Abigail (Blu-ray Review)
- Review Date: Aug 01, 2024
- Format: Blu-ray Disc
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Director
Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler GillettRelease Date(s)
2024 (July 9, 2024)Studio(s)
Project X/Vinson Films/Radio Silence (Universal Pictures Home Entertainment)- Film/Program Grade: B
- Video Grade: A
- Audio Grade: A
- Extras Grade: A
Review
Universal’s classic horror films Dracula, The Mummy, and Murders in the Rue Morgue relied on Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake for their ominous credit sequences. Perhaps in a nod to this history, Universal uses this same music throughout its latest horror film, Abigail. Combining genres in a high-energy, R-rated creep fest, Abigail starts as a heist flick, then draws upon horror tropes like demon child, haunted house, claustrophobia, and vampire lore.
The opening sequence introduces the 12-year-old title character (Irish actress Alisha Weir, Matilda: The Musical) performing a ballet solo intercut with preparations for her kidnapping. Abigail is the daughter of a billionaire, and the child snatchers expect to receive a hefty ransom of $50 million for her safe return. The team was assembled by the mysterious Lambert (Giancarlo Esposito, The Usual Suspects), who made sure none of them knows either the identity of the child’s father or the identities of each other.
The kidnapping is executed perfectly and the team members, as planned, assemble at a huge mansion. There, Lambert tells them they must wait patiently until the girl’s father responds. The house has plenty of food and a fully stocked bar. Mindful not to reveal their real identities, for convenience they assign each other false names: Joey (Melissa Barrera, In the Heights), Frank (Dan Stevens, Beauty and the Beast), Rickles (William Catlett Force of Nature), Sammy (Kathryn Newton, Lisa Frankenstein), Peter (Kevin Durand, Fruitville Station) and Dean (Angus Cloud, Your Lucky Day). Joey is in charge of looking after Abigail and is to be the only one to enter the room where the terrified girl is bound to a bed.
As time passes, the kidnappers figure out that Abigail’s father is Kristof Lazaar (Matthew Goode, The Lookout), a gangland big-wig with a reputation for violence. This creeps them out and some want to leave immediately, notify the police of the girl’s whereabouts, and disappear. But all the doors have been locked and windows blocked by thick metal shutters.
At this point, the film segues into horror territory as they discover that Abigail is a vampire and a formidable match for all of them. A large chunk of the film is devoted to the obligatory gradual picking off of one team member after another in gruesome ways, with blood spurting literally in every direction. The twist is that this vampire carries out her attacks with graceful ballet moves, making her one of the classiest blood suckers in horror film history.
Co-directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett have created their own vampiric rules with Abigail. The crucifix, garlic and mirrors apparently are of little concern to Abigail, but she’s frightened by sharp wooden stakes and sunlight. Her super strength and ability to levitate come in handy in combating the kidnappers. The special effects and bloody make-up are high quality and should please fans of graphic horror. Moments of humor in both dialogue and action balance the horrific moments.
Alisha Weir is incredible as the pre-adolescent vampire. Both an accomplished dancer and a good actor, she’s totally engaged with the character and the centerpiece of some of the film’s biggest scare scenes. Her first transformation from sweet little girl to bloodthirsty monster is gripping, and she never takes her performance into parody.
Scary kids in horror flicks, of course, isn’t a new phenomenon. Village of the Damned, The Exorcist, Children of the Corn, and The Omen are but a few pictures famous for terrifying audiences with demonic, often homicidal children. Making them the source of horror contradicts how we generally regard children—innocent and pure. When we watch little ones violently attack, spew profanity, and kill, it shakes us up even more than seeing adults behave that way.
This is certainly true with Abigail. She has our sympathy initially because she’s the victim—helpless, terrified, at the mercy of six adults. But our sympathies partially shift when we discover that Abigail is not exactly what she appears to be. We sort of root for her because she’s besting the criminals, but we can’t help hoping that at least some of them will escape her vicious canines.
Abigail is a generally satisfactory horror film, but it makes the same mistake as countless superhero movies—it doesn’t know where and when to end. It gets to a point when the effects take over completely at the expense of moving the narrative along. Yes, these are scenes viewers enjoy, but even good special effects can become tedious if they’re merely showcases for the effects and stunt crew. In addition, the directors should have asked themselves, “Is it essential that a new character be introduced in the last ten minutes?” At close to two hours, the film is too long and feels it.
Abigail was captured by cinematographer Aaron Morton digitally at 4.5K (Codex) with ARRI Alexa LF cameras, and finished as a 4K Digital Intermediate at the aspect ratio of 2.39:1. On the Blu-ray, the color palette tends toward darker hues, both in outdoor night scenes and inside the large mansion where the kidnappers take Abigail. In the second half, the dominant color is red for quantities of blood shooting out and splattering everywhere. Detail is especially sharp with fabrics, decor, bed sheets and pillows, Sammy’s flowing hair, and stubble on the men’s faces. The gory effects look real and consist of prosthetics and make-up. Wire work makes Abigail levitate and characters fly backward at great speed. The ballet sequence that opens the film is quite lovely and markedly different in style from scenes in the latter half of the film.
Soundtrack options include English, Spanish, and French 7.1 Dolby Audio and DVS (Descriptive Video Service). Optional subtitles include English SDH, Spanish, and French. The sound is best appreciated during vampire mayhem scenes with left, right and center channels handling body pummeling, grunting, Abigail’s crazed screams, furniture being broken, and unsettling sounds of oozing blood. These realistic sound effects add a whole layer of creepiness that nicely enhances the on-screen chaos. The music by Brian Tyler avoids typical gloomy and foreboding chords in favor of a more action-oriented score.
The 2-Disc Collector’s Edition Combo Pack from Universal Pictures contains both Blu-ray and DVD formats and a Digital Code on a paper insert. Bonus materials include the following:
- Audio Commentary with Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett, and Michael P. Shawyer
- Deleted and Extended Scenes (6:52)
- Gag Reel (9:41)
- Blood Bath (7:04)
- Hunters to Hunted (5:36)
- Becoming a Ballerina Vampire (4:29)
- Directing Duo Matt & Tyler (5:40)
Audio Commentary – Co-directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, and editor Michael P. Shawyer note that Abigail was filmed in Ireland. In the film’s first cut, Abigail’s entire dance opened the film, but the director’s cut eliminated ten minutes of the sequence. They talk about the problems of filming night-for-night in outdoor scenes. Shawyer says it’s important for the editor to let the director(s) know he understands the film. They speak about restraints on the production because Alisha Weir, a minor, was limited by the number of hours per day she was permitted to work. The film contains 212 uses of the “F” word. A scene induces both an emotional and a cerebral reaction. One of the problems faced by the directors was how to subvert viewer expectations. A number of the action scenes would have been too difficult to stage in long shots because so much was happening simultaneously. The staircase scene was difficult to edit because of the intricacy of the action. Because there are no traditional good guys in Abigail, there are times you’re not sure whom to root for. The violence is heightened because you want the kidnappers to get what’s coming to them. Teamwork among cast and crew makes for a smooth- functioning set. Some scenes had to be filmed after the screen actors’ strike. A stunt coordinator and fight director were hired. Actors had two sets of vampire teeth, one hard and one soft. The soft teeth were put in during fight scenes to prevent serious injury if actors were accidentally hit in the mouth.
Deleted and Extended Scenes – Three scenes are included: Abigail dancing; Joey surprised in the hallway; and Abigail and Joey confronted by Lazaar.
Gag Reel – Actors blow their lines, laugh during takes, interrupt takes, forget dialogue, and use profanity out of frustration. Scene clapboard markers are seen before some takes.
Blood Bath – The directors went for maximum visual impact, which meant lots and lots of fake blood. A blood cannon spreads blood at high speed in all directions. Many different types of stage blood were tested to find the one that had the right texture and whose color recorded best on screen. Prosthetics applied to actors along with blood suggest deep, gouged wounds. The directors had to answer the question, “What does an exploding vampire look like?”
Hunters to Hunted – The various characters are discussed by the actors who portray them. There was a playfulness among cast members.
Becoming a Ballerina Vampire – There’s sympathy for Abigail in the first half of the film, but then she transitions into a monster. Abigail dances while she fights. The choreography is faster when she’s in vampire form. Alisha Weir’s co-stars refer to her as totally professional. Her American accent was flawless, though she didn’t work with a dialogue coach. She picked up the accent just from watching American TV. “She’s fully engaged” and very precise in her choices, “incredibly strong and in control of her talent.”
Directing Duo Matt & Tyler – The co-directors of Abigail discuss the “mashup of genres.” A heist movie collides with a monster movie. They strove for a “fresh retelling” of the vampire tale, deciding how to handle long-established cinematic vampire lore. What are the rules? They had to determine the strengths and weaknesses of the vampire. The tone of the film is playful in many ways. Humor comes from the character. The directors like to create a family environment on the set.
It’s unusual for a horror film to reveal its major twist in its trailer, but Abigail still works effectively as the viewer waits for the big vampire scenes to unfold. The characters’ back stories are sketchy at best, but the film is really about vengeance of operatic proportions. Young Alisha Weir is the key ingredient of the film’s success. The other actors are fine, but it’s Weir who commands every scene she’s in. Some serious editing was needed to streamline the film, but hats off to directors Bettinni-Olpin and Tyler for their clever take on one of horror’s most enduring creatures.
- Dennis Seuling