Review: ‘Smile’ does it with a big scary grin

Many people have experienced that moment when they swear they’ve seen something that no one else did. It’s usually a fleeting glimpse that’s difficult to describe or potentially impossible to have even occurred. These uncertainties make it easier to convince yourself that perhaps you didn’t see anything at all and it was just the light playing a trick or a misconstrued shadow. But what if it happens again? Then it becomes a little more difficult to dismiss, but convincing anyone else of what you saw is still a challenge. In Smile, a woman believes she’s being haunted by an evil entity that only she can see.

Rose (Sosie Bacon) is a therapist in a hospital’s mental health ward. Following a traumatic childhood, she’s devoted her adult life to helping people, much to her sister’s (Gillian Zinser) chagrin. However, after witnessing the brutal death of a patient, Rose begins to see horrifying things everywhere she goes. She confides in her loved ones, but no one believes her since there’s a history of mental illness in the family. Finally, with the help of her cop ex-boyfriend, Joel (Kyle Gallner), she begins to realize her frightening experience follows a pattern… and has an expiry date. To fight it, Rose will need to confront the painful memories of her past and confront the evil in her present.

This is a well-crafted, atmospheric horror picture that finds the balance between long, creepy moments and jump scares. Turning a smile, which is usually a kind and pleasant expression, into something sinister and a source of fear is a great approach that inherently makes audiences uneasy. Interestingly, innocuous smiles seem quite rare in the film, making the appearance of the malevolent ones even more frightening. Writer-director Parker Finn also includes homages to other genre movies, such as Terminator 2, The Thing, It and Evil Dead.

Unfortunately, for all its success in the scare department, there are significant character flaws as most of those around Rose are poorly developed and become an annoyance in the film. Her sister’s reaction to her potential psychosis is unduly harsh, mirroring her treatment of their mother rather than embracing an opportunity to do it differently this time. Rose’s fiancé (Jessie T. Usher) is equally dismissive and cruel, quickly turning on the woman he supposedly loves. Kal Penn play’s Rose’s boss, but his concerns, while legitimate, feel somewhat superficial. In the end, Joel is the one shining light in Rose’s life and the script.

Bacon is convincing as Rose, whose gradual unravelling is reflected in her deteriorating appearance, but there is something about her performance that isn’t a perfect fit. Gallner plays the skeptical but supportive ex to a tee, benefitting from being one of the best written characters in the whole movie. The other actors deliver good performances, but are saddled with unbelievable personalities that, in turn, diminishes their work. But credit must be given to all the actors who put their best creepy smiles on display as they are the heart of the film.

Director: Parker Finn
Starring: Sosie Bacon, Jessie T. Usher and Kyle Gallner