An ancient cult sets out to deliver a demon to its perfect host, in The Long Night starring Scout Taylor-Compton (Halloween, Halloween 2) as Grace, a young woman desperate to uncover the mystery of her origin and who her family is after growing up in foster care. When she visits the home of a man who has promised to her, she and her boyfriend are trapped on a southern plantation and stalked by a group of hooded people in masks. As they fight to survive, the truth behind the cult and Grace’s origin comes to light.
As a young woman in crisis, Compton does a fantastic job of capturing her character’s terror and conflict as she fights to survive. Her character is down to earth and is someone audiences can both identify and empathize with. However, Nolan Gerard Funk’s character Jack is rude, snobby, and pretty unlikable. If that was the goal of director Rich Ragsdale, I’ll say Funk nailed it.
There were a few moments where I muttered “WTF?” to myself. I have to say I’ve never seen a movie where a woman’s privates shine a light like a beacon before – think a bright flashlight in the dark. And it was weird and distracting. Instead of keeping my mind in the movie, it distracted me which isn’t a good thing.
Be sure to keep your remote handy for this one. The audio is very unbalanced. You’ll be cranking up the volume to hear quiet scenes and before you know it, a scene will come along that is so loud it will make your ears physically hurt. I found myself adjusting the volume up and down, up and down.
The cinematography is well done and at times, beautiful. The way that light, fire, and fog are used along with the dream sequences and scenes with the cult turned is fantastic. The special effects, which were used sparingly, looked good and were a great choice. Some movies just don’t need a ton of over-the-top FX.
I enjoyed the film. And I was surprised by its ending, it was a good twist. My verdict? The Long Night is definitely worth a watch. The Long Night, coming to Blu-ray™ and DVD on April 5, 2022, from Well Go USA.
