Nails (I) (2017) User Reviews

Pretty standard haunting flick

[terrencepatrix · 5/10 · 6 October 2017]

For your run of the mill horror fan this is worth a watch. It ticks off all the boxes of your typical haunt story. The story takes place entirely within an oldish hospital after our protagonist is hit by a car while out for a jog and paralyzed. She soon starts to sense that someone, or something, is watching her.

The story has a good pace, it's shot well, the acting and dialogue are fine as are the limited special effects. It's worth a watch on a boring night in the dark but there's nothing original about it so don't expect it to knock your socks off.

Is anybody there?

[nogodnomasters · 6/10 · 26 November 2017]

Plot spoilers.

Dana (Shauna Macdonald) is a young healthy woman who eats right, works out, jogs, but doesn't look both ways when crossing the street, trusting the lights. She ends up in the ivy covered Hopewell Rehabilitation Hospital. Here she is haunted by a guy nicknamed "Nails" who is not Lenny Dykstra. The film seemed like it was going to be a combination of "Final Destination" and "Sublime" which I really liked.

Instead it goes into a tangential explanation. Dana had died and now sees dead people. Or one dead person anyway. She visits a web site where other people see dead people, but no Zelda Rubinstein shows up to help her....no wait she was a patient there years ago as a child...that is why a ghost haunts her that no one else can see. No wait, the daughter now sees her. And why did that happen in the car? The ghost cares about Dana and wants to enact justice for her prior to trying to kill her? They needed to stick with and develop one explanation instead of throwing a bunch of stuff at a wall to see what sticks like a political platform. I think bringing in a flighty woman to look for the ghost was needed to break up the too serious and dry tone.

Guide: F-word. No sex or nudity.

Starts strong - finishes weak

[thekarmicnomad · 5/10 · 24 May 2018]

A woman is confined to her bed in a rather creepy hospital. It is not long before things start going bump in the night. The harder she tries to convince her family something is going on the crazier she looks.

The leading lady is very good, as is production and script.

The hospital has a sinister air about it and there are a few scares that worked quite well and there are enough outside drama to keep the bedside story from going stale.

Unfortunately this movie suffers from the same ailment that effect the majority of horror movies. It just runs out of steam.

After an hour of being terrified of the bogey man, when he finally shows up he is very underwhelming. The inevitable end sequence is as dull as it is predictable.

I had to push through to make it to the end credits and it really wasn't worth it.

You won't be biting your nails!

[pcart-85448 · 2/10 · 6 October 2017]

Very poor. I was attracted to this because I love a good horror movie, and it seemed to have a good cast. After twenty minutes of viewing it became abundantly clear a good horror movie was not what I was getting.

It was the same predictable, cheap scare (monsterous face to the camera with a sound effect - you know the one) wrapped around some dreadful acting. Ross Noble's performance in this was more akin to an early episode of Byker Grove than a feature film. And poor Shauna. Quite why she took part in this fecal fest, I don't know. Perhaps the electric bill was due.

The below par script; littered with exposition problems, poor dialogue, characters who you don't care for, a villain that makes no sense in a situation that makes no sense.

All in all it was pretty bad.

Could be better (spoilers)

[lilamarie2013 · 4/10 · 13 February 2018]

I love the idea of this film than the actual film I think...the storyline is what drew me in, there could of been so much more to it than this but it just fell short. Shauna Macdonald was great, one of the reasons I watched this as I thought she did good in The Descent so her acting was definitely a plus. However, the plot. Straight foreword to the point, only I didn't really dig it. I think it could of went much deeper... It was very predictable. I was completely confused by Nails motives. Why? What's the point is this? Unfinished business? She's the one who got away? Reallllly? That's just so... boring. Of course in every horror film there's always the annoying little tidbits that make me wanna groan in frustration. Example; the daughter wandering off on her own, poking her nose into peoples hospital room? Erm I guess that's allowed right? Of course there's other parts but I don't want to bore you with them details... It was creepy. I jumped. A dark atmosphere. All the right lighting, noises, jump scares and deaths, frightening ghost so if you looking for just one of them daft B movie films to give you the heebie jeebies before bed then this is the film for you, just don't go in with high expectations...

It's okay.

[sadbih-01797 · 4/10 · 20 February 2022]

I remember this being far more scarier than it is when this was on netflix a few years ago, now it just seems... a little odd? It's okay though, the first few scares got me a bit and the plot isn't that great nor characters but again, it's okay. A little questionable at times and not in a good way however. Also, I didn't remember it being an Irish sorta film so that was a surprise when I rewatched, aha.

Nails: Decent Irish cinema

[Platypuschow · 7/10 · 19 January 2019]

Nails is an Irish horror that rather took me by surprise. Revolutionary? Hardly, but certainly enjoyable.

It tells the story of a woman who after getting hit by a car finds herself partially paralyzed in a hospital bed. Miserable and alone she begins to question if she's truly alone or if a supernatural entity really is stalking her.

Nails hardly brings new stuff to the table and you'll have seen the majority of it before but thankfully it's done better than most and manages to deliver on both quality and scares.

Furthermore why it took me by surprise is that I generally tend not to like British or Irish cinema, they have the habit of following formulas even more generic than Hollywood (And that's saying something).

The film manages to build an atmosphere, a great claustrophobic setting and an interesting background for our antagonist. The setting is also excellent, though it perhaps could have been explored a tad more.

Starring Ross Noble who many will know as a stand up comedian and Stitches in the movie of the same name, Nails is an enjoyable effort in a highly saturated genre.

The Good:

Great antagonist

Quite well constructed

The Bad:

Some moments of sheer stupidity

Some questionable cgi

I don't know about a 5.8 rating, but it had its merits

[gil-191-414728 · 4/10 · 5 October 2017]

Not a turd, but could be better. The story was pretty original and the acting, for the most part, was good.

I really like Shauna Macdonald and thought she did a really great job with her role even though the medical circumstances weren't really believable from the stand point of the equipment they used. Had they been, her delivery would have been much more powerful. They really could've used a medical consultant for accuracy, but I can forgive that.

Some holes in the plot concerning "Nails" past and how he came to be trusted in the hospital after they found him to be psychologically disturbed. I wish they had taken the time to polish the plot as there wasn't really a resolution in the end.

At any rate, it was worth a watch but I felt it could have been a lot better. I'm sure other reviewers will not be as kind, but I'm trying to concentrate on what was there rather than what wasn't.

Better then you think.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 7/10 · 2 March 2018]

I was genuinely surprised by the low score and generally unfavorable reviews, I rather enjoyed it. The story was good, the acting was solid, the scares were moderate but we'll delivered, and Ross Noble was genuinely great. A clever premise, with a suitable victim, Dana, having been used to being so fit and strong had her life ripped to shreds by a car accident. It's well paced, it looks good, I can't really find a huge deal to fault, other then the scare scale. Enjoyable, 7/10

Nothing scary to be found here...

[paul_haakonsen · 5/10 · 9 June 2018]

There were aspects of this movie that were quite interesting, and the movie definitely had potential. But writers Tom Abrams and Dennis Bartok never really seemed to utilize the potential that was there, or really bring out to a satisfactory climax what they built up.

For a ghost or haunting movie then "Nails" just wasn't outstanding, and you might actually say it was generic.

The acting from Shauna Macdonald was what held the movie afloat and made it watchable.

There were no scares throughout the movie, which worked very much against the enjoyment of the movie. And the movie was clearly suffering from the fact that there was nothing scary there.

The special effects were actually alright, and that did of course add something to the movie as well. Special effects of proper quality is always a good thing for a horror movie, so that worked well in favor of the movie.

If you enjoy a good ghost movie, then there are some better choices readily available.

Nightmare Worthy.

[romanticomedies · 8/10 · 26 August 2018]

It's been a while since I've sat down to watch an actual scary movie and maybe that's why Nails scared me the way it did. The storyline itself was a little slow but was amazing and did make sense, as did the ending... unlike the usual cliffhanger that horror movies let you interpret. I was even tempted to turn it off and finish it another time because it got so late, nonetheless I was terrified by the ending.

Some good window dressing

[el7 · 6/10 · 20 August 2019]

Nails is about a woman who winds up hospitalized with limited range of movement and limited speech, a terrible experience for anyone, but to top off her nightmare sundae, she has a ghost in her hospital room. This is a great premise to start with. The director knows how to effectively splice found footage elements with more traditional camerawork, and there are some inventive scare scenarios enacted here. The heroine is entirely sympathetic, not just because she's written that way but because the actress who plays her is able to win the audience over to her side. But unfortunately the pacing is so silly it's hard to take this movie seriously for long enough to get really scared. The screenplay throws all kinds of stuff at you for why the ghost is there, and why Dana can see the ghost. I can buy that the hospital hired this guy after he arrived there as a mental patient, because the 1970s y'all. But then the movie had to have a whole yacht of coincidences as to why Dana is being reunited with Nails, along with a subplot about a possible affair that doesn't really add anything to the story at all, and a creepy administrator whose creepiness turns out to be unimportant to the plot. It's not the worst horror movie I've ever seen by a long shot, but Lord it ain't the best.

Needed a nail to the brain

[craventodd · 4/10 · 7 October 2019]

Horror is always hard to get right and this wasn't off nailing it, for a low budget films this is pretty good and did a lot of things right,

Interesting story and a great evil character they should have used him much more as he is proper creepy,

If this film had a big budget it would have been much better but a very good go for what they had, it was a little on the slow side and a couple of weak acting roles.

Promising start, but would eventually seem pointless...

[paulclaassen · 3/10 · 19 May 2019]

Shauna Macdonald is back for another creepy horror fare. The film did have some creepy moments, but unfortunately they were outweighed by a film that believed it was more serious than it ought to be, with unnecessary back stories. Oh, and we have the faithful monster in the closet scenario...

The film's beginning was very similar to 1988's 'Monkey Shines'. As short as the film was, it felt too long, and claustrophobic. The dialogue got increasingly worse as the film progressed. Even the music that was so scary and effective in the beginning, became annoying towards the end. It almost felt as if they had a good idea, but didn't follow through on it. Acting from the supporting cast was quite bad. The characters also did the strangest things; things one wouldn't normally do (or say) given the circumstances.

The film had so much potential, but fell completely flat and in the end seemed pointless. And what a stupid ending. Nails, huh? I think I'd much rather watch Freddy in 'Nightmare on Elm Street', thanks...

Haunted hospital

[TheLittleSongbird · 4/10 · 28 May 2018]

Saw 'Nails', being fond of horror regardless of budget (even if not my favourite genre) and being intrigued somewhat by the idea. Being behind on my film watching and reviewing, with a long to watch and review list that keeps getting longer, it took me a while to get round to reviewing it.

Unfortunately, despite not reading any reviews purposefully before watching, am going to have to agree that 'Nails' isn't too good, though not terrible. A film that started off good, but ran out of steam very quickly and rapidly got worse by a second half that makes one not want to keep watching. Never judge a film without seeing the whole thing and wanted to give 'Nails', so gave it a fair chance.

'Ghost Nails' best assets were the first fifteen-twenty minutes, starting the film off on a promising, unsettling and atmospheric note that really does intrigue.

Production values did have some eeriness and nowhere near as cheap as expected, and the music, which not the most memorable in the world, didn't detract from the atmosphere.

The setting is effectively spooky and the acting was better than average (apart from Ross Noble, who was annoying), Shauna MacDonald being quite good.

However, so much brings 'Nails' down. The direction is so phoned in and pedestrian, one gets the sense that the director showed no interest in the film at all. Would have liked more chemistry between the actors, which can be put down to directing, tending to have interactions that are both static and awkward, and writing, which really doesn't flow, issues.

Where 'Nails' most underwhelms is the writing and story. The far too exposition-heavy writing is incredibly lazy, it's awkward in dialogue, very confused as a result of not tying things up or going into full detail and doesn't feel complete. The story suffers from a very limp pace after the first fifteen minutes and gets slower and slower until an interminably dragged out second half. It further suffers from feeling too much like a short film stretched out with a lot of useless padding, too many things that don't make sense or under-explained and tiresome repetition. The characters are nowhere near interesting enough, though MacDonald's character is reasonably likeable, and the inconsistent and illogical motivations bring them down. The villain's especially.

For a film billed as a horror, there is very little interesting and nothing remotely scary. They are too few and are far too predictable, anaemic and weakly timed to make impact, with the dull pacing and obvious sound effects cheapening them significantly. 'Nails' doesn't engage let alone thrill, the film started off very well but feels wasted by how quickly everything runs out of steam. The ending is an anti-climactic head-scratcher, like the script it feels incomplete and making sense of it was extremely difficult.

Overall, mediocre but with good points that stop it from being worse. 4/10 Bethany Cox

Snooze fest.

[shannen-l-c · 2/10 · 16 February 2018]

How movies like this continue to be released is a mystery to me. Think of every predictable and boring horror trope you know, throw in some sub-par acting, bland and unlikeable characters and you've got Nails.

A few minutes into the movie I sensed it wasn't going to blow me away but somehow it still managed to fall way below my expectations. The main character, an athletic coach, mother of one and wife has just been left paralysed and with devastating consequences following a car accident, but despite all that it was impossible to sympathise with her. And she wasn't even the worst of the bunch. Trevor, the nurse/handyman (and apparently the ONLY nurse in the entire hospital) was equally one dimensional and bland, her husband was a cheating scum bag that only further subtracted from the appeal of the movie and the villain was just another creepy faced ghoul that for is hell-bent on murdering an innocent woman based on the fact that he had an abusive childhood.

The plot is non-existent as is the build-up, there's no mystery or anything that is even remotely engaging to the audience, and by the end of the movie you're just left feeling you've wasted an hour and a half of your life.

The only reason I gave it 2 stars is because surprisingly, I have seen worse. Nonetheless, if you're looking for a decent horror movie or a good scare, steer well clear of this movie.

Incomplete.

[Patient444 · 6/10 · 19 November 2017]

I think Nails is about 70% complete while the rest was just air pockets. Can't believe it managed to create the genuine horror atmosphere like it supposed to, without delivering a proper finale. It's like the movie decided to hang itself instead of going all the way. It was on the right track!

It's not your usual standard haunting, those come with a good ending. The more of today haunting movie always seem to have a twist. Another character involved, one that stood low for so long and now his crimes are being resurfaced. Nails is a pretty much straight forward production, with plenty of black outs, some attempts at jump scares and a better character development than most. Dialogue is OK, camera works nicely but the script was surely enough incomplete. Just some details missing, but important links that would have offered a proper flow to the movie and would have better connected the viewer to it.

Similar movie, as in one that almost impressed but barely missed the mark sadly, is The Haunting of Helena. If you liked this one be sure to check that one too.

Cheers!

Grrrrr!!

[Moxy916 · 2/10 · 8 December 2018]

Ending ruined the whole movie!!!! Ending ruined the whole movie!!!! Ending ruined the whole movie!!!!

Kind of scary but confusing

[misscath-54378 · 6/10 · 9 April 2018]

This movie had some scary parts but all throughout it I was wondering why Nails was targeting this woman. It was explained close to the end. Without giving anything away, the premise was kind of thin. It did have a claustrophobic element to many scenes which I liked. Not the best horror I've seen, but not the worst.

I have cleaned toilets for a living,but even I couldn't steep this low.

[mhall-42393 · 1/10 · 20 February 2018]

Yes, we all have bills to pay, but why would you be associated with this drivel, yes the chances of any future horror film being as good as the descent will be slim, but honestly. At the start of the film when you start your run, you should not have passed go but went straight to foresters and got a pint,then tore up this script.

I loved it!

[mattkawi · 8/10 · 1 April 2018]

Will this movie give you anxiety and send chills down your back, YUP. That's why i gave it an 8/10 I work in a hospital and these movies really get my skin to crawl. The acting was ok, the story itself needed a little more backstory but overall I did enjoy the movie! :D

Very much enjoyed!

[eliseruby-61257 · 6/10 · 30 July 2018]

This is a good old fashioned scary movie and my family throughly enjoyed it.

...down a Blackboard

[iamtherobotman · 3/10 · 30 October 2017]

This film seemed disjointed.

There was a lot of potential within the premise but sadly it just didn't deliver. The plot seemed jumpy and unsure of where it was actually going. The script was dodgy at best and the acting particularly from the Husband was brutal.

I don't quite know what they were intending but I would be shocked and surprised if this was it.

Sadists will get a kick from the invalid-torture scenes.

[fedor8 · 15 August 2020]

A heavily injured woman? Really? What's next: a horror film about a paraplegic being tortured on a rack by 17th-century Inquisition? Don't these sadistic morons have no boundaries anymore? Evidently not.

A moody ghost story but with some rather dumb scenes and an idiotic finale.

Firstly, Dana's daughter wanders around a hospital, going into rooms, as if she was a dumb 10 year-old. Secondly, Dana actually believes that the person smashing on the wall - so hard that it visibly shakes - is an old lady tied to a bed. Even Conan the Barbarian couldn't pound on a wall that hard. Thirdly, Trevor the male nurse sees the cupboard shake and his reaction is to... hit it with a baseball bat? Fourthly, Trevor sees himself and the killer ghost on his laptop yet he just sits there, as if watching the Eurovision Song Contest or something.

Then there is that slightly nonsensical husband-cheats-on-wife stuff that's kind of unnecessary.

The problem with the plot itself is that it's stuck in a rut for a while. Dana is attacked. Dana complains about menace. Hardly anyone believes Dana. She is attacked again. She complains. Key personnel don't believe her. Repeat.

The finale is what really ruins the movie, or whatever was good about it. Nails, the killer, somehow becomes visible to everyone else too. Why? How? Dana then offers herself to Nails in what is a rather idiotic and bonehead move. We get the pleasure of watching an invalid woman get thrown around and smashed against walls. Thanks, movie! Thank, sadistic degenerates without a moral compass! Who writes this crap? Little children? Little psycho kids, I mean. Little deranged, moronic, psychotic kids.

This kind of plot suffices for a half-hour episode of "Tales of Terror", or whatever. It's difficult to stretch to 90 minutes.

trailer looked promising, result was utterly boring

[trashgang · 2/10 · 22 March 2019]

Pushed on a Dutch site for horrors it came clear why. Dutch producer on board. Still, I can understand that you are promoting your flick but when it doesn't offer a thing then it really becomes laughable.

Opening was good, wife getting up preparing to go jogging, once outside she has a terrible accident. From there on it all takes place in a ghostly hospital. And from that moment nothing really happens except some jump scene's. Maybe you will jump, but not scary at all.

Even the story had nothing to cheer about. Not one bit of horror to me. And it could have had some potential, but it failed completely.

Gore 0/5 Nudity 0/5 Effects 0/5 Story 1/5 Comedy 0/5