GamerTab That was an excellent one.

Libramedi Intense, gripping, stylish and poignant

Stevecorp Don't listen to the negative reviews

Humbersi The first must-see film of the year.

Andariel Halo I am an irredeemable sucker for subtlety and mystery. I love when a movie does not explain much, while being coherent and clearly drawing your attention. I love it when two people in a movie watch one another, smiling on the outside, one of them absolutely convinced he's pierced the other's masquerade, only for the mutual watching to linger long enough for you to wonder if indeed he has, or if maybe he is the one imagining a conspiracy that isn't there. There's a scene just like this in the film, where Brad (Sam Rockwell) is protectively clutching his newborn daughter in a doctor's office while staring down his son Joshua (Jacob Kogan), smiling with a hint of hysterical glee, after having caught his son murdering his mother out in public by throwing her down the steps of a museum. After weeks of odd, seemingly sociopathic behavior from Joshua, he's absolutely convinced that he's caught him. Yet the way Joshua continues to blandly stare back, almost teasing him with the recognizing stare of a villain coyly revealing their sinister intent to a hero without openly stating so. And yet there's still no way to really tell if there is an actual evil there. Everything about the way the movie starts off and moves up to this point is subtle, with Abby (Vera Farmiga) clearly suffering some manner of post-partum stress or depression, overwhelmed by her newborn daughter incessantly crying all day every day, while her lackadaisical husband keeps making light of her stress. All the while Joshua just watches, lurking suspiciously, but never openly showing himself to be some supernatural horror movie demon child or psychopath. In fact, his behavior is not at all immoral so much as genuine in its childlike desire for attention and satisfaction. He never overtly threatens the newborn child or says "I hate you" to its face, but he very clearly resents that he's not the center of attention any longer, and rather than behave with uncharacteristic violence, he passively goes about on his own path, studying ancient Egyptian myth, giving his toys away to Goodwill, and so on. Sometimes it seems as though he has autism, as he repeats random sentences other people say, watches them to gauge their reaction, then copy their reaction so as to fit in. At the same time, it's placed in the context of mysterious, malevolent events that makes you wonder; is he genuinely confused and trying to fit in, or is he trying to fit in so as not to draw suspicion to himself as he commits violent acts, such as when he takes his father's dog out for a walk, only for the dog to mysteriously and suspiciously drop dead in the kitchen afterwards. He blankly watches his father sob over the dog, then abruptly drops to his knees beside him and starts to cry over the dog. Did he simply not know how to react until he saw his father's reaction, or was he trying not to arouse suspicion by his persistent emotionless staring?At some point in the film, it becomes almost clear that it is not an innocent case of potentially autistic child trying to fit in, but something clearly malevolent about him. And yet the mere fact that he allows his father to catch on to his supposed act starts to make you wonder... Is the child truly a psychopath, wantonly destroying people and killing animals around him, while mocking his father, hurting himself and drawing violent drawings for a therapist so as to make people think Brad is abusing him? Or is Brad imagining a malevolence that isn't there? He's clearly frustrated and suffering from the pressures of work and home and an abrasive mother and distressed wife.The film is never explicit or implicit in indicating that anything Brad sees or catches on to the behavior of his son is real or imagined, yet the absolute subtlety of it all, and the fact that Joshua never appears to actually do or say much that is outright "evil" or violent whenever his father isn't around. All of it seems aimed at harassing his father, and yet it may not be. His prime motivation for all of it seems to be love; he's obsessed with being loved and often uses love like a weapon against his father, including provoking him by saying "No one will ever love you", which provokes such a violent reaction from his father that there may in fact be some in-mentioned trauma in Brad's past that is not explicitly delved into, but may be hinted at in his tense relationship with his mother. This is a rare film where every sort of scene seems to be adding on to the overall plot of the film, in ways you're not sure are intentional or else an incredibly stylish way to cover potential plot holes. It's astounding how incredible this film is, a gaslighting psychological mystery packaged and sold in a mundane "spooky child terrorizes family" wrapper.

hadleyhall First of all I love Rockwell, he always delivers 100%. From the beginning to the end of this journey, I felt a wave of emotions from empathy, to sympathy, to the underlying rage that boils up. Great watch

resireg-31415 I watched this movie by myself and another time with a a friend of mine who simply didn't get it and hated the movie of course. I think people dislike a movie not because it is bad, but because it creates a discomfort, especially when you are a parent when it reminds you that your son that you love so much might become a psychopath or destroy your life, like it happens in real life every once in a while.Essentially the movie is about a father and son relationship that goes from good to bad thanks to the evil intentions and ruthless intelligence and rationality the 8 year old son (Joshua).The father tries his best to protect his family, but he is not smart enough to fight against someone so hateful, but who is always one step ahead of him. I liked because the movie makes you hate the kid so much, and you cheer for the helpless dad all the time (because you could think of yourself in his position). It is not a film for everyone, but if your child is a brat, the movie can be quite educational, since it shows that sometimes some people are just incorrigible.

JoeytheBrit With very little foreknowledge, I tuned into this movie expecting some kind of kid-possessed-by demon Exorcist/Damien rip-off, but although the film tells of a kid from hell there is no supernatural element to it. I was initially quite surprised by how well-written the screenplay was, although the plot loses some of its impetus half-way through as the writer is forced to create progressively unlikely incidents in order to build upon the tension he has already created.Joshua is a strange boy, bordering on genius, who likes nothing more than pulling the stuffing from his toy panda's nose in emulation of the Ancient Egyptian's method of preparing dead bodies for embalming. He's also pretty good at copying Dad's grief when he mourns over the dead body of the old family dog (who Joshua may or may not have offed while walking in the park). Joshua knows he's weird, and you sense he's frightened that his parents don't love him – or at least won't love him as much now that a baby sister has arrived in the scene. Sneaking a peek at videos of his constant wailing as a baby also does nothing for his frame of mind, and it's not long before he's sneaking in to little sis's room to make her cry the way he used to.All these scenes are intelligently scripted and handled – as is Joshua's unique piano recital – fooling you into believing you're in for something really special but, while the film is still impressive (and far better than much of the stuff coming out of Hollywood these days), the plot developments become increasingly predictable, while the aim of Joshua's quiet campaign of terror on his parents is something of a mystery initially, and a little far-fetched when revealed in the final scene (which, naturally, leaves the way open for a sequel).