Lights Out

 Theresa Palmer in Lights Out photograph via WarnerBros.

Lights Out is like internet ‘creepypasta’ brought to life. A modestly budgeted indie horror, it plays on primal fears of the dark in a way that’s as cheesy as it is brutally effective. There’s jump-scares galore, but there’s also real tension and a hearty dose of psychology. As a result, Lights Out makes a clear break from the overcrowded horror pack.

A broken family is hounded by a supernatural entity that can only take form in the dark. To stop it, scrappy 20-something Rebecca (Teresa Palmer) must dig into her troubled mother’s past – and her own strained relationships – to uncover her tormentor’s origins.

It might be a conventional enough story, but the film cleverly layers it in themes surrounding family and mental illness – namely trust, abandonment and individual empowerment. Its small cast and limited locations give the film an intimate feel that – unlike many other horror films – is not entirely devoid of warmth.

This is undoubtedly a strength, as the central horror relies on the juxtaposition of light and dark in intimate spaces. The human drama involves similar use of contrast; fright and comfort, isolation and intimacy, anger and understanding.

This theme is continued in the film’s technical aspects – the drab, grey-blue colour palette that haunts so many horror efforts is nowhere to be found. Instead, director David F. Sandberg has opted for rich hues that make the terror-filled darkness even more agonising.

Packed with strong performances, skilful direction and relentless creepiness, Lights Out‘s main drawback is its dialogue. The lines aren’t terrible, but neither do they match the complexity of the issues they’re supposed to address. Even rewriting one or two key scenes would have given the film a big lift.

Nevertheless, Lights Out is the rare horror film that makes good on its promise of dread without resorting to pointless nastiness. It cleverly subverts several of the more tired genre tropes, and injects fresh emotional resonance into others. The story won’t win any awards, but it will have you keeping the lights on.