The Sound – Movie Review (2/5)

THE SOUND is a new horror movie with a rock climbing plot. It even features some iconic real-life climbers. Unfortunately, the focus on climbing does take up too much time and reveals a weak horror story. Read our full The Sound movie review here!

THE SOUND is a new supernatural horror-thriller. The core horror plot is a mystery that wants to be a little too mysterious for my liking. Is it Native folklore or a sci-fi alien supernatural danger? Both maybe?!

Hey, I’m ready for a story to be more than one thing. What I’m not too ready for is a movie featuring characters rock climbing, where the runtime is too long because we’re seeing a lot of climbing. Overall, it’s interesting in its concept, but it does not have strong storytelling.

Continue reading our The Sound movie review below. Find it on VOD from June 27, 2025.

The mysterious Forbidden Wall

The plot of the horror thriller mystery kicks off when a group of world-class climbers is allowed to climb the Forbidden Wall. A rock wall that has been off-limits since 1959. We see this most recent climb in the opening scene, so we know it ended badly.

Among the climbers allowed to try the climb now is Sean (Marc Hills). His grandfather was also part of that ill-fated attempt more than six decades earlier. The rock wall and mountain is in a Native area, and it’s the Tribe that has now allowed someone to try the climb again.

As the group attempts the climb of the Forbidden Wall, they are confronted by a malevolent force. Not one you can see, but one you will hear. The kind that prods its way into your mind and makes you go crazy.

How do you fight back when already struggling to survive the climb hundreds of feet above the ground? That’s the core plot of The Sound.

Well, in theory, anyway.

In reality, it’s more about rock climbing, a strange entity that I never felt was truly explained, and the struggle of communication gear. The focus on showing accurate climbing was clearly the main objective and took precedence over any focus on the horror story.

In fact, maybe between the climbing and the communication snafu, you’ll find a short film with a horror plot.

Loved Free Solo? Then check this out…

When The Sound opens, it’s with some rock climbing footage showing real-life climbers. The kind you might already know or have heard of. Like Alex Honnold of the 2018 National Geographic documentary Free Solo.

When the movie opened with this scene, I appreciated the authenticity, and then (very quickly!) another thought entered my mind: I hope these climbers are not in the core story, because they are clearly not actors.

Hey, I respect pretty much any craft (as long as it doesn’t hurt any other living soul), but being a brilliant climber does not mean you can be an actor in a horror thriller featuring climbing.

Fortunately, this was only a short introduction scene to set the stage. The entire main plot is handled by actors, who also do pretty well while climbing. Admittedly, it does look very fake a lot of the time. Not the climbing, but the setting, I mean.

Still, it works in terms of setting the tone overall. The actual problem with The Sound is the fact that the horror story at the heart of the movie just is not very good or strong.

Watch The Sound in select theaters or on VOD

The Sound was produced, directed, and written by Brendan Devane (The Canyonlands). If his love of filmmaking – and genre films, in particular – was anywhere close to his love of climbing, it could’ve been a strong result.

Unfortunately, the climbing is clearly what mattered. Accurate climbing was even more important than making the key element of the rock wall look good. Most of it looked very much like papier mache, and it ruins the illusion way more than inaccurate climbing.

Well, for a movie fan. Probably not an avid climber. And therein lies the struggle: Are you making a horror movie or trying to show people how to climb?

To be very honest and even blunt, The Sound feels like a half-baked idea in terms of the horror story. It feels like someone wanted to make a horror movie that involved rock climbing, and this was what they came up with.

The big reveal of what’s at the top of the Forbidden Wall is a huge anticlimax. Everything from the set to the story is just subpar, while the climbing itself looks cool. So, you should watch it for that rather than the story, I’m sorry to say.

The Sound is out In Theaters and on VOD from June 27, 2025.

Details

Director: Brendan Devane
Writer: Brendan Devane
Stars: Marc Hills (Elephant Department), Rachel Finninger (American Horror Story), Nicholas Baroudi (The Hating Game), Jocelyn Hudon (The Strain), William Fichtner (Crash, Armageddon), Christina Kirkman (Trigger Happy), Jolene Kay (Star Trek), David Clennon (The Thing), Hazel Findlay (Reel Rock), Brette Harrington (The Alpinist), Adrian Ballinger (Edge Of The Earth), and Alex Honnold (Free Solo).