Ashish Mehta. The opening sequence is a tense attention-grabber, establishing the story’s stakes as well as the mysterious creature’s deadly nature.
That helps since the action slows down a bit during the first act as viewers are introduced to Sam and the dual nature of her teenage existence. Namely, a home life with a traditional Indian mother who wants her to speak her native language and a social life in which she’s desperately afraid of being “othered” by her self-involved classmates.
When the horror elements really kick in, the tension doesn’t let up – mostly because Dutta takes a cue from Steven Spielberg’s Jaws, choosing not to show the creature in full until the big finale. When that happens, it’s a genuinely cool reveal, one that appears to be done with practical effects rather than generic-looking CGI. (Remember when every monster looked like the bland gray Cloverfield alien for a while? I’m glad we’re done with that phase.)
It Lives Inside does have a few issues: like I said, it takes a while for things to ramp up and Dutta doesn’t seem to trust the audience to pick up on the obvious metaphors (admirable as they are). He keeps hammering them home with heavy-handed clumsiness, although everything clicks into place by the end.
Fortunately, the powerful finale helps smooth over the narrative’s earlier hiccups. There’s an incredibly effective close-up that leaves the story open to interpretation – just in case the flick does well enough for a sequel. (Even if it’s financially successful, I hope this is a one-and-done. I think turning it into a franchise would diminish some of the characters’ sacrifices.)
Aside from Dutta’s storytelling abilities and creative eye, the film’s other strong point is the terrific cast, which is packed with talented young actors. Suri is fantastic as Sam, convincingly selling a teenage girl’s desire to fit in, as well as the frustration she takes out on her well-meaning parents.
Krishnan is also quite good in a role that could’ve easily been the stereotypical creepy girl; instead, her performance (combined with the compelling screenplay) makes her character a more tragic figure. Bajwa doesn’t get much to do for the first two-thirds of the flick, other than play the conservative, set-in-her-ways mother, but the finale allows the actress to add further depth and complexity to her role.
Although it’s not technically spooky season yet, It Lives Inside serves as an early welcome to my favorite time of year. Hopefully the movie is received warmly enough (reviews have been decent so far) that audiences get the chance to see it on the big screen through Halloween.
It Lives Inside is rated PG-13 for terror, violent content, bloody images, brief strong language and teen drug use. Opens in theaters on September 22.
Grade: B
Reach out to Josh Sewell on Twitter @IAmJoshSewell
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