Smile, a review.
I heard all the buzz about Smile when it came out and, like everyone, wondered what all the fuss was about. I'd also heard it was based on a short film called 'Laura hasn't Slept', and I decided to watch that before Smile. 'Laura hasn't Slept' is a creepy short film with a young woman speaking to a psychiatrist, and it soon becomes clear that the psychiatrist isn't what he appears to be. Things quickly spiral after that before something leaps out at Laura, and the film fades to black. The film Smile features Laura at the beginning, coming in to see our protagonist as she believes she is about to be taken by something. An entity that only she can see, as it is in pursuit of her. Rose attempts to understand what is going on, asking her questions while assuring her that this is her mind playing tricks on her. Laura explains that this thing looks like other people, but it appears and looks normal except for the Smile. A smile that has no warmth to it. In fact, it is cold and cruel, mocking Laura as it watches her. As Rose tries to comfort Laura, she begins to freak out, screaming in abject terror, and it appears Rose feels something brush past her. Rushing to the emergency phone, Rose calls for aid, turning about to see Laura with a smile on her face seconds before she uses a piece of a broken vase to cut through her face and neck. This is all in the opening minutes and sets the premise for what will follow.
This film is primarily a psychological horror. By that, I mean that most of what occurs is in the mind of Rose, that no one else can see the things that are haunting her. She is haunted, and it starts out small, seeing a dead Laura smiling at her from the shadows or in the distance. Also, she zones out at times, unsure of her surroundings and what is occurring around her. The aspect of the film that works best is Rose's spiral into a form of madness, and even though she isn't technically mentally unwell, she appears to be to everyone else. It is a gradual decline, but as the film continues, that decline accelerates. Rose has a partner, Trevor, who appears supportive, but as Rose unravels, that is no longer the case. After the incident with Laura, Rose gives a statement to two detectives, and we learn that the younger detective used to be Rose's partner. It is obvious that Joel is not over her, but he has kept his distance until now. Rose has an older sister, Holly, and I found her instantly unlikeable. I don't know if that was the intention, but she comes across as self-absorbed. As the film progresses, Laura begins to see more things that should be real, and she begins to look into Laura's death and learns that a professor committed suicide in front of Laura a few days prior. It turns out that this is just the first link in a long chain of events. There are multiple suicides, one after the other, with those that witness it going on to kill themselves within a few days of the event. We also learn that Rose has her own psychiatrist and that she has a traumatic past that shaped her life.
Eventually, Rose turns to Joel for help, asking him to look into the professor's death. He does so and discovers the pattern, even managing to find footage of one of the suicides. It is a grizzly death, and both note that the man is smiling before he commits the act, which is strange. With Rose becoming more unstable, she seeks out the professor's wife. She learns of what he saw and experienced. After that, we discover someone who managed to break the pattern. Rose goes to see him and discovers that the only way to survive this thing is to pass it on to someone else, to kill someone in front of a witness so that they are traumatised. This thing passes from one person to the next by inflicting trauma. Rose is horrified by this, convinced she can't do such a thing, but we get a little look at what that would be like. I admit the film does a fantastic job of making you think one thing is happening, and then you realise it is all in Rose's mind. And they do a great job of making her look unstable, and by the film's end, she looks terrible, jittery and worn out.
The final showdown with the entity is a nice little ride in Rose's mind, the psychiatrist attempting to face her own trauma in the hopes of defeating the thing haunting her. And it appears to work at first, but it is all a hallucination, this thing twisting Rose's perception of reality. And that's what this thing does until it destroys their mind and then consumes them before passing on to someone else by traumatising them. I was a little disappointed that there was nothing Rose could do to save herself beyond murder, but this is what makes this terrifying, as you have no hope of escaping it.
I give this film a 7 out of 10. It has some great moments, and Rose's portrayal of a woman spiralling into insanity is done brilliantly. Sosie Bacon does a great job of showing Rose's descent, of her fear and despair when faced with this thing. It is worth a watch for any fan of horror films with psychological horror at the fore.
