An American nanny is shocked that her new English family's boy is actually a life-sized doll. After she violates a list of strict rules, disturbing events make her believe that the doll is really alive.
It ... has enough scary moments to satisfy horror fans, but you're left wondering whether it might have been more disturbing had it stayed on its original path.
– Neil Genzlinger,
New York Times,
23 Jan 2016
rotten:
It's awkward and strange but never shamelessly over-the-top enough to serve as a guilty pleasure.
– Christy Lemire,
RogerEbert.com,
23 Jan 2016
fresh:
"The Boy" didn't screen for critics, but it's actually a pretty sturdy genre effort. Nearly free of gore... [the film] is careful and clever about revealing what Brahms really is, for he's certainly got a mind and will of his own.
– Inkoo Kang,
TheWrap,
23 Jan 2016
rotten:
[It] aims to set itself squarely in the fictional canon of Chucky and its brethren, but it ends up trying to do so much that it forgets to scare us.
– Christian Holub,
Entertainment Weekly,
25 Jan 2016
rotten:
There's only so much she can do once the movie around her devolves into the usual barrage of jump scares, but Cohan maintains her composure even as Greta loses hers.