Boogeyman (2005)
Directed by: Stephen T. Kay
Premise: A grown man (Barry Watson) faces the ghost that abducted his father.
What Works: The film has moments that are sufficiently creepy and the house of Watson’s youth has a traditional haunted house quality to it.
What Doesn’t: About everything else in the picture. The story never really goes anywhere. It has no emotional highs or lows and is unable to create any sense of tension. Mystery and disorientation are generally a part of the horror genre but this film never achieves any sort of coherency. In an effort to be scary, the film uses fast cuts and shaky camerawork but this only frustrates the viewer and the action sequences are unable to maintain any sort of narrative logic.
Bottom Line: Boogeyman represents everything wrong with the horror genre right now. It attempts to cover its lack of substance with style but comes off as boring. This makes me yearn for the good old days of Friday the 13th Part VII.
Episode: #38 (February 6, 2005)