Night of the Reaper review
Shudder step up with a delightfully original babysitter horror story.
New movie reviews will not contain spoilers.
Night of the Reaper
Directed by Brandon Christensen
Written by Brandon Christensen and Ryan Christensen
Starring Jessica Clement and Ryan Robbins
Night of the Reaper Review
I’ve been hard on Shudder this year. Or, as I prefer to see it…I’ve been honest about the flaws in the horror streamer’s output and delivery model. 2025 hasn’t been Shudder at their best. I doubt many would take up an opposing argument. Despite some decent originals sprinkled in throughout the year, Shudder has struggled with consistent quality. It doesn’t help that most of the movies they view as higher end releases have been heading to movie theaters before eventually landing on the platform. There’s been a clear lack of direct to streaming debuts that feel special. Part of the discussion as always included the fact that the service remains a solid value at its low price. But, as we hit mid-September, something was needed to change the narrative.
Night of the Reaper debuted on Shudder today. No theatrical run, no long wait until the film became a part of your subscription. While it may not find itself among the top ten horror movies of 2025 when all is said and done…it is a significant step forward. A movie that feels like you’re getting something special with your Shudder subscription.
Night of the Reaper comes to us from the same creative team behind 2023’s Shudder film The Puppetman. The Puppetman has some good ideas and was often close to breaking through into a being a good movie…but it never quite made it. Night of the Reaper not only makes it to good…it often flirts with being great. This an exciting step forward from production quality to narrative design. The kind of movie that makes you look forward to what comes next from the Christensen team.
The story begins with an opening that feels like a classic horror movie. Fitting given the story’s 80s setting. A babysitter finds herself in a spooky situation…eventually falling victim to a masked killer. This opening is very well done. It also lulls you into feeling like Night of the Reaper intends to stick to a classic formula. It doesn’t. That’s one of the best things about it.
Night of the Reaper features two main plots that will inevitably collide. Deena (Jessica Clement) returns home from college and ends up babysitting the sheriff’s son for her sick friend. That sheriff (Ryan Robins) is busy investigating the Reaper case. This is one part investigative horror…one part babysitter horror…and eventually it’s a twist on both. It’s quite impressive how well Night of the Reaper not only ties its two threads together…but how many dots it connects within its story. All while, inevitably, delivering something new within the framework of a classic horror setup.
The sheriff’s investigation is aided by the arrival of video tapes labeled “Night of the Reaper”. In them we watch the final moments of the Reaper’s victims. A case that was deemed an accident is revealed to have been a murder. We also see footage of the opening scene from the killer’s POV…and a case closely tied to the sheriff (and his son) sheds new light on a family tragedy. Searching the tapes for clues leads to a couple of interrogations…but nothing seems to quite add up.
Meanwhile, Deena finds herself encountering some spooky situations of her own. Intent on protecting the sheriff’s son and surviving the night…she might just have a new trick up her sleeve. We’re not going to reveal any of that in this non-spoiler review…but Night of the Reaper has something new to say about babysitter horror. It’s a refreshing take on a well-worn subgenre.
The 80s setting doesn’t overwhelm the dual stories in Night of the Reaper. In fact, you might forget that it is set in the past aside from shots of an Atari and the lack of people using cellphones. That’s a good thing. Any 80s setting that can avoid neon colored clothing and over-the-top hair choices is a winner in my book.
Night of the Reaper combines a patiently paced babysitter horror story with an engaging investigation. As the two plots begin to intertwine more and more the story becomes better and better. The climax of the movie might be a tad longer than necessary. It has fun reveals to offer but lingers on their aftermaths longer than it needs to. A tighter resolution would have worked better…but it’s a small complaint with a movie that does so many things as well as Night of the Reaper does them. The investigation works. The babysitter story works too. Marrying them together and changing course into something original works even better. Night of the Reaper is the fresh, entertaining, original work that Shudder has needed to debut directly on its service in 2025.
Scare Value
From an opening with a classic feel to a climax with some fresh ideas, Night of the Reaper delivers an entertaining story. Part investigative horror, part classic stalker/slasher film, part original twist on the concepts…Night of the Reaper has something for everyone. A refreshing Shudder Original. Just when they needed it most.
3.5/5
Night of the Reaper Link
Streaming on Shudder
