"Him" Film Review

Him

Rating: 1.5/5

By: Nathaniel Simpson

    Almost every promotional material for Justin Tipping's new film, Him, featured the fact that Jordan Peele produced this movie, causing me and many others to believe this movie would be great just because Peele had a hand in it. Therefore, that's why I think we are all so let down by how bad the movie is because of the high expectations we had for it. Even if you were going in blind or with very low expectations, this movie simply doesn't deliver, painting a beautifully-styled film that simply has no substance to it. 

    The film is centered around Tyriq Withers' Cameron Cade, a quarterback that has tons of potential. He hasn't even started in the USFF (the fictionalized version of America's NFL) and people are already declaring him to be the GOAT. However, when a brutal attack just days before the Combine puts him out of commission, he thinks his career is over. But, when Isaiah White (Marlon Wayans), who is considered one of the best quarterbacks of all time and is Cameron's childhood hero, invites him to his home to train for one week, things take a turn for the worst, with Isaiah's multi-million dollar training camp housing dark and sinister secrets that are waiting for Cam around every turn. 

    When I told people I was going to see this movie and they would then ask what it was about, I would always give the same response: "It's about a rising football star who sells his soul to the devil." I haven't really researched or looked into this movie much before seeing it, and that was the vibe I had gotten from all of the trailers so far. So, going into this movie and unfortunately sitting through the hour-and-a-half runtime which felt much longer than it actually was, it made me wish more and more that my prediction of the plot was what they went with instead of what they played out in the film. 

    The story here is simply boring and lackluster. Nothing really happens that is remotely scary or makes the audience sit up in their seat a little more; it simply is a huge nothing burger that thinks it is more important than it actually is. The movie simply wants to be terrifying when it is more creepy than anything. It is pretty bad when the movie makes you audibly laugh at moments in the film that were simply meant to be scary or unsettling. 

    The character created by Tipping, Skip Bronkie, and Win Rosenfeld are not only annoying and dull for the most part, but they don't do anything here to make you empathize with them, or hate them as the villains for the movie. They sort of just exist in this space and time, and don't really add anything to the movie or the message they're trying to say. This should have been a more character-driven film, but they are more concerned with delivering metaphors and themes/messages to the audience. 

    However, the messages and themes that they are trying to convey don't make sense or fit in the constraints of the film. It seems like a lot of the film is them hitting us over the head with symbolism and metaphors and throw away the ability of being able to subtly showcase these themes throughout a carefully planned and executed story. It's unfortunate that this movie shows how some filmmakers and storytellers simply can't figure out how to craft a great story while trying to make a statement. 

    What is bizarre about this picture, however, is that the filmmaking elements are actually done quite well. The cinematography, lighting, and the effects, to name a few, are quite inspiring at times and really make me question why this movie is so bad. Even the performances are pretty decent, with Wayans being the real standout actor here. It seems like Tipping knows how to direct a beautiful-looking film, but he doesn't know how to craft a compelling or entertaining story whatsoever. 

    It is disappointing how bad this movie is, and it's bewildering to me how Peele produced this movie. I think the idea does have potential and they could have explored much more than what they actually did here, but the delivered product here is simply not good. This is a beautiful picture with no substance, and I think Tipping needs to stray away from directing his own stories in favor of plots written by, dare I say, better storytellers.