Bad Things

It's easy to dismiss Bad Things as the queer version of The Shining but initially, at least, there are a few ideas worth appreciating here. This should ideally have been centered around Gayle Rankin's Ruthie.. and her trauma, manifestations, and slow descent into absolute chaos. Instead, writer-director Stewart Thorndike randomly shifts perspectives (especially when things begin to get interesting) to the other characters, taking us out of the one-woman-breakdown thread, and desperately trying to blur the lines between what's real and what's not. The entire episode then feels like a pointless exercise in the end, mostly because the perspective then transitions back to Ruthie's and we once again witness her losing her mind.

Also, the scenes that were supposed to induce a creepy feeling absolutely fail to do so. The shots of random people showing up at the restaurant, at the facade, and elsewhere, are laughably executed. If the hotel and its snowy surroundings had terrible history, then we ought to have known that because that'd have added to the atmospherics. I did like how the story incorporated Molly Ringwald's character into the film, and while not a surprise, it's nicely woven into the proceedings. When it comes to performances, I think the cast did a fairly decent job. That's one reason why the film is perfectly okay to sit through, even when it fails on the narrative and horror-inducing fronts.

For whatever reason I was swept up in the lesbian melodrama and I've frankly never seen Molly Ringwald looking so hot...but an opportunity was missed here. Instead of trying so hard to pretend this is The Shining (it's most definitely not The Shining) why not accept that Ruthie inherited a crappy motel and not a "hotel"? No one in their right mind thinks the building used in this film is a hotel, or that it was ever "the Four Seasons of the 80s." The motel portrayed here is a stock standard roadside motel and this movie could have been a lot scarier if it were treated as such. There is a lot more gritty dirt you can dig up in such a place - suicidal loners, teenaged drug-addled runaways, murders of street prostitutes in the days before GPS and cell phones (which was a real terrifying true thing, in the 70s and 80s - sex workers were constantly targeted before things like Internet and DNA testing). Plus on top of that there could have been the story about Ruthie's bad childhood and relationship with her mom.

But as it is, Bad Things is only fair-to-middling and because of the way it's presented it just keeps reminding you that it's Not the Shining, which is certainly a bad thing.

Bad Things might just be the worse film I've seen all year, 2023. I don't think the makers of this film have the basic knowledge of how to make any film and certainly not a horror film.

The central characters' friendship and intersecting romantic relationships, which are meant to be the film's grounding center, are described as having flimsy connections and dead air. The performances lacking chemistry and genuine feeling, leaving the film lacking emotional investment. The acting performances were abysmal.

It looks like they were striving for something along the lines of The Shining since it draws a lot of its inspiration from the Kubrick film. But they failed miserably.

Hey considering they likely didn't spend 8 billion dollars producing this movie it is pretty good. Is it scary? Hey I'm very hard to scare so don't ask me.... but for the average viewer I would say it might have moments. If you are a fan of or familiar with The Shining, you could easily find this very similar. In fact I am certain there was some intent to make several tributes in this film. For me personally it felt like the goal was to root for the "monster". Each character seemed to be drawn as unlikable and you may wonder why are they friends? If you like a movie that is not real obvious about what is going on, this one can make you wonder..... I would not watch it again but it was worth one viewing.

This is such an interesting film.

At first, I wasn't super into it.

But, once the paranoia set in...it had won me over.

The story revolves around a big city lesbian- named Ruthie- who has inherited her grandmother's rural hotel, and brought her closest friends to check it out, before she sells it.

Ultimately, the whole thing is a psychological horror.

But it's not exactly clear that such is the case, right from the beginning.

Which is what has left many other reviewers confused, I suspect.

Because things definitely get weird.

To the point where you question whether any of what you are watching is actually real.

What is clear, however, is that all the characters become paranoid, for different reasons, at different points in the film.

And that someone is attacking people.

It's just hard to pin down exactly who that is.

Making it all quite Lynchian in nature.

Up until the point that things do actually become clear, in the end.

Where the film takes on a bit of an Argento vibe.

With an aura of extreme paranoia, induced by severe childhood trauma.

And the strained relationships you experience in life as a result of this.

No doubt, it's a bit of a confounding- and rather weird- experience.

But it is actually quite a cleverly constructed film.

That you could easily place in the company of films like Vertigo; Beau Is Afraid; and Raoul Ruiz's epic psychological masterpiece, Le Territoire.

Just...not quite on the same level of those films.

You might be inclined to pair it with other, recent, lesbian oriented horrors, like Jagged Mind, and My Animal, from this year, as well.

Which would make for an interesting marathon.

Because, in the end...once you let it simmer, and come to fruition...there's really nothing not to love about this film.

It may be a bit of a slow burner...and have a pretty bizarre plot.

But it's actually kind of a sleeper hit, in my opinion.

So it get's my seal of approval.

And emphatic recommendation.

Don't let the haters make you pass this one by.

Because, while it may not be for everyone...it's most definitely worth a watch.

6.5 out of 10.