The Midnight Man (III) (2016) User Reviews (98)

May the Fear be With You

[Tweetienator · 5/10 · 7 March 2018]

Today people tend to claim a movie is a masterpiece and cinematic triumph or it is a total disaster, the worst movie I ever watched etc. The Midnight Man imho does not belong in either category, it is a small horror movie with a story-line based on a game that evokes a dark, evil entity and the price of the game is one's life and if one loses the game you get a fine cruel death. (Well, some dark souls could rightfully argue that a cruel death is still a kind of good reward, because, you know, who wants to die a common, total boring death!?)

So, in short, for sure there is nothing new in the western front, but what we get are decent actors (Lin Shaye, Robert Englund, also the young actors do not disappoint) and a good production value with some nice value of gore and splatter and a good, dark atmosphere and a very bad guy.

Yes, this movie is no Oscar material or made to be someday called cvlt, but The Midnight Man is a pro made movie and imo for the aficionado of horror a good snack in-between. My rate 5, maybe a 6.

Baffling

[mikaltemog · 4/10 · 30 October 2021]

The film isn't terrible, more so the basic premise.

I found myself just constantly asking questions as nothing made sense.

The main question being, why would ANYONE play this "game"? There seems to be no benefit to anyone playing, even if they win?

What's Your Fear?

[nogodnomasters · 5/10 · 4 July 2018]

Alex Luster (Gabrielle Haugh) cares for her maternal grandmother Anna Luster (Lin Shaye). Not sure how those surnames worked out. She discovers the Midnight Man game in the attic and plays it with a friend while folks drop in after midnight. The Midnight Man is a pagan demon, who like slugs, don't like salt. Robert Englund cameo is the sell point.

This film is fair, but not as good as the original Irish version which is included in the DVD. Lin Shaye was good. You can keep the rest.

Guide: F-word. No sex or nudity. English and Spanish subtitles.

A nonsensical muddle

[ebeckstr-1 · 2/10 · 15 September 2018]

Poorly written, poorly directed, poorly edited. This movie is a muddled mess, with characters doing even more stupid things than usual. Your friend is in immanent danger and can't leave the room, but you can. You leave to get something that will help. Instead of rushing back to your friend you decide to have a romantic conversation with your romantic interest in the hallway. Then you decide it would be a good idea to have a 10 or 15 minute conversation with another character, all the while aware that your friend in the next room could be dying.

Midnight Man is a poorly produced entry in the urban legend sub-genre, grab-bagging various horror tropes, and blandly applying them to a script which has little internal logic and a stupid ending to cap it all off. One of the worst horror movies I've seen in quite some time.

The Midnight Meh

[questl-18592 · 3/10 · 1 November 2020]

Wow did this movie manage to hit a lot of pet peeves with me. It's not well acted, it's got a LOT of really convoluted and seemingly nonsensical rules, characters are wildly stupid or just immediately buy into this supernatural horror story for seemingly no apparent reason and worst of all, this seems like it could actually be an entertaining concept. I like the idea of the Midnight Man, but this delivery was awful to me. I suppose, as a caveat I should say that I didn't know until after the movie that this was based on a legit urban legend. Maybe if I'd grown up with this or ever heard it before it would've made a little more sense but even so, it doesn't change the overwhelming stupidity of these characters.

I really can't imagine ever recommending this to anyone that doesn't enjoy bad horror movies, I know those people are out there. To everyone else, there are much better movies, go watch one of them and let this slip through the cracks. Maybe someday someone will try their hand at this again and make a better version.

Do not waste your time

[Otte1 · 3/10 · 7 July 2018]

I had no expectations going into this movie and was still disappointed. Biggest caveat is there were zero reasoning or purpose for the characters to even start the process. You would think that after a movie like 'Cabin In The Woods' that horror directors would step up their game to ensure that they are not just an unintended parody of themselves. But alas, must not have gotten memo.

Main actress unable to act...check Dumb boyfriend/husband that goes along without questioning...check Left alone in dark room....check Having non-nonsensical conversation while someone is trying to kill you...check Do not run away when trouble arrives...check

By the time this movie ends you no longer cares who will make it or not.

I liked it

[millserika · 7/10 · 3 January 2019]

I'm a fan of Creepypasta. This movie was straight from a story called "The Midnight Game". The movie did a decent job of explaining how the game is played and sticking to the original Creepypasta storyline. The performance of Ms. Shaye was Excellent. It did get a bit muddled in places, and some bits were added that I think should of either been omitted or explained better. But all in all, one of the better Creepypasta adaptations I've seen.

I think my IQ points went down just by watching this

[mrashtastic89 · 1/10 · 16 June 2021]

(Spoilters ahead) this is one of the stupidest horror films I've ever seen, it is really dumb! The acting is worse than awful, the editing is horrible, and I have to talk about the worst thing, there is barely any backstory to the midnight man and why he does what he does, and I also have to talk about the ending, why did they die when they were still in the circle? It makes no sense, and the rules to this game are barely explained.

The only good performances are from Lin Shaye and Robert Englund, they're the best parts of the movie, and everything else is totally awful! When it comes to the most important parts, writing and direction and scares, it's seriously lacking. The direction is so lazy and lacks any interesting camera angles or style, and it is the funniest comedy of 2016! It's not scary in the slightest oh my god, it also has real rough dialogue and terrible characters, if you have money, keep it, you deserve your money, put in in your wallet, or your purse, or a handbag or wherever else you keep your money I don't want to micromanage that, do not pay money to see this, do not give your time to this movie, don't even try to download this thing, it is not worth 95 minutes of your time that I just wasted. I'm just gonna get what you already know is coming out of the way, I'm gonna give The Midnight Man and F, did you expect anything else?

It does what it is supposed to do.........

[BigDaddyStuMonroe · 7/10 · 3 February 2018]

What is the mark of a good horror movie (hell, a good movie PERIOD)? Does it pull you out of your shitty reality for a while and entertain the crap out of you. That's the formula. In that regard, I have no complaints about "The Midnight Man".

You have Robert Englund and Lin Shaye together again. He is mesmerizing as always and she is creepier than the titular Midnight Man himself. You can't go wrong there.

Are there plot holes and times when the suspension of disbelief wavers a bit? Sure. However, they did such a good job with the atmosphere and effects, generally speaking, that you really don't get too put out by this. At least, I didn't.

I have no reservations about recommending this one. It's worth an hour and a half of your life.

The Midnight Man

[frank-c-giugliano · 4/10 · 13 May 2020]

The Midnight Man stars horror legends Robert Englund (A Nightmare on Elm Street) and Lin Shaye (Insidious) in this remake of the 2013 Irish horror movie Midnight Man and presumed inspired by The Midnight Game, the 2013 film adapted from the creepypasta of the same name. Our legendary icon's portrayals are not at their best, however it's not the acting that disengages the audience, but rather writer and director Travis Zariwny's bland script. Zariwny successfully creates a few moments of tension throughout but the missed opportunities are too many.

In the well-maintained attic fully furnished with a curious male mannequin and a gun with three bullets, a sealed box containing the pieces needed to play The Midnight Game, is discovered. The cursed pagan game awaits innocent curiosity to thus bring forth a demonic spirit, The Midnight Man-an evil so smart, its strength lies in its savvy to trick players to their demise.

Follow the rules and you will be safe, don't and you will die! Only problem with the 'rules' of this game is that time and time again we observe, the Midnight Man does not like to follow rules as he "does not like to lose."

Decades before in the very mansion Alexandra (Gabrielle Haugh) now resides as caretaker to her declining grandmother Ana (Lin Shaye), The Midnight Game was played with dire consequence. Once again the box is finally opened by Alex and her friend Miles (Grayson Gabriel), who will wager everything for a few hours of trying to stay alive. Although one can't help but wonder "why on earth would anyone would want to play this 'game'?"

Suspend your disbelief as we may for even the best of horror films, but unfortunately The Midnight Man still falls short on scares. Contributed to bland CGI, the monster's lackluster appeal mixed with its obvious Halloween store allure, and The Midnight Man is a bore. The fact that the imminently endangered teens have full sentence conversations with the raspy voiced Midnight Man himself takes away from the suspense at once.

Quite possibly the most absurd aspect of the film happens when in the midst of fighting off The Midnight Man, Alex and Miles find themselves answering a knock on the door by a third friend, Kelly (Emily Haine) who we discover is well versed on the Urban Legend and therefore remains in the house to help her friends. "You can get out now," Alexandra tells Kelly. "I wouldn't desert my friends," she replies. (She probably should have heeded the warning if you catch my drift.)

The Midnight Man is a glossy, commercial looking film that will keep viewers tuned in from start to finish. As a background movie or out of desperation, the film will suffice. The biggest crime though that The Midnight Man has commited is that you will likely not remember much of it after a short time.

Waste of time and boring

[samanthayates-14293 · 21 August 2018]

I found this film very boring and slow to get into, was a bit scary up until you see and hear the midnight man taking and just reminded me or scarecrow from batman. Was more gory then needed to be and to me was just a waste of time. I'd never even heard about this film before I saw it on sky cinema and knew it was going to be a disappointment.

Its been done before but still worth the look.

[kelliecharles · 8/10 · 22 January 2018]

As most horror movies over the past years, this movie has the same rings as others that have come before it.

Having two horror icons such as Englund and Shaye you expect a certain quality about it. I enjoyed it, had some jump scares, a mental mind bump and an ending which was slightly predictable but still played out well.

I recommend if you watch it to watch with an open mind and just enjoy this horror for what its worth. Slight gore, jump scares and a fairly good and twisted storyline.

Interesting concept, disappointing delivery

[AdamJACox · 6/10 · 5 January 2022]

The basic idea is that the people who play the game have to survive from midnight to 3:34 whilst avoiding the midnight man and his shenanigans. The midnight man supposedly finds out your worst fear and intends on using against you. Each person playing has a candle which when lit means they are essentially safe but if it goes out they have 10 seconds to relight it (a nice way of introducing sudden jeopardy) or circle themselves with salt.

The problem with this film is it doesn't build up suspense well, each character only seems to come in to contact with the midnight man twice, *Spoiler Alert* once to reveal their fear to the audience and the second to kill them. Unfortunately a lot of the time this film feels tedious and lacking inspiration. For example it is revealed that Alex has a fear of blood and yet the midnight man never uses this against baring one scene (and for someone who's worst fear is blood, she sure didn't seem to mind the rather gory ending).

Obviously the characters are in a horror film so they have their stupidness dialled up to 11. Alex and Max find a box, open it and immediately start playing whatever it is they have found, to the point where they do a sort of blood ritual before they even finish reading the 1 page of rules explaining what they are committing to. Their friend Kelly (who knows a little bit about the midnight man game and apparently wasn't busy at 1am) immediately joins in rather than leaving and going home. Later in the film the characters go to the greenhouse for no good reason other than it's a way to introduce water (which is inconveniently great at putting out candles)

The film adds some star power with it's casting of Robert Englund as Dr. Harding (I like him as an actor but his character is so minor, it basically could have been played by anyone) and Lin Shaye as Anna. She is undoubtedly excellent as 'old lady in horror film' but her character motivations make no sense. She was one of the original kids shown playing the game in the introduction (and only survivor) and it's revealed she has since been getting others to play the game, but why? Is it like the film Truth or Dare where the only way to survive is to distract the 'bogeyman' with others, is she possessed into doing these things by the midnight man or is she just a horrible person (she seemingly showed no remorse for getting her daughter killed and certainly did nothing to stop the midnight man).

The Midnight Man played by Kyle Strauts is probably underutilised, he is a suitably creepy bad guy, he lurks in the shadows and passes quickly across the screen every now and again but it would have been nice to see him have more 1-on-1 contact with the characters. He has several creepy masks/faces (that's a good thing but I see no reason why he keeps changing his look at the end of the film) and I love the fact that he plays the game but he cheats (*Spoiler Alert* he forces Kelly out of her salt circle by tipping over pots of water ~just on a side note this whole scene was excellent~ and by changing the clocks to trick Alex and Miles in to thinking that they had survived)

Overall this was a disappointing film considering that I liked the concept and thought that it had all the ingredients to be good but was perhaps let down by poor writing.

Completely tasteless

[PubHound · 4/10 · 14 January 2018]

4 -

I already knew, even before watching it, that this was a pretty bad movie, but I didn't expect it to take itself so seriously since the beginning. And with all that, the acting was kinda crap and the story was one of the most recycled plots of all time. But the main issue with this movie is definitely the horror factor, because believe me, there's basically none : the entity is just lame and keeps talking throughout the film, shutting down any feeling of distress or fear the public could have towards it. Even the jumpscares were the most idiotics I've seen in a long time, definitely lazy and predictable to me, and i'm not even a jumpscare fan.

Easily avoidable, save your time

This movie sucked

[reala-63706 · 1/10 · 17 February 2019]

First off there was zero incentive for them to play the dumb game to with. The friend that comes joins in on the game to help them, and we she needs saving they left her, talked awhile, kissed, and rambled on some more with the doctor (who randomly decided to show up) and while the doctor spends his time monologuing, what he could have done to be helpful was find some more candles, get a lighter, or anything else other than what he was doing. I created an IMDb account just to complain how bad this was

Shocking awful

[Horror_Flick_Fanatic · 1/10 · 26 February 2018]

I was looking for another film with the same title. Little did I know there were other films with the same title in 2016, 2017 and 2018. I should have stopped watching as soon as I saw Robert Englund. But the opening scene with the three children was quite good that I continued to watch. The film's atmosphere and location setting were very good. I really liked the home and thought it would have made an excellent setting for a more serious horror film. This film had Lin Shaye, the Parapsychologist Dr. Elise Rainier of the Insidious trilogy. During the first ten minutes I thought this film was going to be good, but oh-oh ho ho, how wrong I was. What a deceptive movie this was. It seemed like a prank to the serious horror and suspense movie buff.

The screenplay was so awful, it was laughable. If you have seen the Geico Insurance commercial where they make fun of characters making awful decisions in horror films; the one where the killer with the hockey mask and chainsaw shakes his head in disbelief of how easy the characters make his job of killing them? Then you will get an idea of what you are in for when you play this movie. If they could condense this film to a few minutes, it would have made a good Halloween SNL skit. I was seriously disappointed that Lin Shaye would make such an awful film.

But if you are looking for a comedy and not a serious horror film, this one might satisfy. I had watched two serious European horror films before this one so my expectations were a little high. Watching this film felt like falling off the Empire State Building observation deck. Me? It had me cringing more often than laughing. A supernatural killer that cheats at his own games? Come On....Leave that kind of comedy for Ryan Reynolds in Deadpool 2. Even at comedy, it is a poor attempt at only a few small laughs and lots mind-numbing character dialog.

Btw, Anyone who gives this film a 10 out of 10 is obviously a friend of the filmmaker and they aren't doing them any favors. People get upset when they are lured into watching a film based on false reviews. I'm giving it a 1 out of 10.

Community theater with a sfx budget

[Howling_at_the_Moon_Reviews · 4/10 · 31 October 2023]

The story, while certainly nothing excitingly original, was still intriguing. I think this had some light potential conceptually but was majorly let down by the acting and the script.

There's no need to harp too much on the negative, but both of these aspects were overwhelmingly poor and were a large factor in this movie's low rating. The acting was contrived and stilted from the majority of the people involved and it honestly made it difficult to watch. It also certainly didn't help that they had an honestly piss poor script to work with. It sounded like a high schooler wrote it in creative writing, it was pretty shocking how juvenile it sounded.

Despite these aspects it did have some positives. As stated, a moderately intriguing plot and when the spook was spooking, it spooked. I was pleasantly surprised with the creep factor. Had some dope kills, pretty gnarly cgi and sfx and was generally pretty atmospheric so that was certainly redeeming.

Overall though I must say that it was a little difficult to watch and I don't know that I would necessarily recommend it unless you're a true fan of indie horror.

Travis Z's craft is solid. The Midnight Man is a good horror movie that delivers. 7/10

[parkerlinda-31199 · 7/10 · 23 January 2018]

As a stand alone movie, it's great. The kills are solid. The Midnight Man is creepy AF! The cinematography is spot on. For an Indie horror movie it looks like a big budget movie. The production value of the film sprints passed what we see on bigger budgets like Insidious, Wish Upon, and The Bye Bye Man. This movie is leagues above the standard low budget fair. I watched The Midnight Man with a couple friends and we all screamed at the scares and grimaced at the gore. It's great fun. The characters are acceptablly believable and Lin Shaye is awesome as is Robert Englund. Granted there are a couple problems in the script but not enough to hate on. After an bloody explosive opening the first act drags on a little as it attempts to get us into the actual Midnight Game. However, if you are in the mood for a horror movie that doesn't follow the classic tropes of cheerleaders running through the forest then this is your movie. The teens are portrayed against stereotypes and the whole film feels like a weird creepy fable unfolding in a non linear fashion. The practical effects are excellent as is the face changing Midnight Man.. he uses different masks to show his emotions... never seen that before! Travis Zariwny (aka Travis Z ) does a slick job directing this remake of Rob Kennedy's original film. Travis Z's craft is solid and his artistic stamp is all over this gorgeous looking movie. The script feels a little loose but we forgive him for that... Best line of the film goes to Robert Englund when he turns to the teenagers and says, "Bait? I'm afraid your friend is no longer bait, she's the appetizer." love me some horror cheese.

Final Word. We liked it. Well worth a movie night for film and horror fans alike.

Meh.

[hasnarb · 2/10 · 1 June 2018]

Here's a huge spoiler: this whole movie is a mess.

Starting out at the characters in the movie. I didn't understand any of the characters at all. They all felt dumb to me because they just did whatever they wanted without any rationalization, like no real person would do. Some appeared here and there out of sudden, and it was really confusing. They didn't have any chemistry at all to each other, especially the love story of the main characters that felt way too forced.

Secondly, the plot is laughable, and there are plotholes everywhere. The story kept on jumping from one part to another and the explanation was non existing.

Lastly, none of the actors nor actresses act decently. The main actress' acting is so plain. None of them delivered any good impression on whatever character they're portraying.

The only reason I'm giving 2 stars instead of 1 is for the appreciation of the director's effort for at least making the atmosphere a horror-movie-like. Yeah, if only the plotholes were fixed and the whole casts were changed, it'd probably be a decent horror movie. But for now, it should probably be labelled as a comedy movie.

Need more time

[kosmasp · 6/10 · 4 December 2020]

Or less time? Or not watching this at all? Now I am a bit torn. I do think this looks really good and it has some moments where it works quite nicely (the horror of it) ... and it also has some fine actors in it! Robert Englund and Lin Shaye to name the two I'm most familiar with.

So while I do love them, there are also certain moments that really don't work at all. Like when two characters leave another character alone ... like almost abandon her! Yes there is some incentive to say, well it's not that bad ... but there is also some to say "with friends like these ...". So yes you may get annoyed by it to some degree, you may have issues with the cliches ... but you might also like to see the positives. The ending is ok ... or decent. Nothing more, nothing less

I wish there were negative ratings as well...

[silvertongue-44832 · 1/10 · 17 March 2018]

The trailer made me watch this film but oh boy I was wrong. Skip this one!

A Good Horror , Well Worth a Watch!!

[Moviereeeels12 · 8/10 · 20 April 2018]

If you like your films acted by students, filmed on a phone with a budget of the price of a coffee ... this film is NOT for you!!! I see the trolls have been on this one, unjust bad reviews, the acting, quality, visuals, budget and storyline all good. It's not an oscar winner and not a 'conjuring scare you silly film', but its a good little horror with some strong well done violence and petite scares, lovely performances from cult and familiar faces.... trolls you have your cheap student horror flicks with generic film posters that have nothing to do with the film ... and i'll stick to 'REAL' horror films !!!

Honestly not that bad

[ibrandonross · 7/10 · 12 March 2019]

It is certainly not going to win any awards, it will certainly keep you entertained. Lin Shaye and Robert Englund bring their A game as usual, and the young actors are actually not that bad. This movie definitely has its flaws, but you will never be bored while watching it

Terrible

[rivanerakaren · 1/10 · 8 August 2018]

Please don't waste your time watching this its awful. Terrible acting, totally not scary it should never have been done.

All this did was remind me of spongebob

[kdero34 · 2/10 · 16 March 2018]

It's just like spongebob squarepants... "The Camping Episode" "THAT WAS AN OVAL!!! IT HAS TO BE A CIRCLE"