Smile is a 2022 psychological horror film written and directed by Parker Finn in his feature film debut, based on his 2020 short film Laura Hasn't Slept, which was awarded the Jury Award for Midnight Short at the 2020 SXSW film festival. Taking a unique approach with the marketing budget, people were planted at a variety of crowded venues including several sporting events, and just sitting or standing 3+ hours with the creepiest smile you have ever seen on their faces. If you don’t believe me, Google it.

After witnessing a bizarre, traumatic incident involving a patient, Dr. Rose Cotter starts experiencing frightening occurrences that she can't explain. As an overwhelming terror begins taking over her life, Rose must confront her troubling past in order to survive and escape her horrifying new reality.

The film stars Sosie Bacon (Mare of Easttown, As We See It), Jessie T. Usher (The Boys), Kyle Gallner, Robin Weigert, Caitlin Stasey, Kal Penn, and Rob Morgan.

Smile made its debut in theaters on September 30th, courtesy of Paramount Pictures.

THE GOOD

Smile was one of the rare horror movies destined for a theatrical wide release that somehow snuck up on me. I was actually at the movie theater seeing something else and was chatting with the crew when someone mentioned the movie to me and I immediately assumed it was yet another under-the-radar horror that would get a VOD release or find its way onto Shudder. Now I’m not saying those movies don’t have the potential to be good because they absolutely do, but theaters putting their faith in horror movies these days is fairly rare. So of course I immediately started digging in to this movie and found that it was still without the first official trailer at the time, but once it dropped I was sure to have a preview posted immediately. I doubt I need to point out this obvious fact, but the trailer for Smile was legit. It felt fresh, original, and more than anything else it seemed brutal and well deserving of the R-rating, as any horror movie worth its salt should be. So needless to say I was pumped to check this out opening day. So, was it worth the excitement? Keep reading to find out!

It sure was! Smile is a damn good horror movie, and one heck of a debut for writer and director Parker Finn, allowing audiences the opportunity to experience the feature-film version of his terrifying 2020 short film on the big-screen. It was gloriously dark and brutal, the score was terrifying and oh so satisfying, the cinematography and camera work were clutch, and more than anything else the story quenched my insatiable thirst for horror. This is a fantastic example of how a horror movie is supposed to leave a lasting impression.

But, before I get ahead of myself, it wasn’t perfect and I will touch on that later in the review. For me Finn’s story blended elements of horror films like The Ring (2002), and the classic indie horror film It Follows (2014), to perfection without feeling like a blatant ripoff of either classic horror film. Its just that resounding sense of dread that creeps in and never leaves you that makes movies like Smile leave such a lasting impression. The fact that the film is based on an original story from Finn is impressive to me because it did feel like it could have been a remake of a Japanese horror similar to The Ring, which is a credit to the story. Speaking of the story, I loved it. Horror movies are supposed to leave you feeling uneasy and on the edge of your seat with your mouth wide open as the credits role, and that was surely the case with Smile. And speaking of mouth wide open, those smiles are sooooooooo damn creepy.

I thought the final act was fantastic, and in many ways reminded me of the mindfu*k of an ending that we got with The Night House, which is a great horror thriller if you haven’t seen it and is now streaming on HBO Max. Now that I think about it, Smile has quite a bit in common with that movie. Finn put together a story that is relatable in a depressing and traumatic way, very dark, and more than anything else uniquely immersive. Oh and if you are one of those people who are especially susceptible to jump scares, you better buckle up because otherwise you might end up on the floor of the theater. I keep bringing it up but the story is obviously the star of the show, and like many of the more successful horror films as of late like Ari Aster’s 2018 film Hereditary (our review here) as a great example I like to use, it felt relatable in a grounded in reality sort of way. I mean sure, the basis of the film is far-fetched as it should be, but the core of the story is rooted in unresolved trauma, and let’s be honest this is precisely why therapists make the big bucks. It does make you wonder though how many therapists choose that career path as a way to deal with their own issues.

Actress Sosie Bacon leads the way for the cast and I thought she was fantastic. If you think her last name sounds familiar you would be onto something. She is the daughter of legendary actor Kevin Bacon, who had her with actress Kyra Sedgwick. Now that is some solid acting roots right there. A spitting imagine of her dad, Bacon is most recognized for her recent role in the HBO limited series Mare of Easttown. A ton was asked of her character in Smile, and I felt like she answered the call every single time. She reminded me a bit of Rebecca Hall in The Night House, a woman brought to her knees by tragedy holding on by a thread. Bottom line, this movie does not work without her and I look forward to what she does in the future. I won’t talk too much about the supporting cast here as I have a few thoughts later in review, but my favorite supporting roles were played by Caitlin Stasey as the troubled patient that starts it all, Robin Weigart who plays Dr. Madeline Northcott, and Kyle Gallner who plays Joel, the ex boyfriend turned detective.

THE BAD

Few things grind my gears more than a movie making stupid and unnecessary missteps keeping it from being great. Now if you have been paying attention I have made it very clear that Smile is a top-tier horror movie that I genuinely enjoyed, but the reality is it could have been better. I won’t spend too much time talking about the issues I have with the movie mainly because they are relatively inconsequential in the grand scheme of things, but sometimes as a reviewer of movies you have to nitpick a bit. First, I had issues with the writing and the editing decisions that were made. At just shy of 2-hours, I feel like they could have easily cut about 15-20 minutes out of this movie. I can think of at least three scenes that served literally zero purpose that could have been scrapped. They just felt forced and if anything took away from the impact of the film.

Now I have to talk about the casting, first I love me some Kal Penn, the guy is great and will be a legend forever thanks to Harold & Kumar and those delicious little White Castle burgers. But, what is he doing in a horror movie with no comedic element whatsoever you ask? Great question. It just felt like a weird decision to have such a recognizable guy play such a small yet important role. If I’m being honest, I just kept waiting for him to crack a joke. Next in line of bad casting decisions is the role played by Jessie T. Usher. Usher plays Trevor, the fiancé of Sosie Bacon’s character, a pivotal role in terms of the overall impact of the story. But man, I did not like his character at all. It started off okay, but once we start to learn a bit more about Rose Cotter and her “demons”, it becomes pretty clear that these two couldn’t be less compatible. The trend of passive and dare I say pansy ass men in this movie felt like a weird dynamic to say the least that did more bad than good. As the film got darker and more intense, Usher’s character became more of a joke than a quality character. I thought Usher was great in The Boys, but this role was not for him.

THE VERDICT

An unsettling and immersive urban legend style horror film blending elements of The Ring and It Follows, Smile gets the hooks in you early and delivers a very satisfying final act you won’t soon forget. I thought the tone was fantastic throughout, and the film absolutely delivered on the technical side of things which can be rare for wide-release horror movies. I loved Parker Finn’s original story, and felt like as a director he prioritized the elements that mattered most ensuring he delivered a horror experience that would stand the test of time while satisfying hardcore and casual genre fans.

Unfortunately a few poor casting decisions and questionable writing at times kept the film from moving into the upper-echelon of horror, but luckily these issues were not detrimental to the final product. Smile satisfied my hunger for quality horror, and is without a doubt the movie horror fans need to be seeing on the big-screen this Halloween season. I can’t wait to see it again, and I am looking forward to keeping an eye out for what Finn does next.