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From the crazy opening scene, James Wan | establishes that his return to horror will easily become his most polarizing yet. Channeling the late ’90s Dark Castle show, the opening sequence sets up an eerie plot that feels uplifted from the’ 90s in both tone and bloodshed, signaling a mad rush forward. where you are on its outrageous wavelength, or you are not. This is the precise type of horror that hits horror fans harder, but might confuse the general public who are unaware.
It is the early 90s and a vast Gothic castle-like hospital nestled in rural isolation is home to a medical anomaly. Smart opens with a bloodbath. A doctor, accompanied by security, checks their deformed but dangerous patient, Gabriel, to find that he has already slaughtered much of the staff. Cut to the present, where we meet Madison (Annabelle wallis), a shy woman trying to appease her abusive husband during her pregnancy. A nasty altercation leaves Madison in the hospital, forging a mysterious psychic connection with Gabriel, who has just started a new round of massacres.
Wan designed the concept with Ingrid Mute, who here plays the charming and comedic role of a forensic officer, making sure the tone and goofy humor are completely intentional. Smart encompasses all of the follies found in late ’80s and early’ 90s thrillers, including the more extravagant efforts of David Cronenberg, Brian De Palma, and Dario Argento. That ’90s excess that lined the horror shelves of video stores is baked in Smart DNA, and it permeates Wan’s playful stylistic and scriptwriting choices, right down to the Bryan Ferry tune in the soundtrack.
The camp level, including the cheeky love triangle that forms on the sly between the character of Bisu, Madison’s sister (Maddie Hasson) and Detective Shaw (Georges Young), catches you off guard. It’s in such a contagious way that it’s hard not to smile through every bit of craziness Wan throws at us. And it’s getting crazy.
Wallis has the unenviable task of playing straight in such an outrageous world. Madison’s trauma sparked a chain of adverse events, linking her to a killer, but her childhood didn’t offer a lightness either. He is a melancholy and fragile character forced to find his inner strength as his life spirals. Comparatively, Hasson’s character is not bound by trauma and brings a loud spirit to counterbalance Madison. It is only through Hasson’s lighter and more passionate stage flight performance that the brotherly bond offers emotional depth and engenders an audience for the couple.
Smart is more about the journey than the destination. Wan doesn’t inject surprising storytelling twists, but more in that he pushes the boundaries and clearly has fun doing it. Having you connect the dots long before the protagonists do means the rhythm slumps in the second act, but Wan rushes in with a Grand Guignol-style third act that happily goes for the whole thing. Wan takes big swings, and humor and bloodshed come in equal measure.
Wan’s return to horror won’t be what most expect from the filmmaker. It completely shook the trends of the genre, going back to a time when serial killer thrillers and Giallo pushed the furthest limits of plausibility. Where the killers and protagonists could be linked psychically, and the detectives tasked with solving the murders were involved. Those unfamiliar with the tropes of this era may have a harder time connecting with what Wan is attempting.
Creativity is at the rendezvous and inventive decorations abound. Smart won’t be upset or scared, but again, that’s not meant to. Wan’s return to horror is a way to satisfy an itch to grapple with his mark of Giallo, to act like a bloody valentine in the face of the formative horrors of his youth. It’s silly, it’s outrageous, and it’s a blast – a flawed but hugely entertaining throwback to a bygone era of horror.
Smart hits theaters and HBO Max on September 10, 2021.
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