Movie Review: NATTY KNOCKS

By ABBIE BERNSTEIN / Staff Writer

Posted: July 21st, 2023 / 01:29 AM

NATTY KNOCKS movie poster | ©2023 Vertical Entertainment

Rating: Not Rated
Stars: Charlotte Fountain-Jardim, Thomas Robie, Noen Perez, Channah Zeitung, Bill Moseley, Danielle Harris, Robert Englund, Amit Sarin, Will Murden, Joey Bothwell, Jason James Richter
Writer: Benjamin Olson
Director: Dwight H. Little
Distributor: Vertical Entertainment
Release Date: July 21, 2023

Too often, horror movies don’t have much plot. We get a set-up, then a villain, and then it’s just stalk, fend off, and fight-fight-fight. There’s nothing wrong with this, of course, but still, it’s nice to see a story with cause-and-effect plotting.

That’s the case with NATTY KNOCKS. Written by Benjamin Olson and directed by Dwight H. Little, the film also keeps us guessing as to how supernatural, or not, the proceedings will get.

At the start, it looks like we’re in for some major dark magic. On October 30, 1976, former B-movie star turned small-town prostitute Natty Knocks (Joey Bothwell) is dragged out of her home by a cadre of irate local wives. They are furious that their husbands have been paying for her favors, and accuse of her witchcraft. Given what happens when the other women enact fatal vengeance on Natty, we can tell some dark magic is involved. The tragedy is observed by Natty’s little boy.

Then we move forward to October 29, 2023. We’re with the Henderson family. This is realtor mom Diane (Danielle Harris), teen son Wyatt (Thomas Robie), little daughter Jolie (Channah Zeitung), plus live-in babysitter Britt (Charlotte Fountain-Jardim), who hopes to be college-bound soon. The Henderson patriarch has started another family and refuses to see his children, much to Jolie’s distress.

Wyatt needs $50 to get his cell phone service restored. Wyatt’s pal Robby (Noen Perez) suggests they ditch school to steal copper wire, which they can then sell to Robby’s mom’s disreputable boyfriend Ajay (Amit Sarin). Jolie overhears and insists on tagging along.

Robby insists that the copper wire is sitting in the backyard of an “abandoned” house. We never quite get if this is just Robby’s hype to get Wyatt to help steal the wire, or if Robby is just incredibly unobservant. Either way, the home – and copper wire – belong to a man who is setting the place up as a Halloween haunted house. The kids get the wire, realize they’ve alerted the homeowner, and run for it.

Winding up in front of a seemingly deserted house, Wyatt, Robby, and Jolie decide to play “Natty Knocks.” This does not involve impersonating the late scream queen, but rather chanting and knocking nine times (think the jump rope game from NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET meeting the invocation for Candyman).

There is an immediate upshot, though perhaps not what we anticipated. The kids find themselves hiding from a serial killer, and trying to do the right thing gets them in more trouble.

NATTY KNOCKS has a lot of good twists and turns, with numerous characters having more to them than we see at first glance. There’s a fair amount of detective work, scares, peril, and general intrigue to keep us invested, along with enough blood to make this inarguably a horror movie.

Director Little maintains a pleasingly creepy pre-Halloween look. He and the crew have also found one of those California towns where some things have moved forward, and others haven’t changed since the ‘50s. When somebody finds a working pay phone, it seems plausible.

Most of the cast is on the mark. Fountain-Jardim shines in her first feature role, Harris nails protective mom/irate ex-wife, and Robert Englund plays just fine against type as a realtor. Bill Moseley handles his multifaceted character with dexterity, and Sarin likewise moves smoothly through the different ways Ajay is seen.

Although NATTY KNOCKS has slasher and spectral elements, it feels more akin to SCARY STORIES TO TELL IN THE DARK, with teens (and one preteen) banding together to fight evil. Its ambitions are relatively modest, and it fulfills them successfully.

Follow us on Twitter at ASSIGNMENT X
Like us on Facebook at ASSIGNMENT X

Latest Buzz

Movie Review: NATTY KNOCKS

YA horror with a thriller plotline

Article Source: Assignment X
Article: Movie Review: NATTY KNOCKS

Related

Related Posts:

Leave a Comment

Assignment X Poll

Newsletter subscription status

Latest Buzz

Movie Review: NATTY KNOCKS

YA horror with a thriller plotline

Article Source: Assignment X Article: Movie Review: NATTY KNOCKS

Related

Related Posts:

Leave a Comment

Assignment X Poll

Article Source: Assignment X
Article: Movie Review: NATTY KNOCKS