Citadel (2012) [REVIEW]

Obviously all of you guys who read this site know how big of a hot shot in the world of filmmaking I am, but would you believe that not everyone agrees with that? I know, right?! Due to not being a pretty big wheel at the cracker factory, this means I have a harder time than some when it comes to getting access to film festivals. It’s that time of the year when the Chicago International Film Festival is going on and there are a few horror movies playing that I’m interested in, and one that has already played at a few film festivals is Citadel. Despite not having enough clout to get press credentials for the event, or to get tickets for the Citadel screening, I do have an internet connection and was able to bother enough people to have an opportunity to enter a secret code to watch it online. I’m sure that last part sounds like I did something illegal to see it, but I didn’t! I’m a big shot! A BIG SHOOOOOTTTTT!!!!! If you continue reading, there will be spoilers, however, if you’d like to read a spoiler-free review, feel free to read my review over on Shock Ya.

TAKE THAT SHIT TO MORDOR, FRODO! By the way, this isn’t actually Frodo.

While moving out of his apartment building with his pregnant wife, Tommy (Aneurin Barnard) gets stuck on an elevator and is left helpless while seeing his wife attacked by a group of kids wearing hooded sweatshirts. She is left in a coma, but not after the baby pops out of her, and it’s up to Tommy to take care of the baby. This horrifying encounter has left Tommy absolutely terrified of leaving his own house. Despite a counselor in town helping him through his fears, Tommy’s also being told by a priest that his fears are back up by the fact that these little kids really are demons. We think Tommy might be getting over his fears when we see the counselor get attacked and murdered by these little jerks and Tommy gets a better look at them and realizes yes, these are little monsters. Luckily, the priest knows how to get rid of them, which involves blowing up the apartment building that is there headquarters. While attempting to blow things up, Tommy learns that these little shithead demons really only can see people when they’re in fear, so as long as Tommy quells his fears, he can walk right past them. Despite the priest dying in the process, Tommy is able to blow up the apartment building, but does this mean him and his daughter are safe forever? WE MAY NEVER KNOOOOOOOOW!

This kid looks like he put ZERO effort into his Halloween costume.

I got pretty nervous in the beginning of the movie because things were playing out more like a psychological thriller than a horror movie. Granted, some people would argue at how effectively horrific psychological horror can be, but sometimes when a movie pulls that “Oh hey, it was all in your head” trick on me, it can be kind of annoying. Luckily, things were substantiated with the reveal that these little assholes were demons and we knew that the threat wasn’t just in Tommy’s head. Despite me not typically enjoying psychological thrillers, the way that Tommy’s fear of the outside world was handled earlier on was done well and although I haven’t had to experience as severe a trauma as Tommy, seemed to portray the kind of struggles that victims go through. I don’t know guys, even though there wasn’t necessarily anything WRONG with the movie, I just didn’t really connect with it all that much. I’m sure there will be other people out there that are/will be more into this movie than I was, but I’ll definitely keep my eyes out for whatever writer/director Ciaran Foy comes out with next.

Wolfman Moon Scale