Malignant

This film is bonkers. I felt like I was watching a Giallo or 80s low budget B-movie if it were competently made and given a massive budget.

This is a horror movie the way they used to be. Unpredictable, insane, gross-out, freak out stuff. It's not a movie made by a committee, it's not the usual haunted doll or spooky house movie where the narrative grinds to a halt as you wait for the inevitable loud noise jump scare when someone looks into a mirror or closes a door.

And it's not the joyless, ugly torture porn that has plagued the genre in recent decades either. Nor is it a wink-wink self-referential Scream type parody either.

Malignant plays it relatively straight for much of its runtime, presenting a genuinely intriguing mystery and a scary, seemingly supernatural killer.

But when the third act happens (you'll know when it does), the film goes completely off the rails. In one of the most over the top sequences ever, Malignant embraces its silly concept and goes all out action gore-fest. I couldn't believe what I was seeing, and ended up laughing my butt off. The last time a movie completely flipped the script like this was From Dusk Till Dawn. Here the twist actually makes sense in terms of the narrative. The story - while stupid - is surprisingly coherent.

That's the secret sauce to many horror classics. Take a dumb, disgusting or bonkers concept, and fully commit to it. It may not please focus groups, but it's how you make a cult movie that remains memorable.

What a breath of fresh air. Thank you, James Wan. This was beautiful.

Don't listen to any of the negativity, that's what happens when a movie shows up on HBO Max and people who don't appreciate horror movies try to watch it.

"Malignant" is Jame's Wan's love letter to old school horror and those of us who love it. A scary, fun movie that turns totally bat-s***t bonkers at the end, this movie is great from start to finish. Totally original and yet at the same time inspired by the grindhouse horror films of the 80's (and one in particular, but you won't get me to ever reveal which one!), Wan has delivered one of the most entertaining movies of the year. Best seen in theaters, but if you watch it on HBO Max, turn down the lights, mute the phone, pop some popcorn and prepare to be wowed.

If you're a fan of horror movie, "Malignant" is highly recommended without reservation.

I had fun with this movie. They just went nuts and it was amazing. For a lot of the movie, I had problems with choices the characters were making. I was worried that when it got to the end, I was going to feel like it wasn't plausible enough. Well, that wasn't a problem, because this movie is so far off the rails, you'd be a goof to complain about realism. I appreciate what they did here, and I wish more movies could take things this far. Did I mention this movie is completely crazy?

Definitely not a 10/10 like some reviewers claim, but ABSOLUTELY not a 1/10 either.

25 minutes too long, some cheesy moments, but ultimately I personally was entertained. Was I scared? No. Did I have moment "ew that's NASTY"? Oh yeah.

All in all, it's a solid 7 from me and a fun way to spend a free evening if you have nothing better to do.

People are always whining that no one tries anything new in Hollywood, well here it is. Sure it borrows elements from other movies but it's a fresh take. Turn your brain off and just enjoy the ride. If you're a true horror fan, I mean one who devours all things horror, you'll love it.