When I saw the trailers for this film, my first thought was that it sounded strange but interesting. I was intensely curious to see how the dynamic between the characters would be handled and how the horror was incorporated. After watching the film, I found it strangely intense, has a powerful dynamic between the two leads, the acting is phenomenal and the film explores the dark side of sports and success with incredible attention to detail. 

The film, “Him”, is a supernatural psychological horror film directed by Justin Tipping, co-written by Skip Bronkie, Zack Akers, and Tipping and produced by Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw Productions. The plot follows a young and upcoming football star Cameron ‘Cam’ Cade (Tyriq Withers), who on the edge of glory, gets injured by an obsessed fan which threatens to end his career before it even begins. He gets invited to his idol Isaiah White’s (Marlon Wayans) compound to train. But what seems like the opportunity of a lifetime twists into something dangerous as Cam discovers the true cost of pursuing greatness. The film also stars Julia Fox as Isaiah’s wife Elsie, Tim Heidecker as Cam’s manager Tom and Jim Jefferies as Marcos as Isaiah’s doctor. 

This film relies heavily on the details to explore the dark side of sports and the cost of pursuing success. There are seemingly strange scenes that don’t seem to connect but as you watch, you realize that each scene explores an aspect of the fanaticism surrounding sports, the push to create icons but just as quickly forget them when they fall from grace and how success changes sports stars personalities, how the chase for fame or glory changes your personality. It also explores the more toxic aspects of sports as well as masculinity, the pressure to be great, the expectation to be some toxic idea of what a man should be. There are overtones of Christian mythos but all in the drive to explore the messianic worshipping we do of sports stars until they fall from grace. 

Part of the reason the film is so compelling is that the pressure on Cam ramps up as the movie proceeds. There is repetition of concepts to show the expectations on both Cam and Isaiah and to explore the gladiatorial ideas in modern sports. While the film has some odd or weird scenes, including one with a fan, it illustrates the craziness around sports and how we revel over our stars even while we forget them when they get injured and can no longer play. The intensity between Cam and Isaiah helps build the psychological horror moments. It very much brings new meaning to the idea of selling your soul with the supernatural elements. And the idea of sacrifice, with multiple meanings, permeates the story. It is very much about the negative toxic parts of sports and the darkness behind fame.

The acting is intense and powerful. Both Tyriq Withers and Marlon Wayans are excellent with a twisted dynamic between the pair. The pair mirror each other well, one at the beginning and the other at the end of his career. Marlon Wayans has a feverish pitch to his performance that is captivating. Tyriq Withers is brilliant as Cam, with a potent performance and a commanding presence of his own. Both vie back and forth but both performances are incredible. Julia Fox is diabolic as Elsie and Jim Jefferies is formidable as Marco. The performances in this film are the highlight and Marlon Mayans really demonstrates his range as a performer.

One less positive aspect is that the film is messy at moments, with scenes not always feeling like they make sense. The ending in particular is messy both figuratively and literally. While the messy can appear as Cam coming unraveled, it also could leave the audience disconnected from the story. However, if you pay attention to the details, you can see how everything ties back to the theme of the film. And I found the ending, without giving it away, an interesting choice that brings the story full circle.

If you like supernatural psychological horror, this one is really compelling and interesting. The messianic qualities and the toxic masculinity enhances the theme, as the main story explores how dark success and glory can be in the sports world, how much the fans and media adds into that darkness and the pressure. The film is excellent at exploring the theme and the actors, Tyriq Withers and Marlon Wayans are phenomenal in their performances. While it can be odd or strange, the film is brilliant when you peel back the layers and see all the different aspects the writing explores. If you like deep, detailed films, I found this strangely intense and powerful to watch. 

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 injections. 

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