‘Abigail’- Film Review: A Bloody Good Time from Radio Silence

Whenever Radio Silence first pitched this premise to Universal, how could you not think it had the potential to be entertaining? Matt Bettinelli-Olson and Tyler Gillett have steadily proven their knack for the horror genre over the past few years. Not only in turning out the surprisingly great Ready or Not, I put my trust in them since they brought the spark back to the Scream franchise with the fifth and sixth installments. Their latest, Abigail, is one of those horror comedies that do not aim to bring back the vampire craze, but the duo delivers on a bloody good time.

What’s the Story: A group of criminals-Joey (Melissa Barrera), Frank (Dan Stevens), Sammy (Kathryn Newton), Rickles (Will Catlett), Peter (Kevin Durand), and Dean (Angus Cloud, in one of the last films he finished before his passing)-participates for a mission: Capture a 12-year-old named Abigail (Alisha Weir), who’s the daughter of a wealthy and powerful underworld figure. Their informant, Lambert (Giancarlo Esposito), has them watch over her for 24 hours in an unknown mansion until they get their ransom payment of $50 million ($7 million each). They must follow simple instructions, including no real names, revealing personal information about themselves, and no cell phones. They think it’s too easy to keep an eye on a little girl until they discover who Abigail’s father is and realize the hard way they’re trapped inside with a blood-thirsty vampire.

For Radio Silence, taking on the story of “Dracula’s Daughter” in a modern setting sounded exciting, but the fact that these criminals are confined inside with little to no knowledge of what they’re participating in right there is enough to capture individuals who aren’t big fans of the genre. Both parties found themselves in a situation they didn’t expect, except it only got deadlier when the night continued inside this claustrophobic house with no one to trust. What they and writers Guy Busick and Stephen Shields know firsthand is this is never meant to be taken seriously, learning how to balance the humor and thrill troupes to make it feel somewhat fresh for a film that takes place throughout the night. The same method I thought was used in Ready or Not, which makes me think they belong in the same universe based on the atmosphere.

The title of the main antagonist has one job to be worth talking about and making the film work, especially when it’s a kid who delivers on being creepy, such as Ester in Orphan or Damien in The Omen. And young Alisha Weir crushed it as Abigail. The Irish actress might be familiar with her work from Matilda the Musical, and she captured the sides of being this scared, innocent girl from the beginning. Unaware of her kidnappers, the tables turn when she’s also this blood-sucking creature who does killer ballet. Weir embraces clever and manipulative traits to make this character stand out, which is a significant credit to the casting.

But the rest of the ensemble worked better than I thought when it’s a group that makes mistakes on their part yet still categorizes them as good or bad. Barrera (my birthday twin) continues to be a strong performer outside Scream, having Joey as the most sympathetic of the pack because of her medical background and because she doesn’t want to harm Abigail. Dan Stevens gives another performance this spring where he is having a great time on-screen, portraying the tough guy with little compassion. Plus, this might be the first time I can remember where Kevin Durand doesn’t play in a movie, as he plays off Peter as the tough guy who isn’t as dumb as he may appear.

Admittedly, the first half takes a while before it punches into the horror component, besides the early fake jump scares. That time is to know these characters possibly harboring secrets, which gives the excuse to feel grounded before it goes over the top. Once the reveal is set in, it gets fun whenever Abigail is on screen. Indeed, things get violent and bloody, as one would assume from a vampire flick that I get a kick out of sitting through. Is it the scariest movie ever? No. However, I got some laughs and wasn’t too shocked by how gory it can be. With that momentum of waiting for the eventual reveal, I wondered if they didn’t need to show it in the marketing, making for a surprising twist. It’s not that the suspense could’ve been played up more, but I get it despite taking a long time to get there. If there’s anybody who hasn’t watched the trailer and went into this cold, maybe this would work even better for them.

How will this do after its release? I don’t know, but I hope this pulls in decent numbers, and critics also seem to enjoy it. It’s also strange Universal released another vampire-centric movie after last year’s Renfield and The Last Voyage of the Demeter received mixed reviews and were box office bombs.

Overall, Abigail continues to showcase Radio Silence’s skills for the genre with the kind of vampire film with bite. When it doesn’t skimp on the gore and is elevated by an unforgettable performance from Alisha Weir in the title role and a great cast, it’s not perfect, but it offers a solid horror film worth recommending.