At The Movies: Imaginary
What terrified you as a child? Although set in contemporary USA, director Jeff Wadlow’s themes behind the supernatural horror Imaginary relate to audiences worldwide. A young family moves to a new suburb and into the protagonist Jessica’s family home. Jessica, played by the stunning DeWanda Wise, is a prolific writer and illustrator of a creepy children’s book series. The series is centred around a millipede and spider, introduced in the orientation, where audiences are thrown into a warped vortex of dark doors, giant insects and a blood-soaked Jessica running for her life. From the opening credits, we know we’re in a standard modern horror film. Produced by indie company Tower of Babble Entertainment and well-known horror production company, Blumhouse, this jarring beginning scene flinchingly launches us into the film.
Chauncey the ominous, dishevelled black-eyed bear with flat dead eyes, influences the youngest daughter Alice and her playful activities around their new home. Home video footage and odd camera techniques create an interesting element to the film, especially during climatic scenes. The audience watch Jessica and her quite frankly, unhelpful husband, listen to Chauncey and Alice having a tea party through the grates in the vent in a bird’s eye view. The vent bars in the screen reflect the fragmented conversation we hear between the bear and Alice, showing just how little her parents know about what lies behind these conversations and what Alice needs to do next on her Game List that Chauncey creates for her.
A few lingering mysteries appear throughout the film, keeping the audience interested in resolving them. Body marks, drawings, objects and shadowy figures all leave us questioning why and how they are there. Wadlow fills in these gaps by developing stereotypical horror elements as the storyline unravels. Although lacking in some originality, the camera tilts, contrasted lighting and a cool tonal colour palette was used successfully when showing characters escaping evil bears and demonic villains. Jessica runs through dark shadowed doorways as the audience dive deep into various labyrinths in the film, reflecting the spiders’ webs in her children’s books.
Although the storyline is hardly complex and the stereotypical horror ideas and character archetypes are nothing new, the film does have some great unexpected plot twists in the eerie resolution. The feeling of dread and everlasting loops between reality and fiction is developed well in the final scenes and the threat of furry Chauncey’s wrath leaves the audience with inklings of a potential sequel.
There are some very commendable factors to the production of this film worth noting. Pyper Braun, who plays Alice and Taegan Burns, who plays Taylor, Alice’s older sister, show awesome young talent, presenting for a promising future career. The cheeky easter egg in one scene that references the iconic 1984’s A Nightmare on Elm Street is left for horror fanatics to notice and gives audiences a clue into what mystery will need to be solved in Imaginary.
Hide and seek has never been this sinister. Imaginary friends have never been this bad. Watch this film with a group! The few jump scares are quite entertaining, and the entire experience makes for light-hearted fun, ensuring the audience will simultaneously scream and laugh. The film reminds you of what shaped the memories and times of your younger years. You find yourself recollecting memories from your youth and wondering, was that favourite toy you used to carry with you a harmless companion or an otherworldly creature ready to destroy your life?
Movie Review By Zara Zampaglione
