I rate this movie more highly than the average 'stars' score, which presently is 5.6. I also recently watched The Black Telephone, another movie about a child abduction which I see is presently rated 7 stars. In my opinion, Boy Behind The Door is by far the better of the two movies. There were moments when I found myself either lookinga way or squinting my eyes a bit because I wasn't sure I wanted to see what might happen next. Having seen both 'Behind the Door' and 'Telephone' gives me some perspective.
People have said there is a 'fatal flaw' to the storyline of this movie. Perhaps a fatal flaw could be found for most such movies. I found the acting to be excellent, and amazingly good by the two youngsters who play the lead roles.
What I liked about this movie is that it had a logical and complete story. We find out during the movie WHY the boys have been abducted (particularly the one 'behind the door') which is horrifying in itself, and there is actual horror to this movie. Most movies involving kids don't show you actual harm coming to them but this film is not afraid to show some of that. Not gratuitously, I might add - what the kids go through was definitely part of the story. The one who was the main subject for abduction finds himself with a shock collar around his neck which goes off when he tries to get past a certain point. The boys are injured in the process of getting away and defending themselves, with a reasonably logical conclusion at the end.
By comparison, the only real horror in Black Telephone was that the abductor wore a scary mask. I don't think it was ever revealed just what his intentions were for abducting the kid, and there were so many missed opportunities to add tension to the story. Very little really happens in 'Telephone' and most of it just isn't scary. In Boy Behind The Door, one of the kidnapped boys finds some photos showing body parts of boys - nothing obscene, but it's clear that they were not taken at a birthday party. Also some bloody kids' clothing is found by one of them. It's quickly apparent that the abductors are up to serious no-good and are about as mean and evil as can be.
The boys who play the main roles were really excellent in their parts. To be honest they are light years ahead of many other child actors I have seen, with acting on a par with full-grown adults. There is one other really 'main' character who we don't see until partway through the movie but I won't give any description so as to not spoil things. I'll just say that person's role was played with real viciousness, another well-played part.
This is a better movie than some are saying. Certainly it's better than the other movie I mentioned, which for some reason has a higher 'stars' rating then this one. Trust me, this is the better of the two, and by a lot.
People have said there is a 'fatal flaw' to the storyline of this movie. Perhaps a fatal flaw could be found for most such movies. I found the acting to be excellent, and amazingly good by the two youngsters who play the lead roles.
What I liked about this movie is that it had a logical and complete story. We find out during the movie WHY the boys have been abducted (particularly the one 'behind the door') which is horrifying in itself, and there is actual horror to this movie. Most movies involving kids don't show you actual harm coming to them but this film is not afraid to show some of that. Not gratuitously, I might add - what the kids go through was definitely part of the story. The one who was the main subject for abduction finds himself with a shock collar around his neck which goes off when he tries to get past a certain point. The boys are injured in the process of getting away and defending themselves, with a reasonably logical conclusion at the end.
By comparison, the only real horror in Black Telephone was that the abductor wore a scary mask. I don't think it was ever revealed just what his intentions were for abducting the kid, and there were so many missed opportunities to add tension to the story. Very little really happens in 'Telephone' and most of it just isn't scary. In Boy Behind The Door, one of the kidnapped boys finds some photos showing body parts of boys - nothing obscene, but it's clear that they were not taken at a birthday party. Also some bloody kids' clothing is found by one of them. It's quickly apparent that the abductors are up to serious no-good and are about as mean and evil as can be.
The boys who play the main roles were really excellent in their parts. To be honest they are light years ahead of many other child actors I have seen, with acting on a par with full-grown adults. There is one other really 'main' character who we don't see until partway through the movie but I won't give any description so as to not spoil things. I'll just say that person's role was played with real viciousness, another well-played part.
This is a better movie than some are saying. Certainly it's better than the other movie I mentioned, which for some reason has a higher 'stars' rating then this one. Trust me, this is the better of the two, and by a lot.