HIM (2025)

HIM is a strange movie, and I mean that mostly as a compliment. Taking the world of elite football and turning the pursuit of greatness into a horror story is an interesting idea. It gives the film a lot to explore about pressure, celebrity, sacrifice and what someone might be willing to do to become the best. I didn't know exactly where it was going for a good portion of the runtime, and I liked that disorienting feeling.

Marlon Wayans is a big part of why it works. I usually associate him with comedy, but he has the charisma to make Isaiah White both magnetic and intimidating. Even when the character is doing something that should make you back away, there's a reason the young quarterback wants his approval. That relationship provides a strong center for an otherwise deliberately bizarre movie.

The body-focused horror is surprisingly effective. There are small details involving needles, injuries and physical treatment that made me wince more than a big elaborate kill might. The filmmakers pay attention to the sound of those moments, and that makes the discomfort feel immediate. There were times when I caught myself leaning back from the screen. That's impressive because the film doesn't always need to show something especially graphic to get that reaction.

Not everything is subtle. The movie leans into surreal imagery and a heightened atmosphere, and I can easily imagine that losing viewers who want a more straightforward thriller. Some of the choices are so strange that it's hard to know what to make of them in the moment. I don't think every idea lands perfectly, and the movie probably has a narrower audience than its premise might suggest.

Still, I enjoyed the experience more than I expected. I liked that it was willing to be weird rather than following a familiar sports-drama path with a few scary scenes added. The performances and unsettling physical details kept me invested, and I was still thinking about its atmosphere after leaving the theater. HIM isn't going to work for everyone, but I think there's something genuinely interesting underneath all that madness.

I wasn't looking forward to HIM, and I came out of it surprised that I didn't hate it. It's a very weird movie, and I spent a lot of the time wondering exactly what was happening. There are moments that feel almost dreamlike, then suddenly something really uncomfortable happens and you're reminded that this is supposed to be horror. I can't say it was my favorite kind of movie, but it held my attention.

One thing that definitely worked was Marlon Wayans. I love him in his funny roles, and I know how charming he can be. Seeing him play someone so intense and frightening was interesting because he still has that charisma. You understand why someone might want to listen to him, even when he's acting in ways that would make me want to leave immediately. That made his character more unsettling than someone who was simply nasty all the time.

There were also a lot of moments that made me physically cringe. I'm not talking about being embarrassed for the characters. It was the medical stuff, the needles and little sounds that made everything seem real. There were scenes when I had to look away, then I'd wonder whether I could look again, and then I'd decide I wasn't ready. I caught myself doing that quite a bit. Sometimes a tiny detail can bother me more than a whole bloody scene.

The football setting was different from what I usually expect in horror, and I liked that the movie was doing something unusual with it. I could tell there was a lot being said about trying to be the greatest and what people will do to get there. I don't think I understood every choice the movie made, but it didn't leave me completely cold either.

By the time it ended, I was still feeling a little disoriented. It was one of those movies that takes a while to come down from because of the way it looks and sounds. I don't know that I'd rush to watch it again, and I can see people really disliking how strange it gets. For me, though, there was enough to enjoy that I was glad I gave it a chance.