Compulsion – Movie Review (1/5)

COMPULSION is a psychological and steamy thriller from Neil Marshall in his fourth (and final?) collaboration with Charlotte Kirk. As a genre fan, I am so desperately unimpressed that it’s just sad. Again. Read our full Compulsion movie review here!

COMPULSION is a new thriller made in the vein of 1980s and 1990s classics Fatal Attraction (1987) and Basic Instinct (1992). Well, in theory anyway, as this is neither as psychologically thrilling or hot and steamy as those movies were.

Also, the language spoken may be English, but the accents are all over the place and sometimes quite tricky to understand. The decidedly bad sound production doesn’t help either. Finally, the runtime of around 100 minutes is way too long.

Continue reading our Compulsion movie review below, if you feel so inclined. I promise not to hold back. You can experience this mess of a movie for yourself in select theaters and on digital from September 19, 2025.

Who cares about the plot? Not the filmmaker!

Look, you can read the plot and have an idea of what Compulsion is all about. However, if you’ve watched previous Neil Marshall and Charlotte Kirk productions, you already know what to expect.

This is no better nor any worse. Except this time, we also get the coveted three L’s in this supposedly “steamy, psychological thriller”: Latex, leather, and lesbians.

The sad thing is, if someone like Mike Flanagan (collaborating with Kate Siegel) were at the helm, none of this would worry me. But with a Neil Marshall and Charlotte Kirk collaboration, I am extremely concerned before pushing play.

The male gaze failing miserably

I have to say, as a lesbian, I have rarely felt more turned off than from the “lesbian scenes” in this movie. Hell, watching Zach McGowan (who was brilliant in Black Sails) take his shirt off was way hotter to me. And I am very gay.

As a genre fan, I am disappointed. And as a gay girl, I feel downright offended that this supposedly represents “my people” in any way. This is a disturbingly gross example of the male gaze being the only recognized vision.

Finally, as a fan of quality filmmaking and good storytelling, I’m just angry. Surely, there are better productions out there that are more deserving of distribution and our (mine as well as yours) time?!

Fourth and final collaboration?!

According to the director’s statement by Neil Marshall, Compulsion is the fourth and final collaboration with Charlotte Kirk. Well, I for one both applaud and celebrate this, though it remains to be seen whether there is any magic left in the director.

Despite hyping those previous three collaborations as “critically acclaimed” and speaking of especially The Reckoning as “award-winning”, they were hardly what one would call “accomplished movies”.

I certainly would not.

Critically acclaimed collaborations?

Also, if those movies were so good and successful, then why is the poster for Compulsion still featuring that “From the director of The Descent” moniker?!

I mean, The Descent only won 8 awards compared to a whopping 42 wins for The Reckoning. Of course, none of those 42 awards are audience awards. Nor very prestigious.

Also, neither of the three previous collaborations has an average IMDb rating above 5. And all are rotten on RottenTomatoes.com, ranging from 13 to 35% in “rottenness”. So what exactly does “critically acclaimed” mean?

Whatever the case, I am just happy that this seems to be the end. Had these movies been made with a tongue-in-cheek vibe and leaned into the retro-style and gone kitsch, they could have worked.

Instead, I feel like channeling Heath Ledger’s The Joker: “Why so serious?!” It clearly isn’t working.

You can watch Compulsion in theaters or on VOD

As already mentioned, this movie was directed by Neil Marshall. A director famous for making The Descent (2005), which also happens to be among my favorite horror movies.

Unfortunately, the Neil Marshall of today is a very different kind of director. Sure, the movies still have some gorgeous shots, but everything from sound to story and (in some cases) acting is way off.

Once again, I am very disappointed in the director who made one of my favorite horror movies. Will it be better in the future? Well, maybe ending the collaboration and style of filmmaking of recent years will help.

Then again, maybe those brilliant movies of years past were never entirely Neil Marshall in the first place? Only time and new productions will tell, I suppose.

Compulsion will be out in Select Theaters and on VOD on September 19, 2025.

Details

Director: Neil Marshall
Script: Neil Marshall
Cast: Anna-Maria Sieklucka, Charlotte Kirk, Zach McGowan