What started as an indie horror game a little under a decade ago has finally entered Hollywood. The “Five Nights At Freddy’s” (FNAF) franchise is beloved by gamers and fans around the world, who have all been waiting eagerly for the film’s release. With real animatronics that could also be worn as costumes being used in the production, FNAF enthusiasts were hopeful that the movie would stay true to the games.
The film is directed by Emma Tammi who has directed horror films such as “The Wind” before. The cast for “Five Nights at Freddy’s” includes Josh Hutcherson as Michael Schmidt, a security guard and the main protagonist, and Matthew Lillard as William Afton, the franchise’s main antagonist. Some may know Lillard from “Scream”, an iconic horror/thriller, where he was the second Ghostface. Other, more cultured people may know him as Shaggy from the live-action “Scooby Doo”.
Many people were nervous before the movie’s release as critics rated it a whopping 30% on Rotten Tomatoes. The fans, on the other hand, had a much different opinion, putting its audience rating at 88%. For fans of the franchise, the movie stayed true to the lore and did its best to maximize accuracy. Iconic scenes from the game lore were recreated in the movie which left audiences ecstatic and satisfied. For others, however, this film was nothing more than a fan service and there is some truth to their criticisms. This is mainly because the movie did not have many jumpscares and the animatronics some compared to Barnie were not particularly frightening. Rather it focuses a lot on lore and developing the story that was essential to the FNAF franchise.
I personally did not find the movie scary, as there were not as many jumpscares as I initially expected. However, there is a high amount of gore for a PG-13 movie. The makers of the film wanted the film to be accessible to a younger audience ranging from adolescents to young adults, who primarily comprised the FNAF fanbase. By doing this though, many FNAF fans felt that they were missing out on the true extent of gore that was initially described in the games. On the opposite end of the spectrum, critics feel that the amount of gore was teetering on the line between a PG-13 and R age rating.
As for how easy the movie was to understand, I would say that the movie did a pretty good job of introducing the main characters in a way that was easy to take in for people who were unfamiliar with FNAF. On the contrary, critics feel that the story was boring and not interesting enough for new audiences to follow. I think both statements are true in some way, the movie was easy to follow but I also think that new viewers who are unfamiliar with FNAF definitely do not have the amount of excitement going into the movie as long-time fans have.
People who are already fans of FNAF are sure to have fun watching the film and seeing their wishes regarding FNAF come to fruition. People who are unfamiliar might not have the best time though. As someone with a bit of prior knowledge of FNAF and as a casual enjoyer, I liked the movie and I’d give it a 4/5. However, as a disclaimer, I would not recommend this movie if you are unfamiliar with FNAF or you are completely disinterested in the idea of a scary Chuck-E-Cheese center full of murderous animatronics.
