Common Sense Media Review
By Barbara Shulgasser-Parker
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Tech-addicted teens killed in bloody, violent tale.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 16+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Nobody Sleeps in the Woods Tonight
What's the Story?
In NOBODY SLEEPS IN THE WOODS TONIGHT, Polish internet-addicted teens gather in a wilderness camp-rehab program, where they hand over their devices and hike in the woods to break bad habits. But disaster lurks in the bucolic setting. Soon most of a small group of hikers fall victim to twin cannibal monsters created, we learn, when two young boys were infected by a contagion that fell to the earth in an oozing meteor decades earlier. Two teens share a joint and have sex while the rest of the group sleeps in tents. One is speared to death through the head and the other is bound in his sleeping bag and banged on a tree until dead. The monsters nibble on them for snacks. Clueless, the counselor splits the remaining campers up to search for the missing and things get worse from there. When things first start going wrong, clever Julek (Michael Lupa) sees the signs and outlines for anyone who will listen exactly how fictional characters always ignore the obvious signs in horror movies, just as they do in the this one. Curiosity, disbelief, overconfidence, sex, and splitting up almost always prove fatal, he warns to deaf ears. Who will survive the night?
Is It Any Good?
Nobody Sleeps in the Woods Tonight is both a by-the-book horror fest and an imaginative romp that follows the horror template step-by-bloody step into irretrievable carnage. It mocks but also reveres the gory slasher genre it mimics. Our guide is the clever Julek, who recognizes all the elements of classic horror movies as they present themselves to him and his frightened friends.
Teens are likely to be interested given the young cast. As horror movies go, it's pretty entertaining, but be aware that it's also very bloody and includes strong language, sex, nudity, and drug use. The movie makes it clear that a sequel may be in the works, as well.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about what makes a "good" horror movie. Do you think the more gore the better? Or do you think too much over-the-top violence puts the movie into the camp category, which seems more satirical and less scary?
One character describes the clichés of horror movies. As this plot checks off each plot point, does that internal self consciousness make the film more or less effective? Why?
Why do you think people like scary movies?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : October 28, 2020
- Cast : Julia Wieniawa , Michal Lupa , Wiktoria Gasiewska
- Director : Bartosz M. Kowalski
- Studio : Netflix
- Genre : Horror
- Run time : 102 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- Last updated : August 6, 2022
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