The Dead Thing review
This Valentine’s Day, Shudder invites you to experience a toxic relationship with a ghost.
New movie reviews will not contain spoilers.
The Dead Thing
Directed by Eric Kane
Written by Eric Kane and Webb Wilcoxen
Starring Katherine Hughes, Blu Hunt, John Karna, Emily Joy Lemus, Josh Marble, Brennan Mejia and Ben Smith-Petersen
The Dead Thing Review
You have to hand it to the sickos over on Shudder. While most of the country is settling in to watch a romcom (or avoid the holiday altogether) …they chose The Dead Thing as a Valentine’s Day release. The movie flies in the face of all things romantic…and not in the winking, knowing way that you’d expect from a horror release around this time of year (see: Comanion, Heart Eyes). The Dead Thing isn’t looking to turn romantic conventions on their head or use them for shock value and laughs. It’s about a romantic relationship with a ghost.
Let that last line sink in for a moment. There’s almost no way to read it without wondering if you’re in for a comedy or, perhaps, a remake of the Patrick Swayze/Demi Moore classic. It’s none of those things. The fun side of romance is almost completely absent from The Dead Thing. In its place there is a slow burn through depression and a supernaturally toxic relationship. It’s also really good.
Alex (Blu Hunt) has failed to make a connection with any of the dates she matches with on a dating app. That all changes when she meets Kyle (Ben Smith-Petersen). They hit it off…and then he ghosts her. Literally.
Ok…even trying to write up a plot summary feels like this is going to be a supernatural romcom. I assure you that it is not.
Kyle, Alex learns, is dead. She seeks him out on the app, and he seems to have no memory of her or their time together. Things turn deadly when Kyle learns the truth about his ghostly existence…and his violent need to be with Alex.
There…that sounds less comedic. Which is appropriate since there’s nothing to laugh about in The Dead Thing. It’s a dark story about a depressed woman caught in a dangerously bad relationship. Yes…with a ghost. Alex, wonderfully played by Blu Hunt, is clearly depressed. There are very few occasions in The Dead Thing where she seems to find fleeting moments of happiness. Her instant connection with Kyle is one of those moments. Hunt plays the character in a way that lets us understand why she is unable to let go of that connection.
Kyle looks just like his profile picture when you meet him…but mirror reflect his true reality. Alex can see it too…she knows this isn’t a living human man. But the connection remains. It swallows her life…costing her a job she didn’t realize she was missing time from…overtaking every aspect of her. When she attempts to create distance…Kyle is compelled to remove any obstacles from the path of them being together. And a toxic relationship turns deadly.
Hunt is extraordinary in The Dead Thing. We barely hear her speak for much of the film’s opening…but we understand her completely. The more we get to know her…those fleeting moments of happiness…the strength she finds to try and end things with Kyle…the more we like her. And the more we become sure that The Dead Thing isn’t heading towards a happy ending.
The Dead Thing uses Kyle’s ghost in some interesting ways. Love scenes are shot both with and without his presence…to cool effect. Doors open with no one pushing them…assaults occur with no one visible. There are some clever moments to remind you that this is, in fact, a ghost story. Alex is haunted by a toxic boyfriend…and he is aiming to destroy everything in her life until he is all that she has left.
If that doesn’t sound like a Valentine’s Day movie from Shudder…I don’t know what does.
Scare Value
An outstanding lead performance draws you in to the life of the main character. What happens next isn’t flowers and boxes of chocolates. Instead, The Dead Thing presents the ultimate toxic relationship. A ghostly obsession that bares violent fruits. The specter of happiness that quickly descends into a new form of distress. Happy Valentine’s Day.
3.5/5
The Dead Thing Link
Streaming on Shudder
