THE BOOGEYMAN

THE BOOGEYMAN (2004). Director: Stephen Kay. Written by Eric Kripke, Juliet Snowden, and Stiles White.

A young boy who is convinced that the boogeyman is hiding in his closet is comforted by his father, who moments later is sucked into said closet by an unseen monster. Fifteen years later this same boy goes home after his mother's death and has to confront the demon in the closet. Although the premise has possibilities, most of them go unexplored in a film with little internal logic, insufficient characterization, rather bland acting [for the most part], and an off-putting directorial style that distances the viewer from the action, constantly reminding him that this is a movie, instead of pulling him into it. The movie is short but slow, and the only real excitement comes in the final minutes when the hero finally faces off against the creature, who looks good and is brought vividly to life – but still has much too little to do. By the numbers horror that is derivative and not very scary, although a couple of scenes come close. Sex symbol Lucy Lawless is cast as the hero's mother.

Verdict: Very disappointing **.