Tvar

As I sat down to watch the 2019 Russian horror movie "Tvar" (aka "Stray") here late in 2022, I had never heard about the movie, so I didn't know what I was in for here. But being a horror aficionado, of course I opted to sit down and watch what director Olga Gorodetskaya had to offer.

The storyline, as written by Olga Gorodetskaya, Maria Kabanova and Anna Starobinets, definitely had a good foundation and concept idea. However, the transition from script to screen made for a somewhat mediocre and bland horror experience. There was so much potential for something grand here. But when the movie came to the end, I have to admit that I was left with a sense of 'was that really it?' and also of somewhat having wasted 90 minutes on something mediocre.

The acting performances in "Tvar" were good. Needless to say that I wasn't familiar with the cast ensemble in the movie, as I have only watched so many Russian movies. But the actors and actresses carried the movie quite well. Child actor Sevastian Bugaev (playing the Stray) was definitely nicely cast as he was able to put on some genuinely disturbing performances when needed.

Visually then "Tvar" is somewhat of a mixed bag of nuts. Some of the special effects look good and definitely added a layer to the movie that helped carry the movie, and then there were effects that were questionable and dubious, such as the CGI animated kid.

For a horror movie then director Olga Gorodetskaya didn't bring anything new or overly thrilling or scary to the genre. "Tvar" is a watchable enough movie, at least for a single viewing, but that is also about what there is to it.

My rating of "Tvar" lands on a five out of ten stars.

More original overall and in its final twist than I expected. I thought I'd watch ten minutes of it and then let it go... Missed it. The two-star rating is a little harsh unless you're a little jaded ^^

The movie isn't perfect, but it is scary. It preys on the fears every parent has about losing a child, as well as the anxiety about being swallowed whole by grief.

If you want CGI monsters and a final teenage girl, this movie isn't for you. If you like good writing and unexpected horror, give it a go.

It's far to be perfect, no doubt.

But the idea is quite original.

Character are dumb like they often are in horror movie, but just enough dumb to make the movie work.

The story is quite good and believable.

The realisation is also quite good.

+1 for mains characters, they do a really decent job.

It's the first russian "hollywood style" recent movie that have a decent story up to the end, and for the first time I watch it until the end and not to see how f... dumb it is, but because I like it enough.

Watch it with open mind and no expectation and you might find it quite pleasant.

Nothing exceptional but ok.

Directing and cinematography were on point. Acting was fine. Screenplay could have used a bit of work. Not sure why the little boy had the wig on for most of the film. Kid is creepy. The CGI of the boy was really unnecessary and actually took away from the film.