The Harbinger

Dude carries this movie. Reminds me kind of a cross between Nic Cage and Keanu. You don't know what he's up to the first half the movie. His pain over his daughter is gut-wrenching. Once we learn something (won't give spoilers) he becomes a badass and we're on board with him the rest of the way. A movie can have any kind of trinkets or mythos it wants if it has a lead character who can hold down the fort and get you there. He's got the goods. Looking forward to what he does next. He directed this, I think, so as far as him as a filmmaker I think with a lesser lead actor this movie would have felt a little long, but because he's compelling the movie felt right. I've now seen this twice after reading reviews. His performance is even better in the first half when you know what you know. Same with the other people.

Expectations play a large role in reaction to a film. This trailer makes this seem like a very fast-paced film. It's the opposite. The serious horror fans looking for fast-paced 'blood and guts' are now being replaced by people who just want to see a good movie. But even though the pacing starts slow, it is perfect, never once decreasing - every few minutes, it ramps the speed up a notch from slower to less slow, to medium, and so on, until finally intense and emotional at the very end. Rather than going after the low-hanging fruit of graphic gore and endless jump scares, this filmmaker has taken the more difficult road of substance storytelling and pulled it off. Off topic, it also has a unique style, some 'wink-wink' humor and theatricality that I appreciated.

Just too low budget for my taste. I don't watch low budget indies and I gave this a try. It's better than any low budget indie I've seen but it still can't stand up next to a major Hollywood studio movie. That said, as the movie played, I thought less about budget and got more invested in the story.

And don't get me wrong, we've all seen that movie where someone grabbed a cell phone and shot it in the backyard. I'm not accusing this movie of that at all. But I've seen comments say something's missing, and that something for me is money. It looks and sounds fine. For me it's the difference between a Corolla and a Lexus. They both get the job done, but you know luxury when you experience it. I have to say the second half of the movie looks better than the first. Maybe that's where they put their money idk.

If I had to give any other criticism I would say the acting is good but they could have explained earlier why they were acting so weird. With the smaller parts, I like the style of acting but you don't find out why until later.

The parents act secretive and odd from the beginning and we don't find out why until about half way through. I can tell they're both good actors and their acting gets better as the movie goes on. I wonder if just finding out in the beginning why the parents are the way they are would have made it better? It's hard to say because it's supposed to be a mystery and I get it - They can't give things away. That said, kept my interest.

Don't think I've seen a movie quite like this. I read all the reviews (mostly positive but also said the movie was too long, not total horror, complicated plot, etc). I see all the negative scores here, so I decided to see which way I'd go. Wow. Not sure what to think here. But the tie-breaker is how I feel and the more and more I THINK about it, the more I think the movie succeeded. I'll give this dude credit. It's different. And you definitely need to be on your toes to follow. Good atmosphere throughout. I cared about the father and his relationship with the daughter. And the lore - that's the part that I think is so different. They put a LOT of thought and planning into this. I think I'm buying in. Will def watch again.

This movie has a paranormal-supernatural theme with satanic, Christian and Native American elements. The Harbinger is not an action and special effects driven roller coaster ride seeded with countless sequences of creative graphic violence. Instead this story moves forward at a gentler slower pace. There are elements of 1960's Rod Serling style of story development. Viewers impatient for intense visceral assault and dizzying effects are likely to be put off.

Watching the trailer only will probably cause viewers to conclude the movie is different than it is. The sizzle mission of trailers often results in something that is nothing like the movie. I believe this is the case with The Harbinger.

Is The Harbinger worthy of your time? I think so. What you'd get for your patience is a character and plot driven story where performers cannot hide behind special effects or anything else. In contrast they are given plenty of opportunity to soar or bore. For the most part the performances are strong and sometimes even memorable. Also casting for the supporting cast brought together some unique talents that genuinely contributed to the film.