This was really good but it had a couple big faults. The first one being is that it was too long and felt incredibly bloated. A good 15-25 minutes could have been shaved off and it would have been a much tighter film. The second thing was that the CGI was hilariously awful. Whenever there was any kind of CGI, it was hard to take seriously because it was so unbelievably bad. That being said, there is still plenty to like here. The story is actually great and thought provoking. Daniel Radcliffe once again shows what a great actor he is. This is probably the most vulnerable he's been in a film and he is perfect, even if it took a bit to get used to his American accent. Juno Temple is also very good, as always and it was nice seeing Heather Graham as well. David Morse was also very good in his big scene, him and Radcliffe play perfectly off each other. So all in all I would say it's just a very good movie. With a bigger budget and some editing, it could have been a great one though.

B

His girlfriend is dead, and the entire town believes he is the murderer, though nothing is proven yet. This scenario (bearing a coincidental similarity to Gone Girl) faces Ig, played by Daniel Radcliffe, at the start of Horns, an adaptation of a novel by Joe Hill, Stephen King's talented son. His dire situation changes when, one morning, devil horns erupt from his head. As they grow larger, he realizes he has a new supernatural power: in the presence of the horns, people cannot help but reveal their most sinister and/or obscene secrets and fantasies. He uses this ability to investigate the mysterious murder of his girlfriend, played by a charming and welcome Juno Temple.

Blending humor, sensuality, sentimentality, and violence, Horns has a wildly uneven tone and begins stronger than it ends. Early doses of macabre and naughty comedy are amusing, and the image of a brooding Radcliffe with horns tearing through his forehead is painful and striking. As the film goes on (lasting a lengthy-for-the-genre two hours), however, it fails to coalesce into an entirely satisfying experience. Certain scenes connect and vibrate with originality. Others fall flat or resort to the hoariest of tropes. Director Alexandre Aja, who hit gory home runs with High Tension and the 2006 update of The Hills Have Eyes, seems a tad out of his element trying to maintain and mix so many characters and tones. He relies too heavily on explanatory voice-over and mediocre computer-generated imagery, yet the film has askew charms, too, and it never lost my interest even as it frustrated me. A dedicated, often fierce, and ultimately touching performance by Radcliffe helps.

C+

Honestly I only found it awful in one scene. Otherwise, while obvious it was CGI, it wasn't really any worse than the CGI in most movies.


I do agree this was over-long. But it was good. I wouldn't want to watch it again though.

B-