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Monday, October 26, 2020

Review: The Void

Director: Jeremy Gillespie and Steven Kostanski

Screenplay: Jeremy Gillespie and Steven Kostanski

Year: 2016


Void: space completely lacking matter. It is ironic how a void can also represent something so infinite that it puts us as individuals in a vulnerable position by being so insignificant compared to its vast extension. This is one of the qualities that make cosmic horror so frightening. 


A policeman from a small and quiet town finds a man injured on the side of the road and takes him to a nearby hospital. Inside the hospital, the small crew starts to experience a series of violent and unexplainable events. What happens inside the hospital seems to be tied to a cult whose members have surrounded the hospital to avoid anyone getting out of it.



The madness presented in “The Void” doesn’t take long to show up, and before the 15 minutes mark, the gore and body horror makes an appearance. Once in the hospital, one of the characters attempts to get out and discovers that people have surrounded the hospital in white cloaks with a black triangle in the face area, which indicates something is not right, and that seems to be the doings of a cult. When they go back inside the hospital, chaos unfolds, along with the exhibition of special effects and disturbing imagery. 


The way we are introduced to the main story is as abrupt as how chaos barges in, and what’s going on is revealed to the viewer simultaneously as it is discovered by the main characters that we follow through the movie. Much of the story is not deeply explained, but it is unnecessary to understand the plot and enjoy the movie. The characters and their situation are also not well developed, but they manage to get us interested in them thanks to the great performances of the leading cast starring Aaron Poole (“The Captive”), Kenneth Welsh (“Twin Peaks”; “The Fog”) and. Ellen Wong (“Scott Pilgrim vs The World”).


The special effects in “The Void” are spectacular and is something that always gives material to talk about among those who have taken the opportunity to watch this movie, and its quality is at the same level as movies as “The Thing”, “Hellraiser” or “Re-Animator”. The exoteric and repulsive vision of codirectors and cowriters Jeremy Gillespie (“Father’s Day”) and Steven Kostanski (“Leprechaun Returns”) for creating the creatures is an homage to the vision of H. P. Lovecraft and other movies that have tried to capture in cinema the unimaginable narrative of this writer. Combined with the detailed and ethereal sound effects and the great use of illumination and shadows, they create an oppressive and horrific atmosphere that can only be classified as infernal. 



Besides the evident symbolism of a great and unexplainable force and how insignificant humans can be against it, this movie also has parenthood as a recurring topic. Most of the characters have some sort of traumatic tie to this topic, and it becomes more important in the outcome. However, as what happens with the characters and other events of the plot, this symbolism is underdeveloped and not used in the best way possible. 


“The Void” offers one of the most horrific visions of cosmic horror that have its roots in the work of visionary writer H. P. Lovecraft, whose writings are notorious for their difficulty to be represented on screen and by how complex it is to make reality his esoteric vision. Without being exempt from some flaws in its plot and character development, it offers an infernal vision about an unknown power and individual insignificance before such a majestic and imposing infinity. Its excellent visual effects help that these unimaginable visions reach the screen in the most horrific way possible.




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