‘Sketch’ Review – Angel Studios Goes Softcore A24
August isn’t as stuffed as July was at the movies, but it feels like it, in the sense that there is enough out that one or two releases are bound to be overlooked. An Angel Studios movie is the most likely victim when they’re churning out stuff left and right that doesn’t always blip on the radar. Even when they put their weight behind something special, it seems to disappear without a trace after a few weeks.
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I have to remind myself occasionally that Cabrini, Homestead, Possum Trot, and Sight came out and had theatrical runs. How long will it be then before The Last Rodeo and King of Kings are out of sight and (mostly) out of mind? But I digress.
I can applaud Angel despite the fleeting awareness of their output. They aren’t afraid to take risks and make the type of films you barely see anymore, that don’t reflect trends or chase the usual Hollywood slop. Sometimes, they also surprise me, and their newest theatrical release definitely did.
Based on its trailer, Sketch looks like a lighthearted family comedy about characters in a children’s book coming to life in the spirit of Where the Wild Things Are or Harold and the Purple Crayon. While there are moments in that groove, the film takes a pretty dark and heavy turn into throwback territory. Essentially, it ended up being the kind of PG horror parents used to take their kids to see back in the day. I was not expecting that, but I’m here for it.
About time to get into some plot, isn’t it?
Amber (Bianca Belle, who had a small role in the DCU Original Swamp Thing) and her family are trying to recover from the loss of her mom (Allie McCulloch), and each person copes in ways with varying extremes. While her dad (Tony Hale) and brother Jack (Kue Lawrence) try to keep things together as the single parent tries to sell the house, Amber pours her grief into her art. This is encouraged by a school counselor despite her drawings having a disturbing edge.
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Like a kid who was shown slasher movies at too tender of an age, Amber’s creations depict stabbings, eye-gouging, and quite a few monsters off-putting to adults. But they’re drawings; they can’t hurt anyone. Well, that’s until her brother finds a magical pond in the woods as kids are prone to do in this sort of adventure. He discovers it has restoration and life-giving properties, so naturally he begins testing the limits.
Before long, naive little Jack is contemplating a Pet Sematary twist with the pond and his mom’s ashes. That scheme goes nowhere, but like in the Stephen King story, the kids learn the hard way that you shouldn’t mess around with magic you don’t understand. Amber’s sketchbook of grief-fueled abominations takes a dip, causing everything to jump off the page and wreak havoc in reality.
Yes, Sketch is an Angel Studios movie, although they’re only distributing it, but it seems like an A24 or Blumhouse flirtation on their part. The opening credits certainly look like they belong in a James Wan or Oz Perkins film. However, that’s only if you look at the horror as it’s stood for the last 15 years or so, where CGI gore and slow-burn tension rule in a nightmare simulacrum going for the hard R.
If you take yourself back to the 80s and 90s, this is a movie that would’ve had Spielberg, Joe Dante, and maybe even Stan Winston’s names all over it. You can put Sketch in the same category as Gremlins, Goonies, Small Soldiers, and even the big kahuna-saur that is Jurassic Park. There are monsters, plucky kids who can handle the danger, and a mini-side quest for the adult characters that kind of gets forgotten about as the young ones strategize, but the adults at least don’t get in the way.
The movie is also a slim, trim 90 minutes. It drags in spots, but it gives you a lot without bargaining for more of your time than it needs, much like Naked Gun. You’ll be in and out and surprised afterward that the length is that short. I find that refreshing when every big tent pole still tries to be a near-three-hour epic, especially Marvel and DC ones. I have a sneaking suspicion that’s where the fatigue comes in.
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Sketch
PROS
- The effects are good for a project of its size
- Bianca Belle is as twisted yet likable as Wednesday Addams
- Good performances overall
- Tight runtime
- If you grew up in the 90s, you'll be reminded of some of your favorite gateway horror movies and shows
CONS
- Slow in spots
- Might freak out some families that don't know what they are getting into
- The moppy-haired kid whose name is actually Bowman is painted as a de facto bully when he's just annoying and awkward
- All the unnecessary references to butts
