The Black Phone 2021

This is a decent little movie by Scott Derrickson and Joe Hill. I say "little" because the scope of the movie seems very small. Sure, it deals with children, who are small, but it's also in a small town where people can go missing as often as they do and nobody can do anything about it. But don't get me wrong, they are little, and that's why the grabber wants them.

It's mostly through the children's perspectives, and they do a decent job. Plus, these kids are beating the shit out of each other, so it's great. Joe Hill inherited a lot from his dad's writing, including the theme of bullies, psychics, friendship, abusive fathers, and probably some other things. I can't vouch for any of the source material on account of my illiteracy, but the movie plays out pretty well.

There's a fair amount of buildup before the abduction plot gets going, but it feels right. What you wont get much of is Ethan Hawke as the grabber, but you can tell he had fun in the role. Kids would be scared of this guy.

Also worth mentioning is James Ransone. I love that guy. He plays an enthustiastic cokehead trying to solve a mystery.

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