Control Freak

Even though the cover of Control Freak looks like a cheap SYFY movie, I was intrigued because it was tagged as body horror, and the ambiguous description gave me hope that it would be something special. The film's low ratings prepared me to lower my expectations, but I gave it a try nonetheless.

The story follows Valerie, a successful motivational speaker who becomes tormented by an unrelenting itch on the back of her head, causing her life to spiral out of control.

Visually, the movie is well-made, with strong cinematography and decent performances, though the acting felt uneven at times. Unfortunately, the story itself falls flat over its 100-minute runtime. Control Freak is apparently based on a short film, which I haven't seen, but I imagine the concept worked much better in a shorter format. The premise-where a protagonist is tormented by something unknown, leaving the audience to wonder whether it's psychological or supernatural-isn't exactly new. The only unique angle here is that the lead is a motivational speaker, which fits well with the movie's overarching metaphor.

The film did succeed in making me feel itchy and uncomfortable, especially with Valerie's constant scratching and the unsettling imagery of ants crawling around. I also genuinely enjoyed the third act, though the movie never really built up enough momentum for me to stay fully invested in Valerie's struggle.

If you have Hulu or another streaming service where you can watch this without paying extra, it might be worth a try. However, I wouldn't recommend spending money on it, as it doesn't offer enough to stand out. The pacing drags, and the narrative lacks originality, but it remains a watchable film with both its strengths and flaws. [5,4/10]

There is a scene in "Control Freak" where "Val" (Kelly Marie Tran), sitting in her parked luxury sedan, removes a bandage from her head and realizes that the scar has not healed. She takes her phone and attempts to take a picture of the top of her head when she is suddenly set-upon by a fan of her work. Val, the female fan tells her through the car window, was directly responsible for helping the fan's mother suddenly quit a 30 year smoking habit. The irony, of course, is that Val's scar is the result of dermatographia- a compulsion she has to scratch her head incessantly.

It is this balancing act that sits at the center of "Control Freak."

On the one hand, Val is the epitome of the "American dream." A former Waffle House employee who used to live in her car, Val is now an up-and-coming self-help author, lecturer and influencer who lives in a palatial home in the Cincinnati, Ohio area. She lives there with her white husband/manager, "Robbie" (Miles Robbins) and is surrounded by other (white) assistants who are in her employ. She has, we might say, broken the glass ceiling. Her father, "Sang" (Toan Le), a former South Vietnamese soldier, also lives in the area. He is now a Buddhist monk. In fact, it was the need to obtain a copy of her birth certificate for a scheduled tour of Asia that led her to visit her father and take (without his permission) a key to a storage locker that contains family pictures and other items that set her memories in motion.

On the other hand, Val is clearly a woman who lives much of her life at odds with the image she wants to maintain. Her marriage is troubled. Her (seemingly) kindly father is not entirely trustworthy, though he is quick to offer his advice to Val. We learn that Val's mother suffered from likely psychological issues and died when Val was very young. And Val herself is quick to take offense, suspicious of assistance and is plagued by bad dreams - many involving insects and drowning sequences. She enjoys, if one can put it in such terms, her worldly gains alone: swimming, driving, walking through her large estate, etc. Sang opines that she in fact under the influence of a "Sanshi" or "hungry ghost" that consumes its host. This was inherited, he states.

The last half hour or so of the film turns, then, to Val's attempt to continue to project her brand, her image, in the face of the Sanshi. There are a few scenes toward the end that were a tad too arch for this viewer. (Watching the influencer unravel is a popular activity these days, I guess.). But the last ten are superb and overall even the arch scenes were insufficient to detract from the rather well-written script at work here. This really is a throw-back: It is a rare movie these days that is more "script-forward" than "camera-forward."

"Control Freak" is a remarkable entry. But it is also a slow burn and a character study. There are a few gory moments, but this is not really a monster movie or even a "ghost" movie (the poster does the film no favors: bugs really are not a material part of the film). I found it more in the psychological horror vein of something like "Images" (1972) or maybe "Possession" (1981). Tran and Le give excellent performances, and the story they depict is fairly unique: a psychological horror film exploring a Vietnamese-American female's attempt to bridge several worlds, with varying degrees of success. Highly recommended.

This film crawled under my skin in ways I didn't expect. Control Freak follows Val, a self-help guru grappling with anxiety and grief after her mother's death. Her anxiety manifests as a disturbing compulsion to scratch her scalp, which becomes more than just a nervous habit. There's something living beneath the surface, and it's horrifying. The way the movie uses the parasite as a metaphor for mental illness was powerful. I found myself squirming through the intense scenes, especially as Val's sense of reality began to deteriorate. The practical monster effects and eerie sound design made every scratch feel almost physical. What really got me was how real the emotional horror felt. It's not just about the creepy parasite; it's about how untreated trauma can consume us from within. It's unsettling, raw, and lingers long after the credits roll.

The movie was OK, not great by any means, but watchable. The production value was decent. Other than Kelly Marie Tran, the acting was average. However her Ba, played by Toan Le, was also exceptional. The creep factor was also average. I never felt an overwhelming sense of dread, and that's obviously what the movie was going for. Just didn't completely land for me. Due to the limited budget, I imagine most of it went towards the lead actress and the SFX. Other than those two characters and central story, nothing else is really fleshed out. Although this was another one of those the metaphor-is-the-monster movies, this one actually had a real monster, though there were plenty of hallucination moments.

As far as the very negative reviews, you can kinda see the pattern. Bunch of incels rattled that an Asian woman has the audacity to get the lead role in a film. I guess this could bother me if I was twelve years old, but being an adult, this "issue" had no bearing on my ability to watch and enjoy the movie.

So in summary, an average movie that could be worth your while. There are literally thousands of poorer choices you can make in the indie-horror genre than this one.

I recently watched Control Freak (2025), which was recently added to Hulu. The story follows a successful public speaker whose life revolves around her career, her boyfriend (a colleague), and her attempts to get pregnant. However, when she develops a persistent itch, her search for its cause uncovers dark secrets from her past. To find relief, she may need to confront her family and the truth she's been avoiding.

Written and directed by Shal Ngo (The Park), the film stars Kelly Marie Tran (Raya and the Last Dragon), Miles Robbins (Halloween, 2018), and Toan Le (The Sympathizer).

The premise had a lot of potential, and Kelly Marie Tran delivers an authentic, believable performance. However, the writing holds the film back. Both the pregnancy subplot and the family backstory feel underdeveloped, missing opportunities for deeper impact. There's a lot of itching-so much that it becomes unsettling after a while. While some scenes are effective and the CGI at the end isn't terrible, many of the film's resolutions feel cliched and uninspired.

In conclusion, Control Freak has a few solid moments and a strong lead performance but ultimately falls short. I'd score it a 5/10 and only recommend it with appropriate expectations.