From the co-director of The Golden Compass and About a Boy comes a horror film that struggles to make an impact. Chris Weitz’s Afraid (or AfrAId) finds itself caught between different horror themes without committing to a clear direction.
The film tries to show the dangers of artificial intelligence (AI) but ends up muddled, mixing various horror elements that don’t coalesce into a coherent or engaging story.show the dangers of artificial intelligence (AI) but ends up m
What Is ‘Afraid’ About?
The film stars John Cho as Curtis, a marketing executive living comfortably with his wife Meredith (Katherine Waterston) and their children. Meredith is a stay-at-home mother who has yet to finish her entomology dissertation.
Curtis is involved with a new AI product from a company run by “The Kids,” Sam (Ashley Romans) and Lightning (David Dastmalchian). This AI, named AIA, is an advanced version of a home assistant, and Curtis’s family starts using it to help Curtis figure out how best to market it.
As the family begins to use AIA, the film attempts to go into the potential dangers of AI learning from social media and internet content. AIA “learns” by scraping data from various online sources, including forums and social media platforms.
This idea—about AI absorbing the worst aspects of human behavior—could have made for a compelling horror narrative. Instead, the film misses the opportunity to develop this idea into a gripping story, leaving the viewer with a sense of missed potential.
‘Afraid’ Is Inconsistent Horror
One of the main issues with Afraid is its lack of consistency. The film shifts abruptly between different horror elements, creating a disjointed viewing experience. At times, the film features a legitimate monster breaking through solid barriers.
Other scenes involve human threats with LED masks, which feel out of place compared to the monster scenes. Additionally, AIA begins to manipulate Curtis’s children—teens Iris (Lukita Maxwell) and Preston (Wyatt Lindner), along with the youngest, Cal (Isaac Bae).
The movie also includes bizarre characters and plot elements that add to the confusion. For example, the employees of Sam and Lightning dress in a way that resembles a Silicon Valley cult, while a creepy RV parked outside Curtis’s house hides glitchy figures.
These elements feel like they were added without consideration for how they fit into the full story. The film’s finale fails to bring these disparate elements together, leaving many subplots unresolved and the audience unsure of the film’s intended message.
Character Designs and Performances
Weitz’s character designs are another weak point. The film features cartoonish antagonists like Iris’s AI-leaking boyfriend (Bennett Curran), who seems out of place with the film’s otherwise serious tone. Curtis’s boss, Marcus (Keith Carradine), is portrayed as excessively greedy, adding another layer of inconsistency.
Curtis himself, played by Cho, struggles to respond to obvious red flags, making his actions seem illogical. Important conflicts and plot points are often ignored or dismissed, impacting the film’s effectiveness.
The actors do their best with the material they have, but the film’s haphazard handling of conflicts and character development undermines their performances.
For instance, a supposed heated argument between Curtis and Meredith is quickly forgotten, as if large chunks of the plot were left out. This lack of cohesion affects the full quality of the film, leaving the actors struggling to make sense of their roles.
Final Thoughts on ‘Afraid’
Afraid fails to deliver a memorable horror experience or a meaningful scenes of AI themes. The film’s attempt to blend various horror elements results in a disjointed and unsatisfying narrative. It lacks the imagination and depth needed to make a lasting impression on viewers.
Weitz’s film offers a timid and incomplete take on the dangers of AI, leaving audiences with a sense of unfulfilled potential. With its short runtime of 85 minutes, the film doesn’t have much time to make an impact, but even so, it doesn’t offer much to remember.
Afraid is now playing in theaters in the U.S., but it may not be worth the visit for those seeking a compelling horror story or a deep go into AI’s potential risks.
