UNDER THE BED (2012)

RATED- R
RUN TIME- 87 MINS
WRITER(S)- ERIC STOLZE
STARRING- JONNY WESTON, GATTLIN GRIFFITH, AND PETER HOLDEN
DIRECTOR- STEVEN C. MILLER



Synopsis taken from IMDb
Two brothers team up to battle a creature under the bed, in what is being described as a "suburban nightmare" tale. 

This is one of those films that immediately appeals to the inner child in you. Seeing the cover instantly brings back times of when I was scared of what was under my bed. Of course at the time, I didn't have the sense to know it was only some board games and dust bunnies keeping me awake at night. But, I wanted to give this flick a chance, and see if something really scary can be made of this concept, or if it'll just be another flop. With a free rental from redbox, I had nothing to lose.

This comes off as a hybrid between "Feast" (2005) and the 1989 childhood classic, "Little Monsters". Weird combination, I know. But, it works for a brief period. Rather intentional or unintentional, the acting was pretty convincing, and I honestly didn't know if Neal (Jonny Weston) was telling the truth or completely insane with the stories he tells about the monster under the bed. I couldn't help but think that if he isn't crazy, what type of trouble he is going to cause his younger brother, Paulie (Gattlin Griffith)? I chose to believe the acting was intentionally supposed to make you guess as to what's the truth and what isn't, because even though the performances weren't great, they were fitting. And of course, there's stereotypical parents that don't believe them, and leave them to fend for themselves. 

Although the acting wasn't always convincing, the dialogue and the content were portrayed as very realistic and gave a good sense of how a normal family interacts. The interactions built a good foundation between characters and provided the story with a chance to develop.

There's moments that are downright funny (some intentional laughs and others not), and there's moments of genuine jumps. Best of all, there's some really well done gore, that isn't expected! Out of nowhere, we're hit with brutal scenes of devastating deaths.

Unfortunately, all that makes this movie memorable ends up getting forgotten due to so many obvious flaws. There's a few scenes that really puzzled me, because they were such obvious cop-outs that it ruined the overall effect. Something as simple as, if the little brother, Paulie, needs to stand on his older brothers shoulders to get out from under the bed, how the hell does Neal make it out with such ease when just a moment before he had no way out? Things that go unexplained like this ruin the realism and should have been given more thought and time.

In the end, "Under the Bed" is a fun monster flick worth a watch. Even though you won't be completely blown away, there's a couple good scares and some aforementioned gore. Nothing about this motion picture makes it memorable, but it's not the worst movie out right now. It had a lot of potential, and still manages to pull off a few good effects. I think had the story stayed more consistent and grounded, it would have pushed the pace a little better, and avoided some things that are downright ridiculous. 

I won't give away and spoilers, because this is a relatively new movie that most haven't heard of yet. But, it's available now, and Halloween is only a few days away. So, if you're in the mood for something a little strange and a little new, "Under the Bed" just may be for you.