Within – Movie Review (3/5)

Within is also known as Crawlspace which is almost as big a spoiler as the trailer. Still, the movie is classic horror entertainment with a super creepy villain!

The villain is definitely one of the best things in Within (which also goes by the title Crawlspace). That’s not to say he’s the only good thing about the movie. Within is absolutely a decent horror movie with all the classic tricks.

I might be getting ahead of myself here, but I have to mention the ending. No, I’m not going to spoil it for you. I simply wanted to mention that the ending of Within was a very pleasant surprise.

Or rather, “pleasant” might be the wrong word, but I definitely did enjoy it.

And in general, the story worked for me. The biggest shock was the fact that JoBeth Williams (Poltergeist) didn’t have a bigger role. I was looking forward to seeing much more of her. It worked for the story. I just wanted more because I think she’s awesome.

Within did a great job at avoiding the sad tropes

When I read that Within was about a widower and his daughter moving on, I immediately expected the usual family drama. You know, where the daughter and stepmom fight for his affection and attention.

There is none of that sad – and outdated – trope in Within.

Instead, we get to enjoy a combined family moving on together. And more often than not, the daughter and stepmom gang up on the man of the house. In an endearing way (mostly!), of course. Otherwise, we would just be moving onto another boring stereotype of men having no say when it comes to their own home.

Anyway, the trio worked wonderfully and was very believable as a family. It was a joy and only meant the horror worked better since we care about this family.

For me, it was especially Erin Moriarty (True Detective) as the daughter, Hannah, who had my sympathy. Of course, that’s who we follow in the story, so I’m supposed to. But like I just said, Michael Vartan (Bates Motel) and Nadine Velazquez (The Charnel House) also made a very good couple.

Awesome villain in the mix

Still, as it is often the case, the villain was the one I kept wanting to see more of. Mostly because he was so damn creepy and always managed to give a good scare.

He’s portrayed by Dorian Kingi. He’s pretty unrecognizable, but you probably wouldn’t know him anyway. He has worked on a lot of movies like Terminator: Genisys and Paranormal Activity 4 but in the stunt department.

The fact that he’s a stunt expert has probably meant a lot for Within since the stunts seem extremely natural. And everyone is definitely giving it their best shot once the villain has been identified.

Watch Within [aka Crawlspace] now!

Within has also been known by the title Crawlspace, which is one of the more spoiler-ish titles, I can think of. Actually, nominating Allison Williams in the Best Villain category at MTV Movie Awards for Get Out might be a bigger spoiler.

Well, except for the fact that the trailer for Within also seems to give away the entire plot. Still, this just means you don’t have to feel like you’re guessing every plot twist in advance – which you probably would have – since you’ve already watched it in the trailer.

Phil Claydon directed Within based on the script by Gary Dauberman. Phil Claydon has previously directed the crazy horror-comedy Lesbian Vampire Killers from 2009, which starred James Corden.

And Gary Dauberman seems to be part of most horror franchises these years. He’s participated in writing the scripts for The Conjuring spin-offs Annabelle and The Nun. Oh yeah, plus Wolves at the Door and the much-anticipated feature film adaptation of Stephen King’s It.

Within (aka Crawlspace) is out on Amazon, iTunes and HBO now!

Details

Director: Phil Claydon
Writer: Gary Dauberman
Cast: Michael Vartan, Erin Moriarty, Nadine Velazquez, JoBeth Williams, Blake Jenner, Dorian Kingi