Spoiler-free review
Last night I sat down to watchFive Nights At Freddy’s,the film adaptation of the video game series that went viral for its horror, mysteries and near-endless lore.
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Check out the trailer forFive Nights at Freddy’sbelow
Starting off with the story, it takes the game’s plot of a security guard locked inside a pizzeria with homicidal robots, and expands it with fully-realised characters and motivations.
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What follows is several nights at Freddy’s, where he gets to know Freddy, Bonnie, Chica and Foxy, as well as the grizzly history of the establishment through a local police officer, Vanessa (Elizabeth Lail).
While the story was very basic, I think it actually did a decent job of tying in some of the key lore and characters fans will be familiar with, and viewers who aren’t familiar will be able to follow the story as well. I spotted plenty of references to content from the first three games, including plenty of fun Easter eggs for those with good eyes.
I will say it significantly falls down in the final act, with all the build-up from the beginning and middle of the film not quite landing in the finale. It felt a bit rushed, so I wasn’t 100% satisfied with where the story concluded, however it does leave things open for a sequel, as expected.
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I won’t lie, it was odd to see them on their feet and moving around, mainly because they’re always motionless in the games until one attacks you, but I think it added to their unsettling demeanour. I also loved how they all behaved like they do in the games, with the best example being Foxy, who had several scenes in the hallway where he’d charge you during gameplay.
I’ll also add the set design was brilliant too, with the pizzeria housing several locations that’ll be familiar to those who’ve played the first game and remember all the security camera images. They absolutely nailed the overall aesthetic, and it complemented the animatronics beautifully.
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Overall, I’d callFive Nights At Freddy’san entertaining flick, and it’s well worth a watch if you’re a longtime fan, or as an entry point to the series. It’s inoffensive and doesn’t always succeed with its intention, but there were some great ideas here, and I can definitely see it becoming a film series.
I think the most powerful thing it has going for it is just how long it took to get here. The first Five Nights At Freddy’s game released in 2014, and cascaded into several sequels, fan projects and novels. Those of us who were young when the series first came about have now grown up alongside it, and seen what was originally intended to be a simple point-and-click horror game become a global sensation that’s now found its way onto the big screen. Spend two hours at Freddy’s, you’ll have fun.
Five Nights At Freddy’sarrives in UK cinemas today, 25 October.
Topics:TV And Film
