Slender Man Parent Guide

In a small town in Massachusetts, students at the local high school decide to watch a video to “summon” the Slender Man. Though it starts as a joke, the consequences become apparent shortly thereafter, when Katie (Annalise Basso) disappears on a field trip to a nearby historical cemetery. The other girls realize that perhaps it was unwise to play with something which claims to unleash child-snatching monsters. (Who knew, right?) And soon they have their own experiences with the mysterious antagonist.

As if calling a supernatural creature isn’t bad enough, there are plenty of other issues in this film that will bother family viewers. One of these is the abuse of alcohol by both adult and teen characters. High school students are shown in a basement with empty vodka bottles, clearly inferring they have been drinking it. The parent in the house – a known alcoholic – is depicted passed out in a chair next to more empty bottles. Also troubling is a scene where the teens watch and talk about pornography (the illicit material is not visible to the audience). This gratuitous content does not serve to develop either the plot or any of the characters. Rather, it seems to exist only to establish “edgy” credentials, or to claim legitimacy by asserting that this is what “real kids” are doing.

Perhaps the biggest potential problem of horror movies is the violence. In Slender Man much of that action is implied or happens off-screen, but there is still plenty of frightening material to go around. Several teenagers are choked or grabbed. The film plays heavily with disturbing imagery, including portrayals of dissections, deformed and unnatural human figures. As well, there are frequent, rapid cuts between pictures of corpses, the Slender Man himself, and a spooky, mist-filled forest. Viewers sensitive to intense, flashing lights should probably sit this one out.

Production issues also reduce this “Skinny Boy’s” appeal, especially since the director seems to have exhausted his budget on artsy shots, leaving only enough money for unconvincing CGI. As such, this “Underweight Lad” traipses through the forest after our protagonist like something out of a student film. Further evidence of its amateur sensibilities is its lighting: Some of the sets are so dark that it is hard to figure out what’s happening on screen. Yet instead of increasing suspense, this simply raises the boredom level.

Thinner on plot than the title suggests, even Slender Man’s frightening moments had me checking my watch and wishing I’d thought to buy a snack at the concessions stand. Due to the content mentioned above, the film is inappropriate for young viewers—who are, unfortunately, also the only people likely to be scared by it.