The Boy… With His (Hopefully) New Girl

Released in the past decade, January of 2016, a new horror movie emerged. The Boy, written by Stacey Menear and directed by William Brent Bell, was the beginning of a series of films. The movie was an international co-production between China and the United States, with filming beginning in Victoria, British Columbia. On a $10 million budget, The Boy grossed $64 million worldwide. Four years following the release, a sequel, Brahms: The Boy II came to light. 

Greta Evans (Lauren Cohan), a young girl suffering from a tragic romantic relationship, decides to travel from the western part of the US to the United Kingdom in hopes to get away from her life and struggles. As her driving force to move, Greta gets hired as a nanny for an elderly couple, the Heelshires (Jim Norton & Diana Hardcastle). Before her arrival, she prepares herself for who she would be babysitting. Once arriving at the property, Greta realizes the house is more of a manor, in a very old fashion. After all introductions are done, the couple decides to introduce Greta to their child; a life size porcelain doll named Brahms. They reveal that they treat him as a son, and that there are a series of rules she must follow in order to take care of him. For example, reading to Brahms each night in a loud, clear voice, playing loud music for him, and placing any of his uneaten food in the fridge. It all seems harmless at the start.

The setting of the movie was phenomenal. The old manor-like house just made the film seem much more creepy. Having Greta have no prior knowledge of what she was getting into with the job allowed you to create your own suspicions, and if the truth was different than your assumption, this made the movie even more surprising, keeping you on the edge of your seat. Incorporating the doll itself was creepy, as many movies have been made based on possessed dolls. This gave you a chance to form your own opinion on this aspect as well, having you wanting more. The set of specific rules established a sense of weirdness in the film, as not many movies have had backgrounds like this. 

In the beginning, Greta ignores the rules. She regularly calls her sister who informs her that her abusive ex-boyfriend is attempting to find where she is. In the meantime she makes friends with Malcolm (Rupert Evans), the local delivery man. He stops by often, and through their regular visits, Greta is able to find out the truth about Brahms; he was killed in a fire 20 years ago on his eighth birthday. Out of nowhere, the Heelshires leave for extended holiday out of town, leaving Greta to take care of Brahms on her own. Despite the oddness, Greta assumes her job will be easy, as he is just a doll. Eventually Greta and Malcolm’s friendship grows, leaving Malcolm to ask her out. Hesitantly, Greta agrees. The night of their date, Greta picks out a dress and jewelry, and sets it on the bathroom counter while showering. Once exiting the shower, she notices that her clothing was missing. She is drawn to the attic by strange noises, where she goes up to investigate. While up there, she is suddenly locked in.She discovers many photos of the young Brahms, and in each one he always looks sullen.  After spending hours up there, the attic door mysteriously unlocks as morning comes around. Missing the date, Greta finds Malcolm and explains what all took place. Malcolm reveals that Mr Heelshire has previously described the real Brahms as “odd”. 

Having Greta ignore the rules definitely causes some fear, as it had seemed like the rules were crucial for Brahms’ survival. Introducing Malcolm was a very good idea, as he provided much information for Greta, and gave you a chance to form a strong connection between the both of them. Brahms dying in the fire was definitely eerie, and caused a lot of confusion, which kept the movie rolling. The missing dress and jewelry invoked a huge fear factor, causing worry for the safety of Greta as well as much confusion again. The noises in the attic was a very stereotypical fear you see often, but this was a good incorporation, as you weren’t left with too much confusion. Being locked in the attic enhanced fear, and finding the pictures of Brahms assisted this as well. 

As the weeks go back, many strange events begin to occur. To begin with, Greta has experienced many of her belongings disappearing, but then reappearing days later. She has also heard child’s sobs in the hallways as well as phone calls randomly cutting off. Most concerning, Greta has noticed the doll seems to move on its own. One evening, she receives a phone call, in a young child’s voice, urging her to follow the rules. Scared out of her mind, Greta locks herself in her room, where later she finds a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Following the discovery, she receives another phone call from the same person, promising the child will be good. These experiences lead Greta to believe that Brahms’ spirit is living within the doll, and she decides to take the rules very seriously. 

Having Greta experience these things left you to believe one of two things were happening: someone is either living in the house that she is unaware of, or the doll is possessed by something. Either of which are actually true, the fear is still incorporated so strongly, which is what the film needed. The phone call was definitely so creepy, really causing debate about what was going on. It was a good idea for Greta to begin to follow the rules only because it would give the ending a better surprise, and it demonstrated the amount of fear Greta did truly have. 

With days going by of the doll mysteriously moving, Greta recalls the Heelshires explaining that Brahms’ is shy. She realizes that the doll only moves when she is not in the room. Demonstrating this to Malcolm, he becomes very worried. Out of fear for Greta, Malcolm explains more findings he has come across while working for the family. The day of Brahms’ death, one of the girls he was friends with, her skull was found crushed in the forest by the house, and before Brahms’ could be questioned, the Heelshires’ house burnt down with him inside it. After disclosing the information, Malcolm suggests Greta to return home, but she feels obligated to stay. The following day, Greta comes across a letter written by the Heelshires, appearing to be a goodbye letter to Brahms’ as it implied they had committed suicide. 

The truth about the skull of Brahms’ friend suggested that Brahms was a violent person, and gave so much fear. The suicide note through the movie for a circle, as it was quite unexpected, but details like this cause you to be more on the edge of your seat, as you are unaware of what would happen next. 

One evening, Cole (Ben Robson), Greta’s abusive ex-boyfriend shows up at the house, trying to force her to return home. Throughout the past weeks, Greta has been taking extra care of Brahms’ and has seemed to have formed a connection. Unsure of what to do, Greta tries to ask the doll for help. In the middle of the night, Cole wakes up and sees a message, that appears to be written in blood, to go home. Thinking Greta or Malcolm wrote it, Cole picks up Brahms’ and smashes him to pieces. Suddenly, the house begins to shake, waking up Greta and Malcolm. They hear noises behind the walls, and a mirror on the wall explodes. Out steps the real, adult-looking Brahms (James Russell) wearing a porcelain mask, identical to the doll. It becomes clear to everyone that after the fire, Brahm’s survived, and lived inside the walls of the house. Out of anger Brahms kills Cole, and then turns for Malcolm and Greta. 

Having Cole show up wasn’t necessary for the continuation of the plot, although it revealed the truth about Brahms faster than it probably would have without him. The writing in blood evokes terror, making the house seem to be unsafe. The real version of Brahms was quite ugly looking, almost making you even more afraid of him. He was a monster in this story. The connection between the doll and the face mask was a good detail, leaving out any confusion. Having Brahms live in the walls was very quite scary, as you never know what he saw. Killing Cole definitely showed how violent Brahms truly is, suggesting more about the crushed skull and his sullen faces. 

Running from Brahms, Greta and Malcolm discover Brahms’ room, where a doll made from Greta’s missing dress, jewelry, and chunks of her hair. Greta comes across a second goodbye letter from the Heelshires, where they reveal their plan for leaving Greta as a friend for Brahms. Coming up behind them, Brahms knocks out Malcolm, and threatens Greta to kill him if she tries to leave. In a quick second, Greta attempts to escape the house and is successful. Realizing she needs to go back for Malcolm, she arms herself with a screwdriver and reenters. Unsure of how to go about this, Greta decides to invoke the rules and force Brahms to bed. Brahms asks for a goodnight kiss, and as he leans in, she stabs him with the screwdriver. Trying to save himself, Brahms tries to choke Greta, but as she pushes the screwdriver deeper, he collapses, leaving Greta to rescue Malcolm. They escape the house, and the closing scene shows someone repairing the broken Brahms doll.

Recovering the missing clothes and other items was very scary as it suggested that Brahms was coming out of the walls when no one knew. The cutting of the hair was terrifying because he was touching Greta in her sleep. Leaving everyone to survive was a good idea, as it set up for any possible sequels. Overall, the movie was very well set up. It had aspects not every movie has normally. It keeps drawing you in, and has unexpected turns everywhere. The setting of the movie was perfect for this movie, and created a very unique background.