The boy behind the door

The importance of festivals such as Fantasia (Canada), Fantastic Fest (United States), Gerardmer and PIFFF (France) cannot be overemphasized as a testament to the vitality of independent genre cinema. Not only do they allow us to discover films that deserve to be better showcased, but above all, they allow us to discover new directors who are as passionate as they are gifted.

In the case of The boy behind the door, which begins as a chronicle of a strong friendship between two inseparable young children, but the thriller behind closed doors in which these two children have been sequestered and can only count on them to get out of it. The two directors and screenwriters David Charbonier and Justin Powell succeed in blurring the predefined cards of the closed-door thriller and make a thus of the young Bobby who managed to escape, the hero of this film who will have to not only try to save the life of his friend Kevin but also confront the couple from the house in which they are held prisoner.

It is interesting to see in this film the perfect mix between the comedy Home Alone in which a young child that his parents have forgotten in their house and who will have to face two notorious criminals and the film in which people are sequestered in an isolated house. Despite a unique location and limited means, the two directors have managed to make The Boy Behind the Door a thrilling thriller in which we can't help but fall in love with this budding young hero who has redoubled his courage and ideas for confronting vindictive adults. While many films that rely on considerable means struggle to find their rhythm and are sorely lacking in ideas, The boy behind the door proves to be a successful and effective first film that we can only advise you to discover.

The boy behind the door
Written and directed by David Charbonier, Justin Powell
Produced by Jim Hart, John Hermann, Ryan Lewis, Rick Rosenthal
Starring Lonnie Chavis, Ezra Dewey, Kristin Bauer van Straten, Scott Michael Foster, Micah Hauptman
Music by Anton Sanko
Cinematography: Julián Estrada
Edited by Stephen Boyer
Release date: September 27, 2020 (Fantastic Fest
Running time : 88mns

Viewed on September 23rd (screener press)

Mulder's Mark: