The film revolves around the main character, named Ben, a young teenager who is spending the summer with his dad at a beach house, but little does he know, he will soon find himself facing a thousand-year-old witch that preys on children's souls.
Ben's summer situation sets the stage for the story as he navigates the challenges of being a teenager while also dealing with the pressures of his dad's expectations and his own personal growth.
He's juggling a lot in his life without having to put up with a witch, who needs that on top of everything else?
As he works at the marina, he encounters a cast of characters, including the local bully, his crush, and the love interest, and the cast of characters mirrors the archetypes we often see in horror films and is like classic horror movie bingo.
Similar to the movie Cabin in the Woods, these characters could easily fit into a rom-com or a slasher film, but instead, they find themselves facing a terrifying ancient witch instead.
One of the best aspects of The Wretched is its ability to create suspense and deliver some disturbing elements throughout the movie.
The protagonist spends his time trying to uncover the truth about his neighbor, and as the investigation unfolds, you are taken on a suspenseful journey, culminating in the revelation of the witch's existence.
It pays homage to classics like Jaws by balancing calm moments with intense horror scenes, creating a sense of anticipation and unease, and these calm moments lull you into a false sense of security before the next terrifying attack or revelation occurs.
The witch itself is a truly disturbing entity too, combining elements of the Blair Witch and the shadow figure Diana from the Lights Out movies, and its grotesque appearance and nature make it a wonderfully terrifying antagonist.
The movie also utilizes references to other films and pulls from various genres, and movies such as Disturbia, Rear Window and The Babadook.
The Wretched taps into your familiarity and creates a sense of nostalgia, and these references not only pay homage to the movies that came before but also add depth and richness to the story.
The film does a really good job of building everything up, and visually the film is quite creepy as well, and the forest setting adds to the overall creepy atmosphere.
It does have an overly familiar feel though, it's all been done before and it is a bit predictable at times, but I still quite enjoyed it despite this.
The Wretched overall is a pretty underrated horror movie in my view, it only has 5.8 on IMDB as of right now, which is OK, but I think it deserves a bit higher.
It has a decent blend of genres and references to iconic movies and the pacing and suspense is well done overall, and while it's certainly nothing ground breaking, it deserves a bit more love in my humble opinion.
And if you find your neighbor acting weird, go and check it out, you never really know, do you?
[The Wretched on IMDB] [Where to watch The Wretched]
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