101 min | PG-13 | February 9, 2024 | Focus Features
Diablo Cody writes a teen horror comedy set in 1989. Zelda Williams directs. The vibes are immaculate. The script needed another pass.
Lisa Swallows is a misunderstood teenager in 1989 who hangs out in a cemetery and develops a crush on a Victorian-era corpse. A lightning strike brings him back to life. They fall in love. They kill people to harvest body parts to make him whole. The premise is Bride of Frankenstein meets Heathers with a John Hughes soundtrack. Diablo Cody wrote the screenplay and the voice is unmistakably hers. The question is whether that voice still has something new to say.
Kathryn Newton plays Lisa with the same deadpan energy she brings to everything. She is well-cast as a goth girl processing trauma through morbid fixation. Cole Sprouse plays the Creature with physical comedy and zero dialogue. He communicates through gestures and expressions and it works more often than it should. Liza Soberano plays the popular stepsister. Carla Gugino plays the evil stepmother with camp precision. The ensemble commits to the tone without winking at the audience.
Zelda Williams directs her first feature with strong visual instincts. The 1989 setting is rendered with affection and detail. The production design pops with neon and pastels. The kills are creative without being graphic. The PG-13 rating constrains the horror but fits the teen-comedy wrapper. Williams has an eye for composition and color that suggests a real filmmaking future.
The film’s problem is structural. The first half establishes the world and the relationship with charm and momentum. The second half loses both. The body-part harvesting sequences become repetitive. The emotional arc flattens. Cody’s dialogue is sharp line by line but the story mechanics grind down. There is a better version of this film that is either darker or funnier. This version settles for pleasant, which is not enough when your premise involves romantic necrophilia.