John Hyams follows up the criminally underrated Alone (2020) with a slick slasher film called “Sick,” set during the COVID-19 period. Penned by Kevin Williamson (creator of the Scream series) and Katelyn Crabb, Sick begins with a sequence in which a college student named Tyler Murphy (Joel Courtney) is shopping in a supermarket that looks like a post-apocalyptic place where there is a shortage of essentials like toilet paper. Tyler receives an anonymous text from someone asking him if he is ready for a party, to which Tyler enthusiastically replies, “Sure!” even though the entire country is under quarantine. But as the texting continues, Tyler grows uncomfortable and realizes that someone is stalking him in the supermarket. As Tyler returns home and starts sterilizing all the groceries while watching the news about COVID, he realizes that someone is inside the house. The stalker attacks Tyler and kills him. This entire opening sequence is a perfect set-up for what is about to follow in the movie.
The film changes its focus to college students Parker Mason (Gideon Aldon) and Miri Woodrow (Bethlehem Million), who plan to spend quarantine at Parker’s family lake house. Parker is laissez-faire about the whole mask thing, and when Miri reminds her to wear one, she claims that she doesn’t have any COVID symptoms and tells Miri to relax. When they get to the lake house, which is far from everywhere and has nothing within a two-mile radius, a guy named DJ Cole (Dylan Sprayberry), who used to have a fling with Parker, shows up unannounced. They end up staying up late, drinking, and smoking weed. When Parker begins receiving the same set of messages that Tyler did, it’s only a matter of time before the stalker goes after them, turning the movie into a relentless war for survival.
The movie has enough twists and turns to keep you hooked until the end. The night of Parker and Miri’s arrival at the lake house, there is a scene with a brilliant red herring that both deceived and terrified me at once. The filmmakers are aware that audiences are familiar with the typical conventions of a slasher film, and yet, they manage to subvert the viewer’s expectations with intelligent writing.
When Parker, Miri, and DJ learn there is a stalker in the house, the next 30 minutes of the movie are pure joy in terms of action choreography. Although I was impressed by the action in John Hyams’ Alone, he ups the ante in Sick. He uses the geography and the night setting perfectly with dynamic camera movements and hard cuts to provide one incredible mini-action set piece after another. Yaron Levy, the cinematographer, uses depth of field effectively to create suspense. When the actors are strolling around the house, he shoots them using medium close-ups or medium shots so that there is always room in the background behind them. The use of shallow and deep depths of the field heightens viewers’ anticipation and anxiety about the possibility of someone lurking behind the character.
Sick makes the best use of the COVID period, especially in the third act, when a major twist occurs, revealing the stalker’s identity and ambitions. Similar to last year’s Bodies, Bodies, Bodies, Sick too, in a small way, make observations about Gen Z and their ignorant perspective of looking at things. Parker’s Instagram feed shows her partying during COVID, which becomes a significant factor in the film’s climax.
The plot twists in this movie come at appropriate times. For example, whenever Parker and Miri believe they have defeated the enemy, a twist occurs, and they go back two steps. Furthermore, the movie also benefits from the girls’ tenacious resistance and the way they stick together despite facing increasingly perilous circumstances. I’ve only seen two of John Hyams’ films, but I’m impressed by his low-budget action staging and ability to maintain suspense in a scene. If you liked Alone, you are going to love this movie. I cannot wait to see what he comes up with next. Sick is now available on Peacock.
Sick movie link: IMDB
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