The Puppetman

Puppetman opens on a fairly positive note, tapping into familiar horror themes with a husband brutally murdering his wife though someone else seems to be controlling his actions and body movements like a "puppet"

The film then moves on and quickly began to give me some vintage original Nightmare on Elm Street vibes with a pleasant female lead (Alyson Gorske) in its group of young, enthusiastic, modern college students. It sets up the atmosphere well, but the film quickly falls victim to several limitations. One of the more frustrating aspects is how reminiscent it feels of Final Destination, especially with the over-the-top, sometimes ridiculous deaths. This similarity makes it feel far less original and more like a patchwork of what has been seen before.

The standout moments for me were definitely the library fire and gym scenes-those were gnarly and had the right intensity you expect from a horror film. Unfortunately, beyond these, Puppetman fails to deliver in almost every other aspect. One of its biggest weaknesses is the drawn-out beginning. It takes nearly 30 minutes before anything significant happens, leaving the audience waiting far too long for the built-up suspense or horror elements to kick in.

The plot is simple, and yet again has no heart or soul in it, as it comprises of a family's ritual to bring forth a demon to somehow better the world, but it ultimately ends up controlling and killing indiscriminately as the main lead Michal is its vessel in the mortal realm.

The film tries to establish some very weak lore to ground the story, but the attempts feel extremely flimsy, and it is scarcely explored. It comes off feeling rather meaningless, which is a huge, missed opportunity for adding much needed depth. The engagement and fear never truly take hold. While there are moments of tension, but they dissipate before making any real impact, so you're never fully immersed in the story.

Scenes like the séance, which should have been a something that really stands out, however it felt quite tiresome and overdone. It was one of those moments where I found myself thinking it would be the perfect time for a snack or bathroom break. As for the acting, unlike vintage films of the 80s where a lot of actors go on to become starts (aka Johnny Depp) nothing about the performances genuinely stands out. Even Alyson Gorske's portrayal of Michal, the daughter dealing with mental health and trauma, was underwhelming because the film never takes the time to vividly explore her complexity.

Ultimately, Puppetman goes far into the supernatural route, but it does so without building a compelling or immersive narrative. If you go in with expectations of something innovative or gripping, you'll likely end up truly disappointed. It's a forgettable film that had slight potential but never realized it.

3/10.

I think this film deserves closer to a 6.5 or even a 7 to be honest, I thought it was pretty great and had a fresh idea. I did have hopes for a different ending though, see if you catch what I mean. The actors and actresses were pretty good and the main character was cast really well, i hope they can do another one because I'd be interested in seeing it. The way it was shot and sets were good too. I dont know why others gave this the review they did but if you're like me and always check IMDB before watching a flick, I hope you see my review here and watch the movie, I think it could have somewhat of a cult following.

This movie actually had a lot more potential than I was expecting. Unfortunately, it suffered from some amateurish issues but was still intriguing and entertaining.

I found the concept for this to be quite interesting and I think that's where the majority of the potential was. It let itself down in the end with pretty vague and ambiguous final moments. I was pretty surprised and impressed through the beginning but it started to go down hill after the rooftop scene. And I realized what I thought to be good acting primarily revolved around the brunette roommate and it kind of fell apart in that regard without her. She was quite good and the blonde had some moments as well. The actual storytelling here felt a little lazy and the script was really not great. There were however some pretty cool and gnarly deaths that I appreciated.

Overall it definitely has an indie vibe to it in its imperfections but it's actually pretty decent. Had the potential to be great but didn't quite get there. 4.5 rounding up to a 5, would recommend.

I recently viewed The Puppetman (2023) on Shudder. The plot revolves around a man who, under the influence of a malevolent entity, is compelled to commit a heinous act in front of his daughter, leading to his execution. Years later, his orphaned daughter, now a high school student, faces the entity as it possesses her friends, coercing them into committing gruesome acts. Will she become another victim, or can she find a way to stop the entity?

Directed by Brandon Christensen (Superhost), the film features Alyson Gorske (Jungle Run), Kio Cyr (Give Me an A), Zachary Le Vey (Run Hide Fight(, Michael Paré (Gone) and Angel Prater (Amy's F it List).

The Puppetman had the potential to be a standout horror film. The opening scene was well-crafted and effectively set the movie's tone. Unfortunately, it didn't maintain the quality of kill scenes after the beginning. While there were some entertaining fire and a shootout scenes, there was also a terrible seance that was awkward. The acting was good enough, but the ending was disappointing and felt like a copout.

In summary, this movie offers a few engaging scenes and a solid concept but struggles with execution. I would rate this a 4/10 and suggest considering other options.

A nice breath of fresh air (yeah I know that term has been beaten to death..).

Good story, some blood and gore, decent acting, a few twists, nice photo and music/ambience. A bit lowbudget I think, but if thats the case they did a good job!

Its not a 10, as I think it has just a few too many minor plotholes/logical issues. But its not a 3 or 4 either.

I settled at a 6, and I think thats fair :) (Im sure I will will see some 7's later on)

Its up there with the movie "it follows" I think, which I also like.

Ok.. so they want more characters for this review? Jeez. Ok then..

Oh nevermind I think this is enough!

So yeah, a decent horror movie. A bit slow at the start maybe, but I thibk its worth to keep going.

Well done guys!

6/10.