By Aliff Ikhwan
Edited by Wan Nur Amrina
Calling all the Five Nights at Freddy’s (FNaF) fans! Here's an honest opinion about the movie coming from someone who isn't familiar with FNaF. As far as I knew, FNaF is a video game series created by a brilliant mastermind, Scott Cawthon. This horror fiction type game was first released in August 2014 (nine years ago) and gained worldwide recognition since then. In total, eight ‘main series’ games were published between 2014 and 2023. With the news of FNaF being adapted into a movie, fans are more than thrilled to grab their tickets. The adaptation film was released on 26th October 2023. Alright, enough of that humble introduction to FNaF (for those who are unfamiliar with). Let’s get into this movie right away!
Synopsis:
Mike (Josh Hutcherson), is a troubled young man caring for his 10-year-old sister Abby (Piper Rubio). With the unsolved abduction case of his younger brother; Garett, Mike is still haunted and dreams about it every single night.
Not only that, he was fired and desperate to get a job to keep the custody rights of Abby. Amid a legal battle with his aunt; Aunt Jane (Mary Stuart Masterson), Mike agrees to work as a night security guard at an abandoned theme restaurant called Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria. But soon, he discovers that nothing at Freddy's is as it appears. His nights at Freddy's will lead him into unexplainable encounters with the supernatural and drag him into an unspeakable nightmare. With the help of Vanessa (Elizabeth Lail); a local police officer, Mike will not be alone on those nights.
Opinion on this movie:
As I first walked into the cinema, the scary vibes kicked in as I expected the movie to be a bloody horror. The first scene really hit my expectations on how gruesome they (the robots) were to kill a person. It gave me chills to see how hopeless the person tries to run away from them. This scene really does give me an idea of how terrible those robots are.
When the movie starts to introduce the main character; Mike, he is depicted as someone who has a post-traumatic syndrome disorder (PTSD) and is desperate to live with his sister; Abby. This is crucial as it gives the audience a sneak-a-peak of what will happen next as a result of his nature. To make it more interesting, the director used flashbacks as a medium to introduce characters and clues regarding the future. For example, Mike’s dreams are all connected with the robots’ dead souls (Freddy, Chica & Muffin, Bonnie, Foxy, Golden Freddy). Unbeknownst to him, an unexpected confrontation between them will happen.
Other things that make me thrilled throughout one and a half hours are the hidden hints. In this matter, Abby’s character is the one to be praised. Her character development went well. She is portrayed as a lonely girl whose hobby is drawing without us realising that this hobby will lead us to a way to defeat the mastermind behind it. In the end, as Abby seems to be much happier, it gives the audience a clue that Mike’s life changed too.
Overall, I will give this movie a solid 9/10. As someone who has a bit of knowledge about FNaF, I felt relieved that the movie was made to help new audiences like me to understand. It wasn’t hard to understand it at all. But there is some easter egg there that a person like me wouldn't notice (only fans will notice them). Thanks to the actors and actresses who did a very good job in giving us authentic acting. A big round of applause towards Emma Tammi (the director) who successfully leads this film into something worth watching.
I really do hope that people who don’t follow all the FNaF series start to do so. The number of mysteries there are so intriguing to anticipate. Make sure to grab your ticket now!
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