‘Horns’ can’t make up its mind
Photo by Katherine Rountree
Written by Anais Corrales
From the director of “The Hills Have Eyes” and “Mirrors” comes “Horns,” a supernatural thriller adapted from Joe Hill’s novel of the same name. The film assembles a wonderful cast of rising stars: Daniel Radcliffe as Ig Perrish, a young man accused of murdering his girlfriend, Merrin Williams, played by Juno Temple. Heather Graham is a gossiping waitress who makes his life a living hell. If only there was enough star power to help “Horns” rise above the sea of fantasy/romance book-to-movie adaptations. Unfortunately, the film never confidently finds its stride and drifts aimlessly from bleak satire to aggressive horror.
“Horns” takes its time to warm up. First it yearns to be a hip indie flick as the camera pans across Ig’s wall of vinyl records. He broodingly narrates his devotion to girlfriend Merrin as David Bowie and The Pixies play in the background.
Then it takes an abrupt turn down the black comedy route with humor so dark it’s almost crude. We spend the next hour and a half being jolted back and forth through the clunky script, disoriented as it rips us from any stable narrative. Just as it stretches toward a silver lining, it shies away and never completely embraces its dark side.
Upon discovering the horns sprouting from his head can force people to confess their darkest secrets, Ig puts his new powers to work. This results in some of the best scenes in the entire film. Radcliffe’s sheer charisma keeps us glued to the screen as he suggests a horde of reporters brawl for an exclusive story and endures harrowing confessions from his family members. Even complete strangers reveal their secrets in increasingly bizarre and hilarious encounters.
There is no argument that Radcliffe has grown into a fantastic actor; he just had a lot to act through. Just as “Horns” picks up the momentum, it slows back down again and slaps the audience with a heavy flashback and loses its cheeky grin.
This is perhaps the same predicament as 2012’s “Seeking a Friend for the End of the World,” a film that ambitiously tries to juggle several genres in one film but never finds balance. You could argue the film worked best as a dark comedy, but the drunken confessions scenes begin to pile up and soil the film’s gritty undertones. The laughs undermine Radcliffe’s devilish transformation.
As the climax finally comes crashing to an end and Merrin’s murderer is revealed, we are left wondering if we even enjoyed the ride. “Horns” throws in a few painfully desperate jabs at the end, but it seems like it was damned from the start.
