The Wasteland Reviewer

Abigail (2024) Written Review

Have you been bitten by the Radio Silence bug yet? What am I talking about? The filmmaking team of Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett, Justin Martinez, and Chad Villella. Bettinelli-Olpin and Gillett have been making themselves a great reputation for their direction. They took on the Scream franchise and delivered two well received new entries. Ready or Not quickly became a beloved modern horror classic with its dark wit and crazy blood and gore. But it all began with the unique anthology series V/H/S. But now they are tackling a fun new concept…a little killer vampire ballerina! 

Outside of the attention-grabbing concept, where does this story take the audience? The screenplay from Stephen Shields and Guy Busick spins the audience around their finger with an interesting mix of genres and plenty of twists and turns. The first 40 minutes or so are quite effective in setting up this claustrophobic crime thriller which is the base for the whole film. We get to learn about each of these characters from this motley crew of paid guys. There is a mythos created around the criminal underworld for which they are a part. But what is unintentionally frustrating is the fact that they sold the film as the “little killer vampire ballerina” in the first place. If that twist was truly a surprise, that would have knocked your socks off. But the film builds up great tension despite that fact as the audience knows where the film is going even if the characters have no idea of what they are dealing with. The third act rolls around and muddies the waters with some big swings narratively. The film gets bogged down with bloat, but it still manages to stick the landing for a crazy, fun ride. 

What about the tone that Bettinelli- Olpin and Gillett create for this playground? They strike the perfect horror/thriller/comedy tone. This film is legitimately hilarious from start to finish with some strong dialogue and great work from the cast (more on that later). The dynamic of this ensemble creates a breeding ground for snarky one-liners and banter that just makes this film so much more fun. Abigail (the titular vampire ballerina herself) is quite a bit of fun too. As you know from the trailer… “She loves to play with her food”. But that does not get in Abigail’s way of being a legitimately creepy experience. There are plenty of tense moments with dark corners and shadows that deliver plenty of scares (or fake ones). But it is the buckets on buckets of blood and guts that gives this crazy, campy, over-the-top horror feel that just ties it all together. There is SO much blood and some of the choices for the vampire lore makes for some shocking and bloody good moments. 

How do the rest of the technical aspects pull together? They found the perfect set for this film to take place. The mansion is old and creepy but so vintage and iconic. This looks like the old house built in your nightmares and feels like a great ode to the vampire mythos and stylings of old school monster horror films. The architecture is so cool and elaborate…it almost feels like the house is its own character. The music from Tyler Bates is a great addition that captures the motifs of classic movie horror, and it fits so well with the varying tones of the film. It makes the horror moments creeper and re enforces the laughs as well without trying too hard. 

How about that ensemble? Melissa Barrera is carving out a perfect place for herself as a modern horror lead as she is the heart and soul of this film. Her character Joey brings in plenty of emotional baggage that works well in building this pseudo-familial dynamic with Abigail. Speaking of Abigail…Alisha Weir kills it in this movie. She delivers on the scared and vulnerable young girl character…until she is revealed to not be that. Her work is sassy, violent, clever vampire killing machine is a revelation. Weir knocks this role out of the park. William Catlett might feel like the bland sixth wheel to the crew and Giancarlo Esposito might only be here to deliver plenty of exposition, but the rest of the crew are pitch perfect. The late Angus Cloud is so authentic as Dean who is the oddball of the crew who is just asking for trouble. Kevin Durand is a goliath in a simpler disposition which allows Durand to play up plenty of laughs with his lack of intelligence. Kathryn Newton is plenty of fun as the young one in the crew whose generational differences allow her to lean into sassy comments and hilarious commentary. The second Frank shows up on screen…you know he is up to no good. Dan Stevens is so great at creating that vibe and leans into it so well that he is genuinely charismatic and gets to be in the thick of plenty of the action. 

Is Abigail another win for the Radio Silence crew? Absolutely! This is a film that is an absolute blast from start to finish. What is great about this horror/comedy is that the horror elements do not get watered down by the laughs. You honestly might not know what to do, scream or laugh, from scene-to-scene. This ensemble cast is one of the best in recent horror memory. There is great tension and mystery that is boiling up to the surface throughout and will keep the audience and this crazy crew on the tip of their toes. Plenty of blood, guts, and laughs waiting for audiences this weekend.