This is a film that I got the chance to see thanks to Lauren from Breaking Glass Pictures. It was from the press release that I learned this was one from 7th Street Productions. The co-writer and one of the stars are Calvin Morie McCarthy, who I know from a horror movie podcast group that I'm a member of. I figured that since this is a 2025 release and I like to incorporate independent horror films for my list that I requested the screener.
Synopsis: a group of friends take their recently sober friend to the remote hills to help him stay clean. But when eerie events unfold and people start disappearing, they question whether the boogeyman lore is real or their own unraveling minds.
We start this with an interesting cold open. There is an older man who looks out his window. Something is glowing. He goes to investigate where he's killed by the boogeyman, portrayed by Jason Brooks.
It then shifts to the home of Erik (Erik Skybak). His wife is tired and wants his help, but he's late and must hit the road. He has another conference to go to and this is becoming more frequent. He reveals that due to all these extra hours and trips, a promotion has been promised to him. He then leaves.
The problem then is that we see the truth. He's cheating on his wife. He picks up Naomi (Naomi Mechem-Miller) and they go out to a cabin. Before he left, his son gave him a drawing where he's meeting the boogeyman. It makes him uncomfortable, but he ignores it. This couple makes love and afterwards, she goes outside. She meets her fate much like with the man from the cold open.
Now the true purpose here is helping Calvin (McCarthy) stay clean. Erik and Tim (Tim Coyle) set this plan up. Calvin is out of rehab so they don't want him to relapse. The problem is that Erik brought beers and cocaine, plus he was hooking up with Naomi the night before. Tim comes here with his girlfriend, Jax (Jax Kellington). These two go off to make love every chance they get. Calvin is left long stretches by himself, finding things to do to get high.
There are people who are staying out in the woods who are hearing weird noises at night. They chalk it up to coyotes, but the sounds they describe are different. The boogeyman continues to pick people off, including our group at the cabin. There could be more to this figure than originally thought though as the truth is revealed.
That is where I'll leave my recap and introduction to the characters. Where I want to start is with something I remember McCarthy saying when he guested on 22 Shots of Moodz and Horror. He's been working on independent films for a while. It was within the last 5 years or so that he learned using certain things with the titles helps your movie get picked up. Now I've seen Conjuring the Cult, using The Conjuring series to lure people in. I don't blame them and find it savvy to be honest. If I had to guess, The Boogeyman that came out fairly recently was probably what they're doing here, even though it is its own entity.
Now that I have that set up, let me delve into what we're getting. This is a slasher film at heart. It is funny that the basic story for our leads is similar to what we got in the Evil Dead remake. The problem here is that the friends aren't as good as the ones there. This makes a comedy where Calvin can't sleep due to listening to Tim and Jax having sex. This drives him to drink mouthwash, pop allergy pills and escalate up due to there not being alcohol here. It also makes him unreliable when he notices things aren't right and no one believes him. I did appreciate that.
I did want to shift here slightly to the acting performances. They do feel like a group of bad friends. It feels real though. They want to help Calvin stay clean. I get the feeling they know he's going to fail, which is sad. Due to that, they all care more about ensuring they enjoy their time and not focusing on him. McCarthy, Coyle and Skybak do all feel like old friends though. They fit these roles. Mechem-Miller and Kellington are attractive. I'd say that everyone here brings their characters to life which is all you can ask for. Brooks also brings good size to the boogeyman.
Let's go back to the story. I'll say here that when it comes to slasher films, I look for either good characters or kills. I've already said that the characters were solid enough. They're distinct which is good. Delving more into the boogeyman is where I want to go. When the group arrives, Calvin tells the story of the boogeyman in this area. It is used almost like a ghost story to scare Jax. Tim knows the tale. There is something at the end that gets revealed. I don't love it, since we've seen it done before. I can be more forgiving here except for it seems like it creates a plot hole. I'd need to revisit the timeline to make a final determination. For me though, it would work better if they didn't diminish the 'boogeyman' concept.
All that is left to delve into is the other part of what I look for and this falls under filmmaking techniques. The kills here are good when we see them. There are ones that we just get the aftereffects. Overall, this went practical with the effects which made me smile. I'm guessing part of this is budgetary with what we don't see or just not being able to make it look good. It is also classic for slasher films to hide kills to progress the story. The cinematography and framing were good there to hide the seams. You can tell this isn't a large budget film, but they do well at making this feel bigger. I love the setting in this cabin in the woods, that creates isolation. The soundtrack was also fine for what they needed.
In conclusion, this is a solid slasher film that borders on being supernatural. It does contain elements that I look for in enjoying movies from this sub-genre. There are distinct characters. This is made well enough with the practical effects, the look of the boogeyman along with the cinematography, framing and setting. It uses a troupe that I don't love, but it doesn't ruin this. It is a solid indie slasher film that I'd recommend if you like films like this. It is a throwback to the heyday for sure.
My Rating: 6 out of 10.
