MOVIE REVIEW: FIVE NIGHTS AT FREDDY’S (PG-13)
– By Adam Mast –
“Five Nights at Freddy’s” Mixes Gateway Horror, Nostalgia, And Humor
Before getting to my thoughts on “Five Nights at Freddy’s,” let me preface this review by saying I’ve never played the games on which this film is based, therefore, I’m coming at this strictly from a filmgoer perspective. To that end, while there are certain elements I like in this movie, it does often feel convoluted and overstuffed as a whole.
In “Five Nights at Freddy’s,” a troubled man (played by Josh Hutcherson of “The Hunger Games” fame) suffering from trauma that stems from a terrible incident in his youth, takes a low-paying graveyard security position at Freddy Fazbear’s, a once-extremely-popular-but-now-closed-down pizza/arcade joint, all in an effort to help provide for his young sister (played by Piper Rubio) whom he looks after.
This Chuck E. Cheese-like location had it all; animatronic performing animals, video games, ball pits, and what I can only assume was the world’s worst pizza. More importantly, though, this one-time hot spot comes with a terrifying secret. One that goes well beyond the attacking animatronic creatures that reside in this run-down establishment.
Beyond the prerequisite horror element, “Five Nights at Freddy’s” is brimming with a sense of nostalgia and you’re likely to feel that nostalgia firsthand even if, like me, you’re not familiar with the games. Be it the old school arcade titles (Asteroids and Centipede among them), the quaint familiarity of Freddy Fazbear’s itself, the security training video that features a host who bears a resemblance to “A Nightmare on Elm Street” final girl Nancy Thompson, or the inclusion of “Five Nights at Freddy’s” co-stars Mary Stuart Masterson (“Some Kind of Wonderful”) and Matthew Lillard (“Scream”), there are plenty of things in this movie that will whisk you back to the seemingly more innocent decades that were the 80s and the 90s.
Again, though, if only this film didn’t have so much going on. There are mechanical beasties running amok, a man desperately trying to solve a mystery from his past, an underwritten woman of the law looking to lend a helping hand, and a mystery surrounding the film’s primary locale. There’s even a sort of ghostly element thrown into the mix for good measure.
Thankfully, you’ve got Hutcherson doing his best to navigate through all of this stuff and he’s actually pretty good here as an individual attempting to balance a tragic past and a somewhat tumultuous present. To Hutcherson’s credit, he brings vulnerability and likability to the table in equal measure.
Despite all that’s going on in this movie, at the very least, director Emma Tammi and her writing partners do a good job of keeping things moving. Additionally, they even throw in a couple of interesting plot points including one in which Hutherson’s guilt and grief-ridden character is convinced that he can fix his tragic past by re-visiting a traumatic event through his dreams. Tammi and crew also ensure that the movie is laced with a sense of humor. All of that said, there are things in “Five Nights at Freddy’s” that don’t entirely make sense (even for a horror show of this variety), particularly where the animatronic Freddy Fazbear performers are concerned. It should also be noted that a certain reveal in this movie is fairly obvious and not particularly surprising.
“Five Nights at Freddy’s” is rated PG-13 and it does feel like one of those movies designed to serve as a slice of gateway horror for a younger crowd. It certainly deals with adult themes including, but not limited to, the abduction of children. But then, the horror genre isn’t necessarily beneath putting kids in peril and stretching the limits of a PG or PG-13 on occasion (see the likes of “Poltergeist,” “Lady in White,” and “The Ring,” just to name a precious few.) Ultimately, “Five Nights at Freddy’s” definitely goes further than something like “Goosebumps” and it seems more at home in the “Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark” and “M3gan” camp. This is to say that there is intensity and there are a couple of shocking moments that might make it a little too extreme for younger kids but, “Saw” it ain’t.
In the end, “Five Nights at Freddy’s” certainly isn’t among the very best horror films of 2023 but it isn’t without its gateway horror charms. Regardless of what I think, it’s poised to make a killing at the box office so you can bet that the inevitable sequel is right around the corner.
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