HIM -- Hail Mary Performance

Review by Adam Donato

Jordan Peele may have had his next feature’s release date pulled from next year’s schedule, but he’s back here as a producer of Him. With football season underway, what better time to remind fans of the dangers of the game than a movie about the consequences of the pursuit to becoming the greatest football player of all time. Cameron Cade is on the precipice of being drafted to the big leagues when he suffers an injury that puts his career in jeopardy. Cade’s favorite player growing up, Isaiah White, invites him to train for the week to potentially take over as the quarterback of their team. When the training proves to be more intense than he expects, Cade has to decide if he’s really built for this. The horror market is becoming a crowded place as it does this time of year. The Conjuring: Last Rites has been surprising at the box office and The Long Walk has been impressing with the reviews. Does Him have what it takes to be the GOAT?

It’s interesting that this movie is supposed to appeal to football fans, while also being a condemnation of the dark side of the industry. As if to remind fans that every time there’s helmet to helmet contact, an irreparably dangerous concussion is taking place. That being said, it’s not that hard for fans to not take seriously the dangers of the game and focus on the cult like voodoo going on instead. It does feel like a missed opportunity to not seriously explore the ideas that are being thrown around. The dangers of football are merely a setting for this cult horror movie. This just leaves the film feeling shallow. Feels like a lot of meat left on the bone.

The real appeal of the movie is in the ambitious performance from Marlon Wayans. Mostly known for his spoof comedies, Wayans is back after not being featured on the big screen in a long time and trying his hand out at a real horror movie. His character is ripe for a home run performance as this over zealous coach. He doesn’t quite hit the heights of expectations here. He carries the film, but not to an extent that demands a rewatch. The performance never reaches peak funny or scary. His bond with Cade’s character is not rich enough to satisfy audiences. Tyriq Withers plays the main character Cade. He also starred in this summer’s horror remake of I Know What You Did Last Summer. While his character may have the making of a top prospect, Withers is not blessed with similar acting prowess. When Wayans isn’t on screen, Withers struggles to maintain audiences.

More often it’s too long of a runtime that holds a film back, but Him could’ve used some extra screen time to develop the central relationship of the film and flesh out the themes that are only touched on here. The best scares in the film are born out of the real life horrors that come with such a violent game. There’s some shots in the film during the action scenes when they show an x-ray of the hits the characters are taking. These shots are bone chilling and the subsequent gore is effective. The rest of the scares are standard horror movie fodder. So the film isn’t scary enough, the comedy isn’t strong, and the themes are surface level.

Him is still an enjoyable horror movie outing, but too standard to stand amongst the crowd. Wayans deserves to be applauded for trying something new, but the real comedian to dramatic actor performance is coming soon in the form of The Smashing Machine. This will definitely get people talking about him again as the hype for the next Scary Movie film is strong. This film though has too much style and not enough substance. Football fans of 0-2 teams may not find this film as scary as watching their own team play, but Him is a good enough time at the theaters.

Him is in theaters on September 19.

Rating: 3/5