Taglines are an important part of advertising for a feature film, setting the tone and giving out small details about the production to potential viewers. “Don’t think it. Don’t say it.” is the slogan for the new horror flick, The Bye Bye Man. Truthfully, the most relevant bit of information has been omitted… “Don’t see it.”
There are few films in which the words “staggeringly bad” leap to mind while I’m watching them, but this attempt frequently inspires that reaction. It’s consistently terrible, haphazardly patching together every effective genre trope, yet managing to mix them with next to no efficiency or success. This sounds a bit rough and one can’t fully blame the actors or filmmakers. Truthfully, there were problems here with the screenplay to begin with.
The story revolves around a trio of college students (Douglas Smith, Lucien Laviscount and Cressida Bonas) in Wisconsin who rent off-campus housing. They pick the cheapest, creepiest place imaginable (I mean, I’m sure it was a deal, but how expensive could rent possibly be in this part of the country). Unfortunately, it houses the furniture of a man driven crazy by a supernatural force – the title character, in fact. After mentioning his name once, the kids begin to experience hallucinatory visions driving them to take violent action and try to kill each other.
You could certainly make something of this concept. Insecure kids suffering from paranoia, having strange, nightmarish visions that may or may not be real and ultimately turning on one another. Sadly, the script goes in a very generic and stilted direction. The dialogue here is completely wooden, with some phony sounding conversations as the kids question what’s happening and awkwardly discuss existential matters like “What if your ideas were real?” I’m paraphrasing there, but some of the heavy and contemplative discussions result in chortles.
The jump scares are also strangely mistimed. Figures move around in the background and the loud music stings are there, but almost none of them startle. Not helping matters is the villain himself. This is not an iconic horror villain in the mold of Freddie Krueger or Candyman. The Bye Bye Man is an ill-complexioned figure in a hoodie with a goofy, computer-animated hound. He’s a less-than-threatening antagonist. The movie also introduces motifs like trains and coins that are related to the title character, but doesn’t pay them off clearly or effectively.
I will admit to being amused by what transpires in the final third of the film. As the teens become more hysterical and events become sillier and sillier, it results in some unintentional laughs. When the police (including a completely wasted Carrie-Anne Moss) arrive to investigate one such incident, the hard-nosed interviews, discussions and accusations that transpire come across as utterly ridiculous. Speaking of misused talent, Faye Dunaway shows up briefly in another strange bit about the mysterious character that does little to enlighten viewers.
Again, perhaps I’m being a bit harsh for a little genre picture, but this particular effort belly flops in every conceivable way. And I’m a guy who generally likes horror movies. The Bye Bye Man is a complete wreck that baffles and mystifies, and is even less effective in the scare department.