The Kids Aren't All Right

The Innocents (Eskil Vogt, 2022)

Feels like waiting for a bus when it comes to good movies, and then two come along at the same time; in this case, it's the second Nordic horror I wound up watching this week. Eskil Vogt's The Innocents is an intimate and unique look at childhood development via a group of high rise kiddies, blessed with supernatural powers. Which places natural learning and well-being at complete odds with the maifestation of their paranormal powers.

What's particularly enjoyable about Vogt's film is the discard of any exposition to explain the source of the childrens' powers; which would have probably dragged the film down, in my humble opinion. Instead, their supernatural gifts are conveyed with the same sense of wonder and acceptance; much like anything else by its young recipients. There's also the conflicition of children having the capability of being sadistically cruel at times; resulting in some unexpected dread surfacing in its high realism. It's this dichomity which results in some unsettling moments in the film. The bullied, Ben (Sam Ashraf) gets more sadistic as his telekinetic powers grow stronger, to the point where he tortures and kills a cat, to commiting murder via mind control and telekinisis. Authoritarian figures, such as the kids' parents, are not only oblivious to the disturbingly goings on in their childrens' lives, but also to their paranormal powers.

The plot is a classic tale of good and evil, with the morally grey Ida (Rakel Lenora Fløttm) having to choose a path as represented by the empathic Aisha (Mina Yasmin Bremseth Asheim) and the destructive Ben. The life of her autistic sister, Anna (Alva Brynsmo Ramstad), who she initially tortures by placing broken glass in her shoes, is also in serious jeopardy since her powers rival Ben's. Anna is the vital component in Ida's final decision. Letterboxd rabble could lazily dub this as an A24 mumblecore take on the X-Men, but it has more in common with the likes of  Village of the Damned (1961) and Scanners (1981) than it does to all that overplayed capeshit.

Stylistically, it's well shot and very well acted. The high rise apartments look like every other urban hellhole, so it gets thumbs up for not being another suburban chiller. Apart from some scenes feeling a little long and drawn out here and there, this does a superb job in conveying the emotional and perplexing weight faced by its young ensemble cast. Its serious treatment and brutal realism make this a refreshingly unorthodox substitute to the deluge of superhero flicks we have had to endure over the last couple of decades. It might not be pretty, but it does a better job of portraying the moral compass most of us have had to learn in our childhoods, and to quote the late Stan 'the Man' Lee, "with great power - there must also come great responsibility!" which this offers in abundance.

It's at this point where I would throw a wobbly about it being a 2022 film rather than last year's, since it's a May '22 release where I am, but Google did prove it got a national public release in its country of origin. Fair to say then, that The Innocents probably fills the empty tenth spot from my Best Films of 2021 list, since I love it way more than any of the honourable mentions I also listed. (EDIT - changed it to a 2022 release. Feels dumb AF listing it as a film from last year and it being released now over here.)

Dada Debaser Bonus:

Now, I like my Nordic killer kiddie films, but I also like my Nordic kiddie horror films. But which is better? There's only one to find out. FIGHT!