Film Review: "No One Will Save You" (2023).

From the director of Spontaneous comes No One Will Save You. This science-fiction horror film written and directed by Brian Duffield. A lonely woman battles extraterrestrials who threaten her future while forcing her to face her past.

In 2019, Duffield wrote the film as a spec script. By April 2021, it was reported that 20th Century Studios had acquired the script, with Duffield set to direct and Kaitlyn Dever attached to star. At the same time, on an estimated budget of $22.8 million, principal photography commenced and wrapped in June. Filming took place in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA.

The film stars Dever. Dever gives one of the best performances of her career. She is on top form, and there are some genuinely terrifying moments that will have you cowering behind your popcorn. This is one of her finest, most mature and heartfelt performances and it won't go unnoticed come Awards season.

The film knows what it's like to witness the end of the world on television and the twisted catharsis that comes with the world not actually ending. A masterclass in creating tension, Duffield's "House of screams" – given his later travails, predictability and sometimes laughable conceits – now, two decades on, seems like it was the high-water mark of his endeavours. I'm a sucker for an effective scary movie that involves aliens and if you're gonna tell me that you didn't jump during that scene in the basement with the alien arm, I'm gonna call you a liar. An emotional, yet old-fashioned scary movie punctuated with terror and psychological suspense, the film will have you holding your breath, biting your nails and sitting on the edge of your seat - even long after the film has ended. For the most part, the script is extremely well written, allowing each character to shine and developing some interesting ideas. It is also, frequently, very funny. A thoroughly engaging story about fear and faith, which also happens to be a first-class hair-raiser from a moviemaker with a taste for the Hitchcockian tease. The work of a filmmaker who has secrets buried at the heart of his story and knows how to take time revealing them. Strange occurrences build in the mind of the viewer and take on extreme urgency. Rather than succumb to a lot of direct interaction with the beasties, Duffield creates tension by remaining on horror's outskirts. Using the theorem that less is more, Duffield creates a psychologically frightening movie taut with emotional tension and ripe with fear. Without ever touching on a cliche (except to poke fun at it), Duffield skillfully builds the film on several layers -- personal redemption, human drama, community-in-crisis, world on the brink. That the movie works as well as it does, despite an outlandish plot, is a tribute to Duffield's prowess as a director, and to a fine acting performance. Duffield's masterful direction makes the film succeed. What scares us out of our seats is not what we see or hear, but what we think we might see and hear.

Simon says No One Will Save You receives:

Also, see my review for Spontaneous.