The Boy Behind The Door (2021)

 

Streaming Services: Shudder
Movie Name/Year: The Boy Behind the Door (2021)
Genre: Horror, Thriller, Mystery
Length:  88 minutes
Rating: Unrated
Production/Distribution: Kinogo Pictures, Whitewater Films, Gusto entertainment, Andamiro, Dark Side Distribution, Lighthouse, Picture Works, Premiere TV, Program Store, Volga, Shudder
Directors: David Charbonier, Justin Powell
Writers: David Charbonier, Justin Powell
Actors: Lonnie Chavis, Ezra Dewey, Kristin Bauer van Straten, Scott Michael Foster, Micah A. Hauptman, Rich Ceraulo, Alfredo Tavares, Anna B. Shaffer

Blurb from IMDb:  After Bobby and his best friend Kevin are kidnapped and taken to a strange house in the middle of nowhere, Bobby manages to escape. But as he starts to make a break for it, he hears Kevin's screams for help and realizes he can't leave his friend behind.
 

Cat’s Point of View:
I know we’ve said this before, but it bears repeating. Movies can be so much scarier when something bad is happening to children. It takes a pretty cynical and hard heart to not feel something when kids are in peril.
 
My heart was in my throat, pounding my pulse in my ears, through the majority of The Boy Behind the Door.
 
The beginning meandered just a smidge, but once events kicked into gear, there really wasn’t a breather or break in the horrific situation I was beholding.

 
The Boy Behind the Door featured a parent’s worst nightmare unfolding on screen – the abduction of ones children, and all the horrible things that could go with that. I am thankful, however, that the focus remained on the boys throughout the ordeal. I don’t think I could have handled it well if they’d cut away from them and left me hanging at any point.
 
Speaking of the boys, I was significantly impressed with the young leads’ performances. I bought every moment of terror and desperation that Lonnie Chavin (This is Us, Magic Camp, The Water Man) and Ezra Dewey (Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, Criminal Minds, The Djinn) were selling.

 
The setting was on point and creepy, and the soundtrack added to the tension. In fact, I really don’t have anything to prod at here. While the plot was somewhat predictable, that actually fed into the terror. I had anticipation for all sorts of bad things that could and would typically occur in this sort of scenario.
 
I wouldn’t necessarily call this movie perfect, but it is damn sure close. If you think you can stomach it, I’d wholeheartedly give it my recommendation.
 
The Boy Behind the Door premieres on Shudder Thursday, July 29. 

Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score – 97%
Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score – None
Metascore – None
Metacritic User Score – None
IMDB Score – 7.7/10
 
Trust the Dice: Parental Advisory Rating – R
 
Trust the Dice: Cat’s Rating – 4.5/5
 
Movie Trailer: