Just recently, director David F. Sandberg made his directorial debut with his film "Lights Out." This film is the newest supernatural horror film, featuring notable actors Maria Bello, Billy Burke, Teresa Palmer and young child actor, Gabriel Bateman. The horror film was even produced under James Wan, a world-renowned director, screenwriter and producer, most known for directing the following films: the "Insidious" series, the "Conjuring" series, and "Furious 7."
The movie opens in a mannequin shop, where a man and his female employee are working the night shift. Upon closing up for the night, the female employee witnesses a silhouette of a woman when she turns out the light, but it disappears when she turns them back on. Before leaving, she warns her boss and tells him to be careful going home. The man (later revealed to be named Paul) ignores the warning, and has a drastic [and fatal] run-in with the apparition.
The movie progresses from this point and reveals that Paul had a wife and a son. His wife, Sophie, became mentally unstable following his death. Martin (Paul's son) becomes afraid of his mother, often witnessing her "talk to herself". Because of this, he loses many nights of sleep and chooses to fall asleep in class instead. With the amount of times he falls asleep in class growing at an alarming rate, Child Protective Services are notified. When CPS cannot contact his mother, Martin chooses to contact his sister, Rebecca.
Rebecca arrives at Martin's school and takes him home, only to find her mother in her constant unstable state. Rebecca decides that her mother is too unstable to look after Martin and decides to take Martin to her apartment. Once there, Martin confides in Rebecca and reveals that the person their mother speaks to is named Diana. Rebecca recounts memories from her childhood about her mother's friend, Diana.
As the movie progresses, it is revealed that Diana is a malevolent spirit, who is causing Sophie to be mentally unstable. She has tricked Sophie into believing they are friends, and has decided to kill anyone who attempts to make Sophie mentally stable again. Rebecca and Martin go on a mission to save their mother from Diana. When Sophie realizes that Diana is trying to harm her children, she also fights back against Diana, realizing that Diana's only connection to this world is herself.
For this to be David F. Sandberg's debut film, I must note that it wasn't terrible. The caliber of the actors and actresses selected was high, making the movie entertaining for the viewers. I was more impressed with Gabriel Bateman's acting skills, especially his facial expressions, because he made the movie believable.
Overall, although the movie has a PG-13 rating and an 81-minute duration time, I would rate it between three and a half and four stars. For a debut film, the time and effort placed into it are noticeable, and I would recommend that everyone see it (solely just to support this new director).
