Finally a Decent Horror Once Again

Storyline

In her much-anticipated foray into the horror-thriller genre, Golden Globe and Emmy nominee Taylor Schilling stars in THE PRODIGY as Sarah, a mother whose young son Miles' disturbing behavior signals that an evil, possibly supernatural force has overtaken him. Fearing for her family's safety, Sarah must choose between her maternal instinct to love and protect Miles and a desperate need to investigate what or who is causing his dark turn. She is forced to look for answers in the past, taking the audience on a wild ride; one where the line between perception and reality becomes frighteningly blurry.

Genre :

Horror/Thriller

Country :

USA/Canada

Cast :

Taylor Schilling : Sarah Blume

Jackson Robert Scott : Miles Blume

Peter Mooney : John Blume

Paul Fauteux : Edward Scarka

My Opinion

You took my son’s soul…

you can’t have his body

Murderous children or those possessed by dark forces appear in horror movies on a regularly base. Sometimes it is a diabolical power that possesses them. Damien from “The Omen”, Samara from "The Ring" and Regan in “The Exorcist” are good examples. Or it is the mental condition that turns lovely little boys or girls into horrible little monsters like Luke in “Better watch out” and Chavs in “Eden Lake“. In “The Prodigy” Miles develops a deviant behavior pattern as he gets older. This cuddly little boy appears to have a dual personality. One moment he snuggles into his mother’s arms and asks to play the staring contest. The next moment he looks at her demonically. Such an evil look that gives you goosebumps instantly. Verily, there is something wrong with this young boy Miles (Jackson Robert Scott).

The movie surprised me.

To be honest I was pleasantly surprised by the film “The Prodigy“. Admittedly, it is not very original and the film makes good use of all known tricks from the horror genre. Yet this film managed to make me feel uncomfortable. And I even felt a slight form of tension and anxiety. And that was mainly achieved by the acting of the young Jackson Robert Scott. A little guy who’s years ahead of other kids in terms of intelligence. But when his use of language during his sleep (in a Hungarian dialect) takes on a fairly mature tone and he tackles fellow students with a heavy wrench, a sense of suspicion begins to increase on his mother Sarah (Taylor Schilling). The result is an adult psychological and dangerous game that unfolds between mother and son.

Slow paced.

Jef Buhler (scriptwriter of, among others, “Pet Sematary“, “Jacob’s Ladder”, TV-series "Nightflyers" and next year’s film “The Grudge“) takes his time here and slowly builds up the tension. Hence the slow pace at the start of the film. Which for once I didn’t experience as disturbing. It is only when spiritualist Arthur Jacobson (Colm Feore) is introduced that the pace goes up a bit. Here it also becomes clear what the opening scene has to do with this sweet-looking youngster who’s troubled by behavioral problems. Fragments of a psychopath shot down by a special unit and the birth of baby Miles are being linked to each other. And then the term reincarnation comes up. An explanation that suddenly makes everything clearer. Unfortunately, the motivation why this all happens is probably easy to guess for some of the movie viewers.

An entertaining horror film.

“The Prodigy” is an easily digestible and entertaining horror, despite the predictability and a not so ingeniously put together story. Luckily, the acting work of Jackson Robert Scott and Taylor Schilling makes up for a lot. Expect some excitement, some perfectly timed jump scares and for some perhaps a surprising and shocking denouement. In recent years, a few films have been released with bombastic statements claiming to be the “Scariest horror in years” or “More frightening than The Exorcist“. And I'm not going to tell which movie it is. “The Prodigy” surpasses them all. Without magniloquent slogans. Ergo, I highly recommend this movie.

You can watch "The Prodigy" on Amazon.com

My rating 7/10

Links: IMDB