Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘Nightmare Man’

Written by Scott Edwards 

It is difficult to be able to tell if someone is possessed or just crazy. Since the church has all but done away with exorcisms these days, everyone that claims to be possessed by the devil is deemed to be crazy. Even though by taking different medications to keep the voices in their heads at bay, when they are broken free of the pills, their inner demons are likely to come back out. Do I believe that it is possible that someone could be possessed by a demon? Although I have never witnessed it, it seems like it could be more likely than not, especially when I have been to haunted locations in my home state that seem to turn people into someone that they are not.

Ellen is trying everything with her husband to get pregnant and start a family, even purchasing pieces of art that are said to improve their sex drive and their chances. Receiving a mask in the mail that is supposedly a fertility god, Ellen and William are not too keen on keeping it around the house since it looks more like a demon than a god of any sort. But before it gets thrown into storage, Ellen tries it on and starts having nightmares about a demon that wants to fulfill her wishes of having new life grow inside of her. It does not happen the way she expects and now she is put on medication to keep the demon inside of her at bay until she is able to receive treatment at an out of the way clinic.

Mia, her boyfriend Ed, her best friend Trinity and Trinity’s fiancé Jack are all at the cabin for the weekend. As Trinity is about to get married, Mia wants to send her off in style with fun and games. But Mia and Trinity have a secret that Jack has not been made aware of yet and the two start to beat around the bush about what happened back in their college days. Wanting to loosen up the mood, Mia gets the group to play erotic truth or dare so some of their inner most fantasies can be revealed. As the game progresses, Mia hears something outside and goes to check it out, but what she and the group finds will change their weekend plans, for the worst.

On their way to the clinic, William runs out of gas and has to leave his wife in the car while he goes to get some help. As Ellen sits alone in the darkness, she starts to hear things in the woods. Thinking that it is just her imagination, she pops a pill and knows it will all go away, but after the car starts to be attacked, she sees the face of the Nightmare Man and knows that she is far from crazy. Running for her life, Ellen finds Mia’s cabin and is able to get some help, but the group does not truly understand what is happening around them. Knowing that there is someone following Ellen, they band together to try to keep her safe, but when they start to believe she is crazy, they let their guard down and start getting killed off one by one. Being cut off from civilization for the most part, the remaining group members have to find a way to survive the attack while having to listen to Ellen’s rants about the beast that is inside of her. Knowing that there is something worse in the woods, they find out that the crazy rantings are just the beginning of a night that no one will ever forget.

It has been several years since I first saw this film and I kind of regret it not watching it more after watching it again. With a great storyline attached to it, even the subplots are entertaining, especially when members of the group start dying off. It is always safe to assume that there is some truth to someone’s stories, even if they seem kind of outlandish. Ellen and Mia have to be my two favorite characters in this movie, Ellen because she has to go through more than one transition while being helped by strangers, and Mia, well because she is a bad ass and knows what to do to protect herself from whomever is hunting them in the woods. It is always good to get out of your comfort zone, but it may not be the best idea to do it in the woods. Stay Scared!

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