Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (2019)

Director: André Ovredal
Stars: Zoe Margaret Colletti, Michael Garza, Gabriel Rush
Runtime:111 minutes

Synopsis: A group of teens face their fears in order to save their lives.

Performances: 2/5
Screenplay: 3/5
Special Effects: 3/5
Costumes/Makeup: 4/5
Editing: 4/5
Cinematography: 3/5
Score/Soundtrack: 3/5
Entertainment Factor: 3/5

Verdict: Based on a book series of the same name (that, full disclosure, I haven't read), "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark" is a perfectly fine horror flick that will keep any horror fan entertained for a couple of hours despite suffering from many, many flaws. 

What I loved most about the movie is the creative way it uses its source material to basically tell a bunch of short stories within a larger narrative. Each of these stories is written on a malicious book found by the protagonists, who then have to face them as they become threatening realities. I found that concept, as well as the creepy vibes generated by the well-designed creatures, to be worth the price of admission alone. And that's a fortunate thing because everything else was rather underwhelming. The film contains more than a few cheesy lines, cheap jump scares, convenient decisions, bad CGI, and disposable characters. The acting wasn't very good overall but the chemistry the group of teenagers shared did somehow shadow the poor performances to some extent. 

In the end, we live in an age where almost every horror movie is either a gigantic waste of time or a complex masterpiece, and it was rather refreshing to watch something that sort of falls in the middle of that spectrum. It's not great, it's not bad, but "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark" sure is entertaining at times.

FINAL GRADE: 5/10