Nerds That Geek Movie Review: 'The Nursery'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

​There are many elements that go into making a quality horror film. First and foremost, it has to be scary, and it has to unsettle its audience. But I think one particular element that has been nearly forgotten as the years have gone by is that a horror film should also suck you in when it comes to the story. Because in doing that, you’re completely invested in the events unfolding on the screen and that can sometimes add a new level of terror to the story in question, and recently, I had the opportunity to watch a horror flick that did a fine job of drawing me into the unfolding nightmare it presented in The Nursery.
 
Now in this particular tale we are introduced to a young woman named Ranae who is about to get her boring Saturday night underway. For she’s agreed to babysit for a couple that lives out in the boondocks, and this family’s newborn baby does nothing but eat and sleep. Meaning her job on this eve is to simply keep an eye on the little guy and while that seems simple enough, strange things begin to manifest themselves in the house shortly after the parents leave and it seems to be getting worse as the hours roll on. Thankfully her best friend and a few other pals swing by to keep her company and keep her mind off these strange events but soon, whatever is spooking Ranae is harassing her friends and it doesn’t take them that long to realize that something sinister is with them in the house, and it has its sights set on hurting every last one of them…
 
So, let’s get this out of the way right now, this was an incredibly enjoyable horror film for so many reasons, but the main one, relates to what I mentioned a moment ago, the fact that it draws you in, and what matters when it comes to that is how this movie grabs your attention in that…it simply drops you into the moment. By focusing heavily on the mundane act of getting to Ranae’s destination and settling in for a boring babysitter job, the spiritual activity in this house completely and utterly catches you off guard, to the point where a couple of the jump scares caught me by surprise and it only gets worse from there. Because the audience is in essence privy to a downward spiral as the spirit in question gains strength and really, that descent into terror is in fact the film’s greatest strength.
 
Because the story takes its sweet time in letting the horror play out, meaning that moment by moment the tension continues to build to its eventual crescendo and the wonder of this decision doesn’t end there. Because by taking the slow approach to the scares, the story is also able to take its time in revealing all of the details about the evil spirit in question and this, was quite frankly my favorite part of the movie simply because often times, movies in this vein tip their hand when it comes to the spirit’s origin way too early in the story, removing any shred of mystery and power surrounding said spirit and that made the moment when the truth came out as to exactly who/what was terrorizing Ranae and her friends supremely satisfying to say the least.
 
So really, when all is said and done, this is just a good old fashioned fun horror flick. One that will surprise you with its jump scares, and one that draws you in with a fascinating plot and what makes this film a rousing success in my eyes, is the fact that it’s genuine. There’s no storytelling gimmicks or elaborate sets to be found here. Just a scary story, one where the audience and the characters are put through the ringer and it is that honest approach to storytelling that allows for me to recommend this movie to all of you because it really is just a lovely little gem of a horror film.

---