Come Play (2020)

 

 

 Five years ago I saw a horror short titled Larry which was written and directed by Jacob Chase.  Come Play is a feature film based on that short.  My reaction to Larry was “Meh.”, so is Come Play any better?  Let’s see.  Gillian Jacobs (Community and Fear Street: 1666) and John Gallagher Jr. (10 Cloverfield Lane and Hush) star as Sarah and Marty a couple with marriage problems.  The two find it difficult to work through their issues because they have a son Oliver who is autistic.  Being non-verbal, Oliver, who is portrayed by Azhy Robertson (Marriage Story and Juliette, Naked), relies on smart phones and an iPad  to do most of his communication.  Since Oliver is “different” than the kids in his class he doesn’t make friends easily.  One boy in particular, Byron, played by Winslow Fegley (Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile and 8 bit Christmas), makes Oliver's life even more difficult by bullying him. 

 

 

Oliver finds an app on his phone that introduces him to Larry, a monster who wants to make friends.  At first, the only way to see Larry is through the camera on Oliver’s iPad.  Eventually Sarah sees Larry through the iPad and Larry tells her he is going to take Oliver back to his world.  Compared to the short film Larry, Come Play is better as it gives Larry more of a story to work with.  Here’s something else I will say for Come Play, and this is something I never say; the kids in this movie make the movie.  I like Gillian Jacobs, and she was great in Community, but she is second banana to Oliver and Byron.  In fact, all of the adult actors are less impressive than the four main child actors in the film and for two of them this was their first major acting role.  Larry is creepy, no question there.  There’s a weird clicking sound whenever he appears that sounds like bones snapping into place. 

 

 

 

I liked the atmosphere of the film, and the often profuse use of Sponge Bob Square Pants music didn’t bother me as much as it did some folks, but I get what some people are talking about.  Come Play was a victim of the Covid pandemic having it’s released date moved from July of 2020 to October which ironically may have helped it's performance at the box office and doing better than the studio execs expected.  For Halloween weekend the film was number one at the box office.  Halloween is the perfect time to watch this film.  Having a Halloween party or need something on TV in the background while you carve that pumpkin?  This will do just fine.  It won’t blow you away, but it does have a decent creep out factor.  I will go three pineapples under the sea for Come Play and I can almost guarantee you will see a direct to video sequel sooner rather than later.