With the huge following it has gained over the years, it was only a matter of time before the “Five Nights at Freddy’s” franchise received its own feature-film adaptation.
For the uninitiated, it is a video-game series where players assume the role of an employee at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, and have to defend themselves against animatronic characters who become mobile and hostile during the night.
The games, which have also spawned a series of books, have now been given the big-screen treatment directed by Emma Tammi, who co-wrote the script alongside franchise creator Scott Cawthon. So, is it worth your while spending time at this perturbing pizza place?
Let’s delve into the plot first. Mike (Josh Hutcherson) is a troubled young man who’s haunted by the unsolved kidnapping of his brother when they were kids.
Owing to this trauma, he is unable to hold down a job for long; but he desperately tries, in order to stop his cartoonishly evil aunt (Mary Stuart Masterson) from gaining custody of his younger sister Abby (Piper Rubio).
When his skeevy career counsellor (Matthew Lillard) offers him a job as a security guard, he reluctantly takes it. After all, it involves staring at a bunch of monitors and keeping intruders out of an abandoned pizzeria. Easy-peasy, no? No.
What Mike hasn’t been told is that the animatronics that inhabit the place have a tendency to walk around at night and go on a killing spree, which could explain why the job has a high turnover rate!
So, what’s the verdict? If there is one thing fans of the games will love, it’s that the film features many references that will be familiar to them – think William Afton, Chica and Mr Cupcake, Springtrap.
Hutcherson tries his best as the down-on-his-luck Mike who obsesses over his brother’s kidnapping and dreams about that terrible encounter each night, trying to recall any detail that might help solve the case.
Unfortunately, his character spends more time struggling with his own demons than fighting the bloodthirsty bots. Seems like he needs a therapist more than this ill-fated job.
As a helpful police officer who is well acquainted with Freddy’s, Elizabeth Lail’s Vanessa serves as nothing more than an exposition tool to deliver information to Mike and the audience. Even the supposed twist about her character and her link to the pizza place can be predicted from a mile away.
A big issue here is the pacing, especially in the first half. While it’s good to lay the groundwork, the plot tends to move ploddingly, while indulging in some leaps in narrative cohesion and logic. As a result, the movie simply doesn’t have the sense of urgency you’d want to make you care about the people onscreen.
It’s also fair to assume that fans and casual viewers look forward to Freddy, Chica, Bonnie and Foxy going on a massacre. But with so much focus on the human characters, the glaring lack of actual kills is sure to be a letdown.
One scene that stands out involves the murderous machines preying on a group of interlopers trashing the pizzeria. It’s fun and exciting to watch, which makes it a downright shame these moments are so scarce. No doubt the PG13 rating prevents the movie from indulging in blood and gore like the games did.
If there’s anything that deserves praise here, it’s the design of the animatronics. They are terrifying when they’re singing a lighthearted song to lull their prey (and you) into a false sense of security – or even when they’re not moving!
Overall, “Five Nights at Freddy’s” has enough pluses and minuses to make it fall somewhere in the middle of the ranking of video-game film adaptations. If you’re a fan of the games, or are simply looking for something watchable for Halloween, it’s not a total waste of your time.
As of press time, ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s’ is screening in cinemas nationwide.
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