Smile

You can't just smile through it

Synopsis: After witnessing a bizarre, traumatic incident involving a patient, Dr. Rose Cotter starts experiencing frightening occurrences that she can't explain. As an overwhelming terror begins taking over her life, Rose must confront her troubling past in order to survive and escape her horrifying new reality.

A great treat for those who love horror

When I decided to watch Smile tonight, I wasn't really sure what to expect. From the trailers it looked like any normal horror movie filled with cheap jump scares and a mediocre story, but I had also heard it was really good. So I decided to not have any expectations going into it. And I can tell you that Smile is a great horror movie. The jump scares were unexpected but expected but always seemed to hit at the right moment. They never felt cheap or undeserving and always related back to the main storyline, as in there was a reason they were happening. And that's what I really like about this story, it had purpose, it was always building up to something, it never felt random.

A story about trauma

One of the hardest jobs as a writer is to make sure that your story isn't preachy with its themes. If you have an interesting theme, it can be difficult not to explore it through your characters and their experiences. It can be difficult to present your themes to an audience without it feeling on the nose. Smile is a great example of keeping your themes present in the story and its ideas. For example, the main antagonists ability relates directly to the films theme, which is trauma. Smile also does a great job in embedding certain ideas and beliefs into each of its characters which allows the conflict between them to build naturally. The only gripe I have is that I wish there were more moments between the characters that helps us empathize with their situations. The movie moves quickly and never allows for those kind of moments.

Conclusion

Smile is a great example of horror done right. And just in time for the spooky season. I would still say keep your expectations in check, as some of the gore/profanity is not for everyone. But if you do watch it, pay attention to its themes and its characters, it might just teach you a little bit about how everyone has their inner demons hidden behind a Smile.