Horns (2013)

Horns (2013.)

Daniel "Harry Potter" Radcliffe and director Alexandre Aja—who we all know from his work on films like High Tension (2003.) and Piranha (2010.)—are teaming up on a project that looks like it might be a dark horror-comedy mixed with some heavy drama elements. Since I’ve always been a huge fan of the director's style, and honestly, I can't say I mind the charming American actor either, I thought I'd start a new thread to chat about this!

The story follows a guy with the rather unusual name, Ignatius Perrish, who is head over heels for his girlfriend. After she is brutally murdered, a young Ignatius finds himself cursing God, only to wake up the very next morning with actual horns growing out of his head! To make things even more intense, he discovers that the people around him suddenly have this overwhelming urge to confess their darkest, most twisted secrets and ideas to him. Naturally, Ignatius decides to use these strange new abilities to hunt down his girlfriend's killer and get his revenge.

Just so you know, the movie is actually an adaptation of the book by Joe Hill... though I should probably warn you that the Wikipedia link likely contains spoilers, so please read at your own risk!

Anyway, here are a few behind-the-scenes shots from the set, along with this article over at Arrow in the Head...

This looks incredibly powerful—really stands out from the crowd. It’s definitely a must-watch. Though, if I recall correctly, I read somewhere a few months back that they actually offered the role to Shia Labeouf... honestly, thank God he isn't the one starring in this.

Bryan Hill4 said:This looks incredibly powerful—really stands out from the crowd. It’s definitely a must-watch. Though, if I recall correctly, I read somewhere a few months back that they actually offered the role to Shia Labeouf... honestly, thank God he isn't the one starring in this.

I have to admit, when I first saw that shot of Radcliffe with those horns coming out of his head, I actually burst out laughing! But then, as more of these bits of news started trickling in—like the fact that it's an adaptation of a book (which I haven't read myself, though I doubt it's exactly light beach reading!) combined with a director who is really starting to make a name for himself in the high-end horror scene—I found myself getting more and more hooked on the idea. Plus, I'm a huge fan of revenge movies, so when you throw in a touch of the occult, it’s basically a winning combination for me. 🙂

Oh, and one more thing... aside from how that guy was practically jumping out of his cereal box a while back because of how intense he was being, I personally don't have anything against Labeouf... even if I do think Radcliffe is a much better choice for almost any role... and I really hope they let him keep that accent of his! 🙂

The film made its debut at the Sundance Film Festival, and honestly—given how glowing the reviews have been—I’m feeling optimistic that it'll land a solid distributor here in the States.
Here is the first official production still:







And finally, the first clip:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=us0dR2NF8lE

I couldn't even make it to the end, honestly. It was just this exhausting, totally warped farce, though I guess Radcliffe was actually pretty good.

I wasn't bored.

I only borrowed it on a whim, thinking it wouldn't be any good, but it actually turned out alright (assuming you're into that kind of story).
He gets horns, everyone is forced to tell him the truth, and he uses his new powers to hunt down a killer. I dig it.

It’s honestly kind of a slog and feels way too drawn out.
You go into it thinking those horns might actually represent something profound, or maybe they're some clever way to poke fun at traditional perspectives, but instead, you just get stuck with a scene that feels like a cheap rip-off from an Iron Man movie or some other mindless blockbuster nonsense.
It’s a total anticlimax.

It’s a genre flick, so it’s gotta follow the script: find-the-killer-of-his-beloved-and-punish-him-while-dying-in-the-process.

Too bad the neighbors weren't even remotely funny. Since our horned guy is narrating the whole thing, the story feels pretty pathetic and overly dramatic—but I guess that’s just how they do it, right?

No one is actually saying this is just some genre flick if you bother to read more closely. I guess people just use the whole "genre" label as a pathetic little excuse to avoid talking about what’s actually happening on screen.

Rebecca Martinez4 said:No one is actually saying this is just some genre flick if you bother to read more closely. I guess people just use the whole "genre" label as a pathetic little excuse to avoid talking about what’s actually happening on screen.

I read it, yeah.
I knew what I was getting into (and so did you), so take it or leave it. It’s not some cinematic masterpiece, but it’s worth a watch if you have the time.

James Garcia50 said:I read it, yeah.
I knew what I was getting into (and so did you), so take it or leave it. It’s not some cinematic masterpiece, but it’s worth a watch if you have the time.

Based on what?
The teaser and those promo shots really made it look like something special, you know, like it was going to be this epic graphic novel adaptation or a massive action flick, so I guess that's where the letdown comes from.

Not for me. I knew exactly what I was signing up for the second I put on those Horns, and honestly? I got exactly what I expected.

I was actually pleasantly surprised by how much sense Alexandre Aja made, even if his sense of humor was a bit hit-or-miss. He clearly took some inspiration from Ren Claire’s film, except this one manages to be a masterpiece and freaking hilarious at the same time. Though, in Aja's version, the sentimentality is dialed way up and the humor feels a bit forced.

The soundtrack is absolutely stellar, and I think Daniel really nailed his performance... for the first third, the movie is super engaging and keeps you hooked, but then it kind of shifts gears into this typical revenge flick with a villain that just didn't land for me. It never really dives into why all those supernatural things are happening, which felt a bit odd... it’s definitely an R-rated movie for good reason, though it doesn't feel like they're overdoing the nudity just for the sake of it. I have to admit, the main character's narration was a little grating at times, but I was actually pleasantly surprised to see Heather Graham in this, since I've always been such a fan of hers...

6/10

Horns is just more proof that Alexandre Aja is absolute freaking potential 🙏
He’s definitely in that elite group of directors who can deliver exactly what I'm looking for in a movie. Like, seriously, every single technical aspect of this thing was top-tier.
A lot of those Hollywood hacks could actually learn a thing or two from Aja.

The end credits were beautiful.

Gives me some major Brick vibes.

music 👍

☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

This movie was actually killing it until about halfway through—then this whole messy romance subplot starts dragging everything down and, honestly, just completely trashes the entire film. There was so much potential here, too! You had the solid premise, the vibe, the cast... all of it, but instead of sticking the landing, they just served up some tired, greasy cliché at the end. It sucked. Such a waste.

As for Radcliffe, he’s kind of moving from my "I can't stand looking at him" list into the "okay, I can watch him if I just pretend he's his character" category. But man, that whole attempt at a bad boy transformation after Harry Potter was just way too greasy for me.

Jesse Booth2 said:This movie was actually killing it until about halfway through—then this whole messy romance subplot starts dragging everything down and, honestly, just completely trashes the entire film. There was so much potential here, too! You had the solid premise, the vibe, the cast... all of it, but instead of sticking the landing, they just served up some tired, greasy cliché at the end. It sucked. Such a waste.

As for Radcliffe, he’s kind of moving from my "I can't stand looking at him" list into the "okay, I can watch him if I just pretend he's his character" category. But man, that whole attempt at a bad boy transformation after Harry Potter was just way too greasy for me.

Look, from the jump, the director is flirting with that typical, overdone American teen drama aesthetic, so maybe that’s why the climax felt a little too saccharine for you.
He couldn't really escape it, though; the movie is pretty much trapped within those specific boundaries.
It feels kind of stupid to throw out everything good about the film just because it fits into those certain tropes.

Radcliffe usually goes from "I can't look at him" to "Okay, I can watch him if I just focus on the character." Honestly, his whole bad boy pivot after Harry Potter felt way too forced for me.

I’m not exactly his biggest fan either, but he actually worked for me here. Man, he really poured that raw pain onto the screen. Probably his best performance yet.

Patrick Martin said:Look, from the jump, the director is flirting with that typical, overdone American teen drama aesthetic, so maybe that’s why the climax felt a little too saccharine for you.
He couldn't really escape it, though; the movie is pretty much trapped within those specific boundaries.
It feels kind of stupid to throw out everything good about the film just because it fits into those certain tropes.

Radcliffe usually goes from "I can't look at him" to "Okay, I can watch him if I just focus on the character." Honestly, his whole bad boy pivot after Harry Potter felt way too forced for me.

I’m not exactly his biggest fan either, but he actually worked for me here. Man, he really poured that raw pain onto the screen. Probably his best performance yet.

Nobody’s writing anything off, but there were plenty of missed opportunities.
With that romance subplot, he could have really played around with the character's anomaly—you know, the i-have-horns-and-everyone-must-tell-me-the-truth thing—but the director seemed to lack the guts (or the drive) to go there, choosing instead to stay in that safe revenge-for-my-lost-love lane.

Personally, I'm glad that Aja, who usually directs like he has a stick up his ass, actually showed a shred of humor this time.

Love always hits hard, man... it never just fizzles out on you. It’s constant. :/

That’s exactly why I said it’s worth a watch 😛

I thought the first part of the movie was actually pretty intriguing. It lasted about a third of the way through, just like people were saying. After that, I started regretting sitting through it because this specific take on sci-fi just isn't my style. It felt cliché, a bit childish, and those whole demon/hellish elements didn't make any sense to me... but I finished it anyway since I've already wasted too much time on movies lately, so might as well see it through.

4/10