Come Play – Solid Horror But More of The Same (Early Review)

Everybody needs a friend though they may not always have the right intentions in mind and sometimes they show up at the worst possible time. This story thread has more or less appeared over countless horror films. When it comes to the latest horror film, Come Play, based on a short film called Larry. it is no different for better or worse. In order to set this one apart, the film attempt to justify its silliness by anchoring it with deeper themes but unfortunately, it didn’t work. At the end of the day, in order to enjoy the film, audiences will need to turn off their brains and just accept what is happening as it will surely appeal more to bigger horror fans. Absolutely nothing about this film should come as much of a surprise to anyone who has seen any horror film. Its predictability factor was a real letdown as it merely check off all the cliches one at a time until it finally devolved into ridiculousness by the end and it won’t take that long to get there with the film clocking in at around the 90 minute mark.

Come Play tells the story of a young autistic boy named Oliver (Robertson). His condition made it difficult for him to interact with the world or even communicate with others, including his parents Sarah (Jacobs) and Marty (Gallagher Jr.). Desperate for a friend, his only refuge was with electronics, be it smartphones or tablets which helped him communicate. However, these devices would end up being used against them as a mysterious entity to break into the real world. Where the story went from there can be seen from a mile away as the film goes out of it way to point out that Oliver was essentially ripe for the picking as the conditions around him made it inevitable. Now don’t expect any kind of explanation whatsoever about said entity (this is coming from a person who hasn’t seen the source material). Of course it wreaked some havoc for a little while but there was only so much it can do for whatever reason (perhaps low budget). However, the technology connection was an interesting one despite the film’s overdependence on it in order to deliver scares. The gimmick does admittedly get old fast.

In the end, what better thing to bring a family together than adversity? At least once they acknowledge what is really going on. Suffice it to say that Come Play only gets more silly from there as everything started to unravel be it the characters and the plot. The was of course done to inflate the situation by making it more dire approaching the climax but it just didn’t work more often than not. Already being a short film, the plot already felt rushed. These developments simply made it more confusing for those who haven’t already tuned it out. For any film like this, audiences have to care enough about the characters. However, this fact proved to be a challenge here as thin characters tied together by cliches made it difficult to say the least. It’s only fitting that the only somewhat redeemable character, Oliver, was the one who spoke the least. It was just a shame that the film lost sight of what to do with him.

The best part of Come Play, or at least what kept it watchable was its performances. The material wasn’t that great but Jacobs, Gallagher Jr., and Robertson were okay as Sarah, Marty, and Oliver respectively. The chemistry between Jacobs and Robertson sold their difficult relationship. Sarah’s struggles and frustrations raising Oliver were somewhat relatable while Oliver’s world was sort of compelling to watch, however, the film didn’t offer nearly enough of it. Meanwhile, Gallagher Jr. was just there.

At the end of the day, Come Play is a solid horror-thriller experience that offers more of the same and for some audiences, than can be enough but most will be left wanting more.

still courtesy of Focus Features

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.