Published 905/2024
Rating : 7/10 Recommend
Spoiler free!
The Deliverance, written by David Coggeshall and Elijah Bynum and directed by Lee Daniels (Monster's Ball, Precious) is a horror film depicting a troubled family's experience in a new home, somewhere in Pittsburgh. Recently released by Netflix after a seven studio bidding war, we see Lee Daniels lean heavily into two types of horror: cyclical familial trauma and the supernatural. If you have seen Jennifer Kent's The Babadook then you'll be familiar with this setup.
The film follows Ebony Jackson's (played by Andra Day) day-in-the-life as a single'ish mother who is taking care of three kids and her mother, Alberta, (played wondrously by Glenn Close, who is in chemotherapy. Right off the bat we see this is a troubled family: the mother curses in front of her kids, confronts her mother rather aggressively, tries and fails to give up drinking and generally escalates issues well-beyond what a level-headed parent will take it. Whether or not Ebony's issue's are due to their environment, bad luck, or a mixture of both we're not sure, but their life is tough and unenviable. Ebony Jackson pulls no punches in declaring the problems her family faces is a byproduct of her own upbringing. Lee Daniels spends much of the first act establishing how dire this family's predicament is. He also establishes how protective they are when outside forces break through.
Enter Cynthia Henry (played by Mo'Nique) a worker for the department of child services. For the first three-quarters of the film she represents the film's antagonist. She clearly has targeted Ebony as a mother who is unfit to take care of her children, and is looking for an opportunity to separate them. When Cynthia appears the children unquestionably support their mother, despite their struggles. The kids have bruises, the youngest is clutching his side, but they stand behind their mother. Alberta makes her presence known as well, but posits the notion maybe the DCS is right in their assessment that Ebony is not well enough to manage her children, and there's a possibility her daughter's perspective is wrong.
During this time we're also introduced to instances of strange behavior with the youngest child , Andre (played by Anthony B. Jenkins). There's something intriguing in the basement Andre continually visits. Maybe he found the previous owner's porn collection? Snark. We're also introduced to a mysterious visitor who doesn't speak, and seems to be ok with Alberta bashing her car with a baseball bat while driving away.
The back-half of the film becomes a juggling act between the ongoing familial drama and the escalating supernatural events. Lee Daniels exhibits excellent character development craft and is able to extract quality performances from his actors. The supernatural elements are well-worn and unoriginal, however, and most likely account for the film's mixed reception. This is a horror film after all. The audience is looking to experience fear, dread, anxiety, and these aspects are missed. The climax is a bigger whiff. At this juncture the tense drama Lee Daniels spent so much time constructing becomes an afterthought.
So what am I giving The Deliverance? Depends on how you watch it, in theory. If I had to get dressed in my Sunday best, hop in my car, drive to the theaters and plunk down $12 for a ticket, $7 for popcorn and $7 for a soda (because no sane individual buys popcorn without soda!) then I would leave disappointed. By contrast, if I hopped onto my catch in my skivvies, turned on the TV, switched to Netflix and pressed play I would be satisfied by the end. I pay $17.99 for the family plan, and my family watches the piss out of Netflix. I no longer consider whether to renew Netflix, as I do with Disney+, Max, Shudder, HULU or Peacock. Netflix has earned our continued business , and their purchase of The Deliverance is another reason why.
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