A very good job of bringing a horror thriller to the screen in only his second feature attempt, Adam Egypt Mortimer director, writer and producer has a field day with the macabre. With the script of Daniel Isn’t Real and a fine production crew and cast, it’s a screamer and a show piece that entertains. While you can see some signs of being an indie that has had to live under budget restraints, you can be assured it won’t take away from the presentation of this horror thriller.
The film opens with young Luke (Griffin Robert Faulkner) leaving his house to get away from the aggressive argument between his mother and father. Walking down the street with his teddy bear he comes across a crime scene with a bloody body stretched out on the steps of a building. A tap on his shoulder by a boy a year or two older and he turns to see him. The boy identifies himself as Daniel (Nathan Reed) and asks him if he’d like to play in the park. After a several minutes his mother Claire (Mary Stuart Masterson) appears and scolds him for leaving the house alone. Luke asks her if he can bring Daniel, and to placate him she replies that he can bring his imaginary friend along. When Daniel plays a dangerous trick on his mother, Luke locks him in his playhouse.
Years later and now in his first year of college, Luke (Miles Robbins) feels the need to see a shrink. While in conference with Dr. Braun (Chukwudi Iwuji) he tells him about his angst with sex, relationships, and when he was younger his imaginary friend who would give him comfort. At the end of the meeting, he suggests he reconnect with his imaginary friend. Thus begins a wicked tale of violence and mayhem involving the now older Daniel (Patrick Schwarzenegger).
Director Adam Egypt Mortimer works his characters into the plot and the whole cast does a superlative job of making the film a winner. He puts them through a lot of difficult scenes that take some very physical acting along with their pervasive dialogue. The make-up and prosthesis department put a lot of time in to make everything look real and Mortimer uses a lot of special effects to make his film a thriller.
Standout acting by the whole cast includes Miles Robbins as Luke who has to change from his character of mild mannered geek, to a lover and a fighter. His love life gets enhanced with a very good performance by Sasha Laneas as Cassie a feisty and fearless painter who falls for his charms that Daniel have been inserting into Luke’s psyche. But, there’s a lot going on besides love making and Robbins is up for the task.
Patrick Schwarzenegger provides a wicked Daniel and puts a lot of compulsion in the role. Daniel has to be crafty, enigmatic, persuasive, and then evil as his character takes an arc that brings the film full circle. He’s the important one in the cast to make the film vicious and evil while delivering Daniel’s diabolical persona with ease.
Daniel Isn’t Real has not been rated by the MPAA, but contains violence, language, drug use, sex and some gory scenes. Not for the squeamish or naive, the movie can be seen at select theaters, on various VOD media outlets, and Digital HD.
FINAL ANALYSIS: a very good film for those that like Horror Thrillers. (4 out of 5 Stars)
Additional Film Information:
Cast: Patrick Schwarzenegger, Miles Robbins, Sasha Lane, Hannah Marks, Mary Stuart Masterson, Chukwudi Iwuji, Andrew Bridges
Directed by: Adam Egypt Mortimer
Genre: Horror, Thriller
MPAA Rating: Not Rated, violence, language, drug use, sex
Running Time: 1 hr. 36 min.
Opening Date: December 6, 2019
Distributed by: Samuel Goldwyn Films
Released in: Theaters, VOD, Digital HD
Writer, critic, film editor John Delia, Sr. has been on all sides of the movie business from publications to film making. He has worked as a film critic with ACED Magazine for more than 20 years and other publications for a total of 40 years. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Florida. John is a member of the Southeastern Film Critics Association and Critics Association of Central Florida Send John a message at jdelia@acedmagazine.com
