★★★ out of ★★★★★
A mysterious woman turns out to be a real roommate from hell in this fun new terror tale from Full Moon Features.
Directed by Ted Nicolaou
Full Moon Features’ demonic horror film Don’t Let Her In punches above its weight thanks to solid direction from Ted Nicolaou and enjoyable performances from its three leads. This feature, divided into two parts, often belies its low budget and offers plenty of fun for fear-fare fans.
Artist Amber (Kelly Curran) and her musician boyfriend Ben (Cole Pendery) rent out a room in their loft to eccentric — to say the least — fellow artist Serena (Lorin Doctor). Her initially quirky behavior grows increasingly disturbing, and a man who stares creepily into the trio’s windows (Austin James Parker) — who might be Amber’s ex, from whom she is trying to escape — doesn’t help matters.
Serena secretly seduces Ben and Amber separately, and each of the latter two achieve climaxes like they have never experienced before. Naturally, such pleasure comes with a price — and in this case, that toll comes straight from Hell.
Nicolaou (TerrorVision [1986], Subspecies [1991], and dozens of other films), who also wrote the screenplay, knows his stuff when it comes to delivering horror on a limited budget, and here he doesn’t disappoint. Don’t Let Her In has obvious things in common with Rosemary’s Baby (1968) and other fright fare about pregnant women in peril, along with some other horror tropes, but Nicolaou keeps things captivating.
Curran turns in a quality performance as Amber, and her chemistry with her two co-leads is terrific. Doctor gives a winningly chilling turn as the mysterious new roommate, and Pendery does nicely as Amber’s self-absorbed, weak-willed boyfriend.
Don’t Let Her In is an entertaining horror tale that serves up some nifty practical effects work. Though the story beats are sometimes familiar, overall the film is a fun one.
Don’t Let Her In is available on the Full Moon Features app and streaming platform, FullMoonFeatures.com and across all Full Moon Features channels; Amazon Prime Video, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Google Play, and Xbox One.
Review by Joseph Perry
