TV Obsessive
The Empty Man
Lor: After seeing a few people on Twitter mention how much they enjoyed The Empty Man, it’s been on my watch list for months. Now, having finally taken the plunge, I’m frankly mad at myself for putting it off for so long. The trailer made me believe it was an urban legend film in the same vein as The Bye Bye Man and I’m apparently not the only one led astray by this. It’s instead a deeply interesting dive into cults and cosmic entities. It takes almost the entire run time to understand what the title of The Empty Man means, but the journey to get there had me captivated. I felt rewarded when some of my guesses turned out to be correct, which opened the door for more questions I wanted answered.
The setup is that a young girl goes missing, and former cop James follows a trail of strange events—and the legend of the Empty Man—to track her down. James Badge Dale does a great job at being both level-headed and sceptical. I appreciate when characters in movies react like how normal people would, including a “what the f*ck was that?” instead of nonchalance.
It’s incredibly unfortunate that the combination of a bad trailer and the pandemic destroyed this movie at the box office. If it had been an A24 venture, with that style of marketing and understanding what type of film it is, I’m certain it would be as beloved as any Ari Aster film. I was so intrigued to know more by the end that I went and bought the comics it’s based on and I cannot wait until they get here!
The Empty Man takes concepts from horror and weaves them into a refreshingly unique experience. An almost two-hour runtime practically flew by. It doesn’t feel bloated either, although I can understand if the slow pace puts some folks off.
I realize I’m being vague in regards to the plot but I feel this is a film that benefits from knowing very little going in. As James is solving a mystery and figuring things out, we as an audience are doing the same. It makes it feel like we are taking the same journey together. Just know I haven’t stopped thinking about The Empty Man since the credits rolled and I absolutely plan on viewing it again and again.
Those are our recommendations this week! What are yours? Let us know in the comments!
David Prior(director) should sue whoever released that trailer. I’m convinced more people would’ve seen it if not for that.
If you liked this(and it seems you did) go to Vimeo and watch Prior’s previous short ‘AM 1200’. It even has Ray Wise in a brief but effective role.
David Prior(director) should sue whoever released that trailer. I’m convinced more people would’ve seen it if not for that.
If you liked this(and it seems you did) go to Vimeo and watch Prior’s previous short ‘AM 1200’. It even has Ray Wise in a brief but effective role.