SMILE (2022) Review

Review

You’re walking down the street, a stranger turns to you and smiles. How do you react? Probably not by recoiling in fear right? But in Parker Finn’s Smile that is exactly the reaction the director is trying to elicit.

Expanding on his 2020 short Laura Hasn’t Slept, Smile follows workaholic doctor Rosie Cotter (Sosie Bacon). She works 80 hour weeks in a mental health emergency department on top of processing her own childhood trauma. At home she has a fiancé, Trevor (Jessie T. Usher) and beloved cat Moustache. But when a patient commits suicide in front of her, it sends Rose on a spiral which strikes directly to the root of her trauma.

Bacon’s heart wrenching performance is at the centre of what makes Smile so successful. She leaves absolutely nothing behind as we explore both her childhood trauma and her descent in to desperation. As with plenty of horror films, as the lead Bacon is in almost every scene of the film. She carries the full emotional weight of Finn’s burgeoning urban legend but not at the detriment of her own journey. It’s clear that Finn was dedicated to going beyond superficially explaining Rose’s backstory in order to give the audience someone to root for. The results are hugely successful. The films closing moments are some of the most emotionally impactful of the whole film, as well as the most visually striking.

There’s also a playfully self-aware side to Smile. At times the film pauses to remind the audience that it knows we know what’s coming next. Sometimes it fulfils that promise. At other times it sidesteps the obvious in order to heighten the impact of the unexpected. In that respect Smile packs an immense punch. There are several huge jump scares to keep the audience on their toes. In particular, a scene with an unexpected scare was enough to throw several attendees at my screening out of their seats. Other scares are more straightforward and easy to anticipate. But without them, Smile would have been far less enjoyable. Finn has been able to strike a balance between playing to audience expectation and subverting it. Not an easy task in a flooded market, particularly just in time for Halloween.

Finn’s script wears many of its influences on its sleeve. There are echoes of The Ring, It Follows and many other films. At times these influences loom like a spectre trying to excavate the audience from the journey. At 115 minutes Smile is long for a horror and this feels particularly true of the second act. As the waves of terror roll back out to sea the padding around the original short film feels tangible and its influences are most obvious. This is more than made up for by the setup in act one and payoff in the final act. As his feature-debut, Finn has certainly landed as a talent to watch in the future.

Adding to the incredible atmosphere are a mix of practical and visual effects, boosted by an outstanding soundscape. Cinematographer Charlie Sarroff (Relic) elevates the project with a number of off-kilter angles and tracking shots which soak up all of lively and rich set design. The measured visuals play off excellently alongside Cristobal Tapia de Veer’s varied score. At times the film utilises stunned silence to build tension, in these moments the tightness in my chest was palpable. In other moments it sounds grow to deafening levels in order to bewilder its audience. The frenzied nature only adds to Smile’s unpredictability.

Verdict

Utilising deeply disturbing imagery, Smile unsettles its audience with an exploration of trauma. Bolstered by an excellent production and Sosie Bacon’s heart-wrenching performance, its the perfect big studio movie for Halloween date night.

⭐⭐⭐.5