Night’s End – Shudder Review (2/5)

NIGHT’S END on Shudder is a new low-budget horror movie with some impressive names attached. While I enjoyed the first half, the final half did not work for me. At all. Everything that had worked for me just seemed to crumble away. Read our full Night’s End movie review here!

NIGHT’S END is a new Shudder horror movie that has impressive names attached (both in front of and behind the camera). All despite being a low-budget production. Unfortunately, I found this horror movie to be one of those movie-watching experiences that stick with you for all the wrong reasons.

After a strong opening storyline, it just fell apart completely. And not in any good ways. Everything that had worked in intense and relatable ways turned into some sort of B movie creature feature. Or actually, not really because that could also have worked. Hell, I like it when a movie does a crazy subgenre or niche twist along the way. This one just stopped being good halfway through.

You can continue reading our Night’s End movie review below if you’re curious to know more (no spoilers though). Also, you can find the horror movie on Shudder from March 31, 2022.

Low-budget horror movies can be great

I have no problem with low-budget horror movies. I like low-budget movies quite a lot. In fact, scratch that, sometimes I love low-budget productions. They can offer a kind of movie magic that transcends big budgets because there’s so much passion for filmmaking and love of a good story there.

Sure, there can be issues with the production quality. Something that often affects the sound mostly and makes you appreciate just how important (and difficult) good sound in a movie is.

With Night’s End, it’s clearly shot on separate locations, which we’ve grown accustomed to in various forms during the lockdown. It has made for some amazing and creative ways of telling stories. Sometimes with amazing results as seen with the Shudder movie Host which (deservedly!) became a runaway hit. At other times, it turns into a trainwreck which we witnessed with Songbird.

Interestingly, Host had the unknown cast and crew while Songbird had quite a few familiar names attached. Still, I never expected Night’s End to fall into that latter category of becoming a trainwreck. Yet, here we are!

Geno Walker had me in the first half

While the first part of this movie intrigued and fascinated me. Yes, despite some less than impressive performances by a few supporting characters, I really liked Geno Walker (Chicago Fire) in the lead role as Ken Barber. Actually, Geno Walker continues to work in this movie, but he is up against continuously greater obstacles from the development of the plot.

Ken Barber (Geno Walker) is a real shut-in which is nothing new. From Shut-In to The Woman in the Window and most recently Kimi as well as numerous other movies, we’ve seen many stories about people who cannot leave the safety of their homes. Still, having the lead be a man is something we don’t see as often. For me, I completely accepted that Ken Barber was a man who just could not leave.

I also really enjoyed Michael Shannon and Kate Arrington (Mare of Easttown) in key supporting roles. Kate Arrington plays Kelsey, who is the ex-wife of Ken Barber. Michael Shannon plays her new husband and they both try to help Ken. For the record, I am always happy to see when divorced couples are shown as people who can still be friends and care for one another.

And, of course, Michael Shannon and Kate Arrington, work really well in everything they do. Being a real-life married couple, they could also easily shoot these scenes together despite much of the world being in lockdown. However, even their final scenes ended up being quite cringey. Not due to their acting, but rather everything around them.

Good Lord, those final 10 minutes really tested me!

Watch Night’s End on Shudder

The director of this movie is Jennifer Reeder who previously directed a segment of V/H/S/94 and Knives and Skin (2019). The latter is a thriller mystery that I actually enjoyed in all its weird and quirky ways. Of course, Jennifer Reeder also wrote that movie herself, so that probably made a big difference. Night’s End was written by Brett Neveu who has mostly worked in theater prior to this movie.

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Check out our review of V/H/S/94 which is also on Shudder >

To say that I was disappointed in Night’s End is a grotesque understatement. However, it’s important to note that I was mostly disappointed due to two things; First of all, I expected a lot more from director Jennifer Reeder and many of the actors attached to this. Second, because it started out well and I was really into the story in the beginning.

With a runtime of this 81 minutes, this movie ultimately felt much longer. Which is no small feat in and of itself. I would say you should check it out for that first half, and just hold on for the crazy final half. Maybe you’ll see something in the ending that just never managed to hit home for me.

Night’s End is out on Shudder from March 31, 2022.

Details

Director: Jennifer Reeder
Writer: Brett Neveu
Cast: Geno Walker, Kate Arrington, Felonius Munk, and Michael Shannon