The Djinn (2021) User Reviews

In defense of this movie

[iamkrause · 5/10 · 18 May 2021]

If you like hard-core horror movies, this movie isn't gonna do anything for you. Don't think you're going to get anything like The Wishmaster movies. You'll be so disappointed that you'll probably leave a 1 star review here. And I can't blame you. However...

If you have young teens who like horror movies, I think they'd get a kick out of this. The movie is well shot. The child actor does a good job and isn't annoying in the way so many child actors are. I think kids between like 10-13 would probably root for him and be scared for the situation he was in. This movie is rated R, but there's hardly any blood and the violence is nothing you wouldn't see on network television. There's really no reason this should be an R rated picture. It's gonna make people think they're getting a bloodbath, and it's gonna make them mad when they don't get that. This movie has a nice downbeat "Monkey's Paw" kind of ending, which will make kids think twice the next time they try to summon a demon. It'll scare your kids, and they'll learn a lesson. Give it a try in that context.

Everyone else should avoid this movie like the plague. It was incorrectly marketed to be something it's not. But if your kids like Goosebumps and that kind of tame stuff, this should be right up their alley.

Nice Horror but.....

[portal1790 · 6/10 · 14 May 2021]

Not often I've seen good horror from IFC Midnight. This one it's an exception. Good horror. Nice performance by the young caracter. Nice camera work. Solid direction and photography . Even the soundtrack it's nice . I was not expecting nothing like this. Not in the top of the genre but I like it.

Careful what you wish for

[trailerfreak · 6/10 · 15 May 2021]

Do not listen to the negative reviews This is not a 1, nor a 2 or a 3. It was worth the watch. The kid is great in this. It is simple and sad.

Just... no.

[tsuyoshi-61671 · 2/10 · 17 May 2021]

The all powerful "Djinn" wasn't able to catch a little boy in a small, one bedroom apartment. Lol The all powerful "Djinn" tried to kill the boy by leaking the gas from the stove. Lol The all powerful "Djinn" fainted a lot. Lol.

What In The Actual F

[Draysan-Jennings · 3/10 · 15 May 2021]

This movie is insanely terrible. That was an hour and twenty minutes of visual torture. I can't believe I actually put myself through that. It's a movie about a kid running around in a small one bedroom apartment playing hide and go seek with his mother's ghost. That's literally it. The kid wasn't a bad actor but man this movie sucked. Don't bother with this one. 3 stars.

This Is What It Sounds Like When Snails Cry

[damianphelps · 5/10 · 27 March 2022]

What a waste.

The story is pretty good.

The acting is excellent.

The effects excellent.

And its all ruined by a pacing that would make a grown snail cry!

The kid is good and there are some great jump scares

[marcdebiak · 7/10 · 17 May 2021]

It's about 70 minutes long. It doesn't deliver any more or less than it promises. It's well done for a low budget, has a great performance, and the scares are good. It's not a masterpiece but not as bad as some other reviews say.

A very decent low budget horror thriller.

[LordCommandar · 5/10 · 15 May 2021]

First off, pay absolutely no attention to the negative reviews whatsoever. This was a very decent low budget horror thriller. The kid whom I never seen before, did a great job for a little mute boy who made a wish from a Djinn to have his voice. Makes sense. The story was overall watchable and enjoyable and definitely not boring as some other reviewer put it. More thrills than chills but for sure an attention keeper. And frankly speaking, I haven't seen any films this decent with bigger budget productions and big names starring in them in about ten years. This was done right and it didn't insult the audiences intelligent with a lot nonsensicals. A decent concept of someone playing mute role carrying an entire film. Again disregard the bad reviews, this was a decent one time watch.

Honest review of The Djinn...

[Vises · 7/10 · 19 May 2021]

I'm sorry to say that it appears as though many of the reviewers didn't grasp Messrs. Charbonier and Powell's intent and that's a shame because this movie is better than it wants to be. It is ambitious and layered.

The actors did a fine job, especially Ezra Dewey. The kid has quality. Rob Brownstein was very convincing as a concerned and loving father.

The 'trauma responses' aspect of the movie is what motivates Ezra's character and that storyline is very nicely tied up at the end.

The ambition is crossing the genres of Horror and Psychological Drama with a bit of Mystery. It's not so much Thriller nor slasher Horror (though there are a couple slashes).

The lore of the Djinn is almost always underscored by the 'be careful what you wish for' maxim, which is hinted at very subtly and uniquely in a delicate philosophical exchange between father and son fairly early on.

Personally, I loved the very contained element of the small apartment for the setting of the majority of the film. You can almost imagine this being done as a stage play.

I'm sorry that there are so many negative reviews for what is clearly something slightly askew from the common fare thrown about as modern Pop Horror; this is a solid 7...

...it's just not for everyone.

The most childish story

[aicsbutt · 1/10 · 14 May 2021]

Please don't waste your time, its a joke in the name of horror.

Great tension

[queenofthedamned83 · 8/10 · 16 May 2021]

I can't fathom the bad reviews here.

The characters were well portrayed and easily empathised with. The story was a pretty old one but gave us the basic rules of play.

The tension was palpable, overwhelming even. I really wanted the little boy to win.

It wasn't drawn out too long to make it boring at any point.

All round I think it was a great movie.

senses and spells

[ferguson-6 · 7/10 · 12 May 2021]

Greetings again from the darkness. Some of the best horror films are low-budget affairs, and David Charbonier and Justin Powell fully embrace this concept. As with their previous collaboration (THE BOY BEHIND THE DOOR, 2020), the production company partners are co-writers and co-directors on this latest - an effective "legend" thriller that plays like a live-action campfire story.

Ezra Dewey stars as 12 year old Dylan Jacobs, a mute boy who moves into an apartment with his dad (Rob Brownstein) after a tragic incident on "a quiet summer night in 1989" leaves Dylan without a mother. Dad works the graveyard shift as a disc jockey, so Dylan is left alone their first night in the new place. Dylan discovers a leather-bound "Book of Shadows" in the closet. Left behind by the previous owner - an old man who died in the place - the book has a chapter, "Wish of Desire", which especially appeals to Dylan, who would love to have a "voice".

As one would expect from a 12 year old, and just about anyone at any age, he doesn't read the fine print in the book, and immediately prepares to perform the spell. All he needs is a couple drops of blood, some candles, a clock and a mirror. The only question is whether the spell will work with sign language. By this time, we've also learned that a previous lung operation has Dylan dependent on his inhaler when he's stressed - something we horror fans recognize is going to happen not long after he lights that candle.

Of course this is no genie-in-a-bottle granting wishes. Nope, Dylan soon learns it's a supernatural being that takes the form of those already dead - some Dylan recognizes and some he doesn't. The Djinn is the "guardian of the shadow realm" and the challenge for Dylan is to stay alive until midnight while the entity tries to end him. What makes the film click is the performance of young Ezra Dewey. He carries the film on his back while, obviously, dialogue is not an option. Having a clever and quick-thinking young protagonist gives us someone to root for. The filmmakers wisely stage this confrontation within the confined space of this small apartment. DP Julian Estrada does excellent work and never resorts to trickery - we understand the floorplan and always know where Dylan is at any moment.

The 1980's vibe is present via a boom box, phone cord, TV with antennae, dad's pager, and composer Matthew James' synth score. There is also the interesting contrast of Dylan's inability to speak, and the Djinn spending much of the time without sight. The filmmakers take a simple approach to the story (the legend) and let Dylan fight his way to midnight as we squirm (and yes jump a couple of times). It's a brisk 80 minute runtime and one that most horror film fans will appreciate, despite the cruel twist.

Opening in select theaters and VOD on May 14, 2021.

Not good.

[pipo- · 2/10 · 16 May 2021]

First the 80's style was nicely re-created and the acting was ok the first 5 minutes lets you know how the next hour will be like since the movie never changes pace.

The movie was way too slow and drawn out too much in the same area (house), and too much of the same actor, plus add in full length music tracks makes it feel incredible slow motion and feels even worse when the kid moves in slow motion in every scene.

I eventually turned it off and just fast forwarded to the end (which is terrible) so I'm glad I saved some time out of this movie since I would of been pissed if watched to the end.

Offensively bad

[jesserbyars · 1/10 · 16 May 2021]

I rarely give even bad movies I see less than 4/10 on here. This movie is aggressively boring and cliche. However, if you enjoy watching people walk very slowly around a single small location while no one ever speaks any dialogue, you are going to love this. One of the single worst movies I have ever seen.

Should have listened to the low reviews...It is gash!

[omendata · 3/10 · 16 May 2021]

Yes this one is a turkey and it is not even Christmas yet!

Cashing in on the brilliant original movie with the superlative Andrew Divoff, this one really is pretty dire. If you are expecting to see the evil Djinn with the gravelly voice of someone like Divoff then think again - There is NO dialogue and there is NO Djinn!

I commend it for the old style 80's synth riffs but setting a whole movie in a small apartment with no dialogue was never going to work. The acting is passable but as one other reviewer concisely put it, "it really is just about a little boy running around an apartment" with zero scares, hardly any creature effects at all and absolutely zero story or characterization and utterly mind bogglingly dull, dull , dull! So much so I started to browse the internet and do my tax return, if that does not tell you all you need to know then nothing will!

Avoid this one unless you have run out of sleeping tablets!

Well, this was stupid and not thought out at all.

[pshtif · 2/10 · 15 May 2021]

Well this movie started with a good premise and then went all down the... Djinn that wants to kill you like MacGyver by rerouting the gas from kitchen stove I mean come on. Can't choke a kid with both hands for over a minute while having supernatural powers. This was so laughable I thought I am watching a parody most of the time. I mean any semi-intelligent person in a decent shape would basically beat up this Djinn in no time. I though he was a scary immortal guardian and not a stoned up idiot like in this movie.

The "shocking" ending was quite predictable and felt totally forced while repeating multiple times the words from the book so we REALLY know what they meant by it. Such a clique becoming quite common in modern movies. I guess they think the audience is probably really stupid and can't put 2 and 2 together.

Ezra Dewey

[yusufpiskin · 7/10 · 15 May 2021]

Independent and low-budget productions like this will save the horror movie. The history of horror cinema started with such films. Directing, sound design, cinematography, scenario deserve appreciation. A special greeting; Ezra Dewey. He's backed the whole movie. Big responsibility for that age.

boring and low budget

[stuwright05 · 3/10 · 14 May 2021]

Really not much going on here, very low budget film, I only watched it as there were previous "djinn" films that I enjoyed, I dont know if it has any relation to those.

Serious film makimg, very old school

[A_Different_Drummer · 7/10 · 16 May 2021]

There was a time when camera angles, framing skills, direction, sound, and editing were more important than al the CGI of the today. David Charbonier and Justin Powell have done a low budget indie which is technically perfect and deserves a much wider audience.

15 mins storyline

[ks-60500 · 3/10 · 6 June 2021]

It's quite disappointing and not scary at all. Lame and flattest storyline ever.

Decent horror movie

[mj-80986 · 8/10 · 14 May 2021]

Ignore the low rating reviews. The film is pretty decent. As a Muslim myself, we believe in Jins and how they grant wishes but with deep consequences. This film got most of it on point.

Critics are right here

[PedroPires90 · 7/10 · 24 May 2021]

Critics are right on this one. I honestly don't understand what horror audience want these days. Or any day...as there are only 5/6 consensual horror movies in history.

This is a simple, but very well executed story, with a good atmosphere, a great acting from the kid and with a good and important lesson in the end.

Yeah, sometimes it looks like a Goosebumps book/episode. Is that bad? I don't think so. I think we need much more of this horror for teens and for a different audience. I liked it.

90 minutes of my life wasted.

[ljpatton-79361 · 1/10 · 16 May 2021]

The movie is short and the popcorn was good. Those are the only good things about this movie. Ezra Dewey may be a talented young actor, but this was so badly written that he never stood a chance. Don't waste your time or money. It's truly dreadful.

3 wishes

[Syntax_Terror · 2/10 · 19 June 2022]

1. I wish that they didn't just SAY this was in the 1980s and they actually had put effort into making it look and sound like it was. Nothing was remotely reminiscent of that era.

2. I wish this was just a short and not full length feature. Man, it just wouldn't end!

3. I wish I had a pizza

Watched this after a rewatch of Wishmaster and Wishmaster 2: Evil Never Dies because the sequel was such a let down I thought I'd jump over to another lane for a genie horror. Should've stayed in my own lane I think. Give a wide berth.

What is done can't be undone

[nogodnomasters · 4/10 · 4 June 2021]

For some reason the film takes place in 1989, but that date is meaningless. Dylan (Ezra Dewey) is a mute who watched his mother commit suicide. (Mom, gun, kitchen). He moves into another home that was a book that has spells and allows the user to be granted wishes with a simple spell. However the Djinn demands a payment. Dylan wants a voice which leads to issues.

This should be a short film, a "Twilight Zone", monkey's paw type of thing. They dragged it out way too long. They needed a cuter kid.

Guide: No swearing, sex, or nudity.