HORNS: TRUTH BE TOLD

A good horror film tells a story, offers a touch of humor to the horror and in the end offers a scary vision that will stick with you. For the most part HORNS offers all of these items making it one of the best horror stories I’ve seen in some time. But that’s not all it offers. Beneath these items on the surface lies a touching love story.

Ig Parrish (Daniel Radcliff) is the most hated man in town. That’s because circumstantial evidence has pegged Ig to be the killer of Merin Williams (Juno Temple), the sweetest girl in town and Ig’s girlfriend. Ig is thought to have smashed in Merin’s head with a rock and then left her body in the woods. With no conclusive proof to convict Ig of the murder the town looks at him as someone who got away with it who doesn’t deserve to be free. Merin was the town favorite, Ig was always just someone who achieved nothing and had no prospects.

But the story isn’t told from the point of view of the townsfolk, an angrier mob rarely seen on film. It’s told from Ig’s perspective. That’s because Ig knows he didn’t do it. Or at least he thinks he didn’t do it. He was so drunk that night he doesn’t recall. With everyone standing against him Ig takes his rage out on God, blaming him for allowing Merin to die and for Ig to have to go through all of this pain. But God is listening.

After another drunken night with an old flame named Glenna, Ig wakes to find horns beginning to sprout from his head. The problem is that while they can see them they don’t think of them as strange. As he gets ready to leave her apartment, Glenna begins to act strangely. She starts to talk about her desire to eat every donut left in the box on the coffee table. Not just to eat them all but to devour them with no concern over how it looks. If only Ig had paid attention to this moment.

Ig tries to talk to people to find out just what he should do but everyone seems to act strangely in his presence. As the day moves forward the horns continue to grow. Visiting the local doctor Ig has to deal with a child with behavior issues. Talking to the mother she reveals to him that she’d love to leave the child and her husband behind to continue her affair with the local golf pro. Ig can’t figure out why she tells him this. But when he approaches the receptionist she tells him she’d like to tell off the lady with the problem child and then does so. In the doctor’s office the doctor tells Ig he thinks he’s a murderer before he puts him under to saw off the horns. When Ig wakes he finds the doctor jumping his nurses bones right there in the office.

It appears that the horns Ig now has bring out the worst in everyone. Rather than contain their innermost thoughts and actions, they now feel they have free rein to do as they wish. Some of their thoughts are quite disturbing while others are downright hilarious. With each revelation Ig continues to search for the real murderer of his beloved Merin. That search finds him discovering what his parents and brother really think about him, how one person is giving false evidence just to get on television and in talks with the real killer without knowing he is doing so.

As the horns grow so does the number of truths that people have held in check. Not only that, but Ig begins to find a confidence in himself that he never had before. The tender moments that fill the film involve Ig’s memories of the love he had for Merin, how they met, a jealous moment with a friend and the final revelation of just who the killer is. And when all seems hopeless a bit of help comes from an unexpected source.

The movie does a great job of combining all of the elements I spoke of at the start, especially the humor found in the revelations of the townspeople. Perhaps the best one involves the press. But the greatest thing about this movie is the love story of Ig and Merin as well as the tender heart of Glenna. Even with the gore and horror elements of this film it might even make a good Valentine’s Day movie. It just depends on how your girlfriend views horror films.

Radcliffe follows the normal course of child stars who want to be considered adults by shedding his clothes once more. Sorry I had to mention it since it seems too trite to me. He does a great job of acting here though and presents a totally believable character. You feel sorry for him at the start and then wish that he would act out the vengeance that is so needed for the killer. The tender side he shows to Merin displays his abilities as well.

If you’ve read the book by Joe Hill, Stephen King’s son, then you’ll know what to expect. You’ll still enjoy this movie. If you haven’t go back and read it and you’ll enjoy it as well discovering the small aspects that were left out. Either way you’ll find one heck of a good story, good movie and the right combination of romance and horror that hasn’t been seen in years.

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