Parents' Guide to Abigail

Using a simple setup with a few clever twists, this gory, slick vampire movie layers in horror and humor in a most appealing manner, moving with ease and confidence almost the entire way. With Abigail, co-directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, of the collective known as Radio Silence, add another winner to their distinctive filmography. It recalls elements of their earlier movies Ready or Not, which was set in a large, opulent mansion, and Scream VI, which had a bloody showdown in a large, beautiful theater. But this one adds in supernatural elements and a gleeful excess of gore.

The filmmakers establish a tone that incorporates humor without distracting from the true horror of the situation. It doesn't undercut or betray anything; the elements are melded together gracefully. There's time to build characters—or at least enough that we know how we feel about them. And everything is clear and fluid; there's never any junky camerawork or cheap shortcuts. It's entertaining throughout, except for a few small quibbles. In the final act, there's an overcooked element—best not revealed—that detracts from the quality of the story. And then there's Abigail herself, who's at least a couple of centuries old, spending all that time in the body of a small girl. Movies like Near Dark and Interview with the Vampire have also introduced characters who suffer gravely from a curse like that—being an experienced person in an inexperienced body—but Abigail never addresses this concept. Still, there's enough here to make this nail- and neck-biter well worth recommending.