VOD Review: Inside (2018)

"Tame, by comparison. Or even on its own."

In 2007, the directing duo of Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo gave us one of the best Horror movies of the new millennium with Inside (À l'intérieur).

Inside was a gory, bleak, extreme film that had us gripping our seats until the very end, and it left us feeling a bit dirty when all was said and done.

It's a modern day classic, to say the least.

This remake, however, is a watered-down disappointment that feels like it was made to appeal to a wider audience instead of actually being bold and making a statement. 

Sarah and her loving husband are expecting a baby, and they couldn't be happier. When a car accident claims the life of hubby, that happiness is ripped away from Sarah, and she's forced to face the future, and the impending birth of their child, all alone.

NOW, SHE'S JUST SAD. AND VERY PREGNANT.

Flash forward to Sarah at home, preparing for a lonely Christmas. When a shadowy woman knocks on her door in the middle of the night asking to use the phone, her Christmas is about to get a whole lot bloodier, because this woman wants her unborn baby for her own.

If you've seen the original, you know how the plot plays out. If not, go watch it now, and avoid all spoilers.

DON'T ANSWER THE DOOR, IT'S A TRICK!

As with the Martyrs remake, this Americanized retelling of the French classic Inside is lacking in many ways. Where as the original was an artistic gorefest that pushed boundaries and was soaked in nuance, this remake just feels like any other run-of-the-mill offering that hits VOD week after week these days, because that's exactly what it is.

It's a well-made little movie, but absent is the dread and the shocking visceral punch that made the original so memorable. That's extra disappointing given the fact that it's produced by Jaume Balagueró (the guy who brought us the [REC] series, and it's directed by Miguel Ángel Vivas (the guy who brought us Kidnapped.) With that kind of talent behind the camera, this remake should have been way better than it is.

Rachel Nichols does a solid job as the terrorized widow who is about to give birth and finds herself fighting for the the life of herself and her unborn child; and Laura Harring does an admirable job as The Woman who is bound and determined to cut the baby from her and make it her own, but in the case of the latter, her character doesn't ever really feel terrifying, like Beatrice Dalle's counterpart in the original. The problem is where the original played more on atmosphere, this remake humanizes the villain far too much, giving her way too many lines of dialogue that lessened the impact of the threat she posed.

And the ending... what in the hell were they thinking?

It's really hard for us to watch a remake like this and not compare it to the original. I know that every film should be judged on its own merit, but then, when a film's merit is shared with that of another, far superior film, how can we not judge it by comparison?

SORRY, RACHEL. WE KNOW YOU TRIED.

There's some gore on display here, but it all feels rather conventional, as opposed to shocking.

DON'T WORRY, NOTHING COMES OF THIS.

Nada.

WHAT A MISSED OPPORTUNITY...

If this wasn't a remake of a beloved modern day classic, then it wouldn't be a bad movie at all. Because it isn't a bad movie. It is however a pallid remake of a movie that hit us like a gut punch back in 2008, and because it lacks the originals nuance and shock factor, it's thusly doomed to live in mediocre remake hell.

If you dig remakes though, and can view them on their own merit without needing to compare, then this movie may be worth a look for you.

C

Inside is available on VOD now.

Well, at least the movie's eye candy game was on point.