Review: 'Ouija' feels like the Halloween episode of a teen drama
Ouija board. (Universal Pictures)
Marcus Goh is a former Singapore television scriptwriter. He’s also a Transformers enthusiast and avid pop culture scholar. Tweets/Instagrams at Optimarcus and writes at marcusgohmarcusgoh.com. The views expressed are his own.
Secret ending? No.
Running time: 89 minutes (1.5 hours)
"Ouija" is a supernatural horror film about a group of teenagers who play with an ouija board to find closure after the death of their friend. However, they accidentally unleash a vengeful spirit during their game, and must now find a way to stop the ghost before it kills them all. It stars Olivia Cooke (Laine Morris), Ana Coto (Sarah Morris), Shelley Hennig (Debbie), and Daren Kagasoff (Trevor).
Being in Singapore, you’d be more apt to play with the Chinese “dish spirit” than an Ouija board, but the concepts are similar enough that you’ll soon understand what’s happening in “Ouija.”
Debbie (Shelley Hennig). (Universal Pictures)
So what’s fun about “Ouija?”
Good looking characters
"Ouija" feels like an episode from "Pretty Little Liars" or "Gossip Girl." Or even "The Vampire Diaries" but with ghosts. It’s great that the cast members all look like teen idols, because it makes for easy watching. Also, they look distinct from each other, so it’s easy to identify the characters and understand what’s happening right from the beginning.
Isabelle (Bianca A. Santos). (Universal Pictures)
Unfortunately, that’s about the only plus point in “Ouija.”
The action starts too late
The movie takes its time settling you in, and introducing you to the characters - but it takes far too long to get to the meat of the story, which is the haunting that results from the ouija board they play with. They sit down and actually play only halfway through Act Two, meaning that the movie really starts only about 40 minutes in. You could come in incredibly late, and still be in time to catch the titular ouija board being used.
Weird scares
There’s really no way to describe the scares that come from the show. There are cheap scares, for sure, but the supposedly horrifying way that the characters die quickly devolves into a parody of itself as it happens in almost the exact same way for each of them. It’s not the effects are badly done or it’s poor editing. It’s just that the image of the stitched mouth becomes of an awkward motif than an actual scare.
Predictable scenes
You don’t really watch a horror movie for the plot, and that’s understandable. The thing is, the movie openly telegraphs what to expect next, but continues playing out the scene as if it were the most unexpected event in the world. It dangles, no, focuses your attention on objects that can maim, removing all surprise when supernatural forces cause said object to attack the characters. At least the loud shock factor is there.
Sarah (Ana Coto), Laine (Olivia Cooke), and Trevor (Daren Kagasoff) summon a spirit. (Universal Pictures)
"Ouija" is easy on the eyes thanks to the beautiful cast, but it feels more like the Halloween special of a teen drama than an actual movie. There are better horror movies to watch during this Halloween season, especially if you want to be frightened.
Should you watch this at weekday movie ticket prices? No.
Should you watch this for free? There are better movies to watch.
"Ouija" opens in cinemas 23 October, 2014 (Thursday).
