Pyewacket (2017) Reviews

• Slow, but decent

  horrorgasm2018-03-25

  I don't often have patience for the "slow burn" horror movies, but that's because so many entries into that little sub-genre of horror don't actually have the goods to back up their approach, and often seem to do it simply because their budget ran out or they needed a way to pad out the minutes. Pyewacket is successful in its attempt to build suspense and tension though, and the cast, script, and direction are good enough to hold your attention until the end despite the fact that very little is actually directly shown in terms of the evil presence at work here. It's not going to blow your mind, but it's a solid, relatively well-crafted story with a memorable ending. P.S. Don't listen to that ridiculous 1/10 kid's review that claims you need to be "a professor" to understand this one. This is absolutely not one of those movies with some complex meta plot that you need to rewatch to be able to catch everything. It's 100% straightforward and literally explains right to the viewers' faces what is happening. You shouldn't have any trouble whatsoever understanding this movie unless you ride the short bus.

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• A Decent Little Horror Movie

  jonsefcik2018-09-21

  I finally got a chance to check this movie out, and I feel I should say something level-headed given the mixed reviews. Lots of 10/10 and 1/10 reviews without much in the middle. I've seen my fair share of horror films, from masterpieces like The Shining and Rosemary's Baby, to camp like the Leprechaun series and Death Bed: The Bed That Eats. For a small independent production, I think this was a decent little horror movie, albeit with many flaws. Here's the good and bad: The Good: The acting was pretty good overall. I appreciate how this movie didn't stoop to any cheap tricks to scare the audience. There are no jump scares (except for one edit that could debatably be called a fake out). It showed a surprising amount of restraint, relying on a slow escalation of events to build suspense. By not showing much, it makes your imagination run wild, and that's what makes it scary. If anything, I actually wish they had shown even less of the demon. It's nothing mind-blowing, but it's on the right track. The Bad: The film looks cheaply made. The music and camerawork were serviceable but nothing great. Characterization was weak overall, though development between the mother and daughter was okay. The suspense built up pretty well for a majority of the runtime, but when you actually see the demon it's not very convincing. That CGI fire was pretty bad. Why didn't she show her mom the broken chair and door after that chase scene? In the hands of a more meticulous filmmaker with a higher budget, this could've been an A24 horror film like The Witch or Hereditary, but Pyewacket simply isn't on the same level. If you're a psychological horror fan and/or an indie horror fan, I's say this movie is worth a watch, but don't expect to be blown away. If getting startled by something popping at the screen is the only thing you consider scary, this isn't for you.

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• No shocks equals good movie in this case

  filmtogo2018-07-07

  I was really impressed with Nicole Muñoz watching this movie. She hasn't done a lot of big movies (yet) or even carried a movie on her shoulders like she does here. And it totally works. Director Adam MacDonald has found a perfect main actress for this disturbing and eerie tales of a teenage girl and her mother spending some time in a cabin in the woods. It's a quiet and moody movie. First we get some glimpses but midway through the film we discover that some kind of fascination for dark magic is driving this girl mad (or she is driven mad by her mother and turns to dark magic). "Pyewacket" has no big jump scare moments but that's exactly why it's so good.

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• Decent demon/ghost horror

  LasPlagas962019-01-21

  The movie really creates a good spooky climax, with a nice fitting soundtrack and camera work was pretty well done. The characters are well developped and played, especially Nicole Muñoz was amazing as the lead role Lea. The plot is although kept pretty simple. I liked how its made that the audience can sympathise with the lead role and is as confused and shocked as her. I mean, I also believed the demon killed her mother and shapeshifted into her, or controlled her body like in Evil Dead. Also we never really found out, as well as Lea, what the demon did to the lead role's friend who overnighted at hers. Towards the ending the audience slowly begins to realize that its really her mother, not the demon and gets shocked at the end when the cop confirms it. What was really well done, the demon tricked her to made her kill her own mother as she wished initially. So the body in the forest was the demon who wanted to make her believe her mother is dead and her real mother is the demon. Finally not that I mind the demon winning at the end but the ending seemed just a bit too abrupt.

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• A dark and memorable gem of a film

  jtindahouse2018-03-24

  I caught Adam MacDonald's first film 'Backcountry' a couple of years back and really enjoyed it. On that occasion he found a great balance between character development, building tension and then finally hitting you with a sledge hammer to finish it all off. Now with 'Pyewacket' he's managed to do the same again in terms on finding a great balance - only this time I'd say he's done it even better. The film takes a while to get its wheels churning, but this is all very important time spent in the movie because it is giving us a chance to care about these characters and their fate. Then the film just starts slowly revving things up piece by piece until finally the finale kicks in, and it's one to remember I promise you that. If I'm correct (I'm 99% sure I am) there isn't a single jump-scare in this movie. All the horror comes from atmospheric build-up and incredibly creepy visuals. There is one scene that was shot so simply that any man and his dog could go out into the woods right now and do the exact same thing, and yet it was probably the most effective scene in the entire movie. Simplicity is so often a horror movie's greatest asset. The actors did a great job too. Laurie Holden playing the mother was the stand-out for me. Some of the looks she managed to achieve gave me goosebumps. I was also suitably impressed by Nicole Muñoz in the lead role. She managed something very few actresses can pull off in horror movies - to make you care about her character. One of the only gripes I had with the film was that every time a character received a text message the writing would appear on the screen for the audience to read. This is something more suited to a romantic comedy in my opinion. Every time it happened it just took me out of the trance the film had put me in and reminded me that it was just a movie I was watching. Other than that though this is pretty hard film to fault. This is the way horror movies need to be made going forward, otherwise the genre will become extinct I fear. Take note horror film makers because 'Pyewacket' is a masterclass in horror film making.

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