In The Blackening, it’s the Juneteenth weekend in the US, and a collection of friends gather together at a cabin in the woods for some rest, relaxation, and a reunion. To begin with, everything is going well, with drinks flowing and everyone getting into the party spirit, but things suddenly take an unexpected turn when the lights go out and a figure is seen moving past the window.
Concerned about the blackout and the mysterious figure, the group search the cabin looking for a fuse box, only to discover all of the doors in the house are locked with the exception of one. This unlocked door leads to a games room, which houses a strange board game.
Within minutes of checking out the board game, they hear a voice coming from the centre piece. The voice informs the group they must now answer a series of questions, all centred around black trivia, or face the consequences.
If they answer enough questions correctly, they can save lives, including their own. But if they get the questions wrong or simply refuse to answer, their lives will be forfeit at the hands of a masked killer who is on the loose in the cabin.
Over the course of the night, the friends do their best to survive while trying to work out who is targeting them. But can they find a way out of this nightmare, or will this be their final evening together?
Directed by Tim Story, The Blackening stars Grace Byers, Jermaine Fowler, Melvin Gregg, X Mayo, Antoinette Robertson, Sinqua Walls, Jay Pharoah, Yvonne Orji, and Dewayne Perkins (Perkins also co-wrote the movie). The film is based on a 2018 short film of the same name, and is a horror-comedy about a group of friends who cross paths with a masked killer.
Released back in June in the US (following its premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2022), The Blackening arrives in UK cinemas this month. The movie will hit UK screens on Friday 25th August, where it hopes to delight audiences with its satirical wit and comedic performances, and I expect it will achieve its goal.
Why? Because The Blackening is a heck of a lot of fun. The movie makes light of various genre tropes, draws out a great deal of humour from racial stereotypes, and with a swift 97-minute runtime it offers up a short, sharp burst of horror hilarity.
Taking inspiration from the likes of Scream, Friday the 13th, Saw, and Scary Movie, The Blackening is a daft movie which plays on the classic plot device of a group of friends going to a remote location and being picked off one by one. However, in previous versions of this tale, where one member of the group is black and therefore stereotypically the first character to die, in this movie everyone is black, which sort of evens the odds.
And it’s ideas such as this one, which makes The Blackening enjoyable to watch. The movie continually pokes fun at expectations and tropes, in a very playful way, to deliver its laughs.
One of the movie’s funniest scenes is a sequence in which the group is told to pick the next person to die. The only rule is this person has to be considered ‘the blackest’ amongst the group, which leads to everyone attempting to prove they are significantly less black than the next person.
As the conversation goes on, everyone comes up with reasons as to why they don’t qualify. None of these reasons change the fact everyone in the group is black, but they are very humorous to hear.
It’s moments such as this one which gives the film its edge. There have been many horror comedies in the past which have failed to get the satire right, but The Blackening manages to pull it off.
What’s clear with The Blackening is that director Tim Story, and writers Tracy Oliver and Dewayne Perkins know how to conjure up something which is pure escapism wrapped up in the guise of a horror flick. OK, so it’s not a scary horror flick in any way, shape, or form, but it is one which understands the genre well and can twist some of its conventions.
For example, unlike the killer in most horror movies, who uses a knife as their weapon of choice, the killer in The Blackening chooses a bow. Logistically a bow is not a great weapon to kill a group of people, but that’s why it is the perfect choice for a comedy – because it makes no sense.
The point of decisions like this, and the movie as a whole, is to say to the audience, this is nonsense, just go with it. And if you do go with it, you’ll have a good time.
If I’m being a little critical of The Blackening, then I’d say a couple of the jokes may not travel so well outside of the US and in general the film could do with a few more gags. I normally say less is more, but on this occasion I would welcome a few additional opportunities to chuckle, so perhaps this is where the movie stumbles a bit.
But putting this to one side, there is much amusement to be had in The Blackening and that’s ultimately what counts. The film doesn’t take itself too seriously, the cast all understand the assignment, and the end result is a likeable romp.
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