MovieChat Forums > Intruders (2011) Discussion > 5 reasons why this wasn't scary at all

5 reasons why this wasn't scary at all

posted 13 years ago by Monoxstride
3 replies | jump to latest

Here are 5 reasons why this movie wasn't scary in the least:

1. The antagonist has the 2nd worst and least-scary name I've ever heard for a horror antagonist.

2. There's no suspense as to what Hallowface looks like or why he's doing what he's doing. When your villain is someone with a hood over his face, stalking children at night...those two things have great potential for suspense. Instead of capitalizing on a great opportunity, they revealed everything in the beginning.

3. Hallowface's character is totally inconsistent. Is he a ghost or what? He obviously has supernatural powers, but yet ends up getting in a fight with the girl's father. That is the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen. Have you ever seen a film where a character gets in a fist-fight with a supernatural entity? By that point, you've already lost all ability to be afraid of him. I also like how his hood never comes off during the fight. By then, there was no longer any mystery as to what he looked like, so they'd just be better off if they tried to make it seem realistic and let his hood come off. Oh by the way, nice shoes.

4. Traditionally, there's always a 'doubtful' character in these kind of movies, who doesn't believe that the ghost is real. As the movie progresses, the strange occurrences continue and sometimes happen to the doubtful character personally. In this case, they tried to do that, but ended it way too soon. This is how it goes: Girl: Dad, I have a nightmare. Dad: It's okay, I'll give you 'nightmare therapy'. Girl: I'm still scared, he's in the house. Dad: Holy crap! Get out of the room. Also, why didn't the dad recognize him? At the end it apparently is saying he knew who Hallowface was. So what was he thinking that whole time?

5. Why isn't Hallowface able to possess anyone's face? He only did it one time, and then let her go. First of all, why did he let her go? Second, why did it take him an eternity to do it again? How are we supposed to take him seriously when he sucks at his job so much.

In addition, here's some reasons why the movie just sucks overall:

1. The acting is atrocious for the majority of the cast

2. When the girl loses her ability to speak, the whole movie dies. She was a likeable character that they pretty much just removed from the story. They didn't even have a reason for doing it.

3. Plot holes: I could never mention all of them, but....the ending. I mean, wow. The entire ending is one giant 5 minute plot hole. I have too many questions to list them here. I will mention one thing though...At least be consistent with the existence of his face or not. If there's one thing you have the make up your mind on, it's the point of the movie. Does he have a face or doesn't he? Because if he does...then the whole movie is not only pointless, but actually contradicts the premise of it.

4. Why is the Hispanic kid barely mentioned? Half the time I forgot that part of the story even existed.

5. It tricks you by having the best, and scariest horror movie cover of all time. Why is that a bad thing? Because it's false advertising damn it.

[–] zeil9523 13 years ago

Frankly I'm no sure how I feel about this movie and it's twists yet. I think i would have liked something more cut and dry creepy, as dark figures go, but them's the breaks.

Onto the movie and your raging scorn of it though...

Firstly I'm not going to debate what may or may not have been scary or may or may not have been good acting. One mans cutting edge elite art is another man's spare car parts.

So, what I will say:

On facelessness. Taking someone's face is very symbolically heavy act, our face, more then anything else defines who we are. Removing someone's face destroys them, metaphorically speaking.
John as a child witnessed his father assault his mother, moreover given that he was locked up there was probably prior abuse John was privy too as well, even if he was too young to consciously remember. John's father, claimed they had the same face, he implied they were the same person, too young john, who thought his father a monster, this must have been horrific, being connected to something like that. No face, no connection.
This is why, as the movie progress, hallowface's face begins to develop, but only to John... Deep down John knows he has a face, as he was the one who destroyed it.

On vocal paralysis. Again taking someone's voice is very subtextual. Society puts a lot of stock in 'having a voice'. Taking someone's voice in essence leaves them helpless, it disempowers them. In this particular case, John's daughter could literally no longer call for help during attacks. But more then that, the whole movie to me smacked of child abuse, physical and sexual and victims of said abuse will often draw themselves without a mouth because they feel unable to confident in anyone.

Finally on Hallowface. As much as I would've liked supernatural, I think it was shared psychosis. Which explains John fighting him. Again deep down John knows its his father. He wants to hurt him.

So there's my two cents. As much as I don't think the movie was fantastic, it was better then a lot of the dreck that gets made and plastered all over the big screen. Moreover, I at the very leas think they managed to tie everything together nicely. I don't see any of the raging plot holes you are adamant about.

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[–] 13 years ago

[deleted]

[–] MrBelette 13 years ago

"Why is the Hispanic kid barely mentioned? Half the time I forgot that part of the story even existed. "

Maybe you didn't understand the movie. The hispanic boy was Clive Owen's character as a child.