Black Cab (2024) Movie Review - Unfortunately Bad British Ghost Horror
Welcome to Knockout Horror. 2024 has been a great year for horror and we still have Nosferatu coming up in December which might be the best one yet. I think it is fair to say that 2024 is approaching 2022 as far as quality goes. There has still been a fair amount of crap, though. Enter today’s movie, Shudder Original Black Cab.
Another Poor Shudder Original
Black Cab released just a few days ago and adds another blemish to Shudder’s rather spotty record of original productions. The fact of the matter is, most of the leading horror streaming service’s films are just not that good. Of course, you get a few exceptions here and there; Deadstream and Sissy, for example. And the past year has shown a significant improvement with brilliant movies like Late Night With the Devil, In a Violent Nature and Oddity. But, scrolling through the list, the vast majority of the entries are really bad.
Black Cab is another example of how willing Shudder are to put their name to just about any quality of film. It follows the story of bickering couple Anne (Synnove Karlsen) and Patrick (Luke Norris) who, after leaving a restaurant after a tense argument, hail a cab. Jumping in, the pair are dismayed to see an overly jovial cabby (Nick Frost) who is more than just a little eager to chat. Little do they realise that the ride will find them on a life and death journey they didn’t expect.
Claustrophobic Psychological Paranormal Horror Type Thing
Almost the entirety of this film takes place within the confines of a London style black taxi cab. With the narrative relying, almost entirely, on character interactions for the first half. It has something of a feel of the brilliant road trip Christmas horror Dead End but without the intrigue. Especially towards the latter half where it clearly moves from inspiration to plagiarism. Black Cab attempts a delicate balancing act between paranormal and psychological horror but the former detracts heavily from the latter. Leaving a movie that feels entirely uneven.
The first half works pretty well and is fairly compelling. The conversations are intriguing and the character interactions keep you heavily invested. Much of the tension comes, simply, from our characters interacting and the interpersonal conflicts between them. Patrick is an abusive asshole and Anne has been keeping secrets from him. These secrets are revealed in the car and that causes the situation to explode, somewhat. But, unfortunately, that isn’t the real meat of the movie. This is, actually, a rather traditional ghost story.
An Old Urban Legend
The scares come from the old urban legends that tell of a women jumping into the back of cars late at night on rural roads, only to vanish seconds later. Anne is haunted by visions of a spirit and, as the journey goes on, it gradually becomes clear that her connection to the cab driver is slightly more than just one of business. The cabby’s menacing, yet often humorous, interactions make for an interesting dynamic with the consistently off base Anne. Keeping things, at least, somewhat interesting as the story descends into one of tedious ghostly nonsense.
Director Bruce Goodison manages to extract a decent amount of horror from the inside of that taxi, as well. The dreary, rain spattered, roads of Manchester offer a suitably haunting ambience and the claustrophobic camera work keeps you guessing at just what lurks at the periphery of your vision. The only problem is, this is a journey with absolutely no direction. Once we escape the city streets, it suddenly twists and turns in a confused stupor, never once feeling as if it has any idea where it wants to go.
The story at the heart of Black Cab is predictable, overly familiar, and, simply, rather boring. You will guess every junction way before the tale arrives at it and you will see everything coming way before it does. This wouldn’t be an issue if it was engaging and scary but it just isn’t. It doesn’t help that the movie is plagued by cheap visuals designed to scare the viewer. The random ghost lady sightings look absolutely terrible thanks to poor makeup and effects work. With the spooky woman’s appearance far more likely to provoke laughs than expressions of startlement.
Kind of a Shame
Black Cab feels like something of a missed opportunity as these types of movies can work quite well. Claustrophobic, character focused, stories can be incredibly interesting but to see it devolve into a dishwater dull, formulaic, ghost story is rather disappointing.
It’s made all the worse by the fact that Nick Frost is utterly fantastic as the cab driver. Horror fans will probably recognise him from Shaun of the Dead but he has been around a long time on UK television. He is brilliant here, switching between menacing and jovial on a dime and feeling every part the sinister character with a captivating back story that you want to know more about. It’s just a shame the story wastes it.
Black Cab also suffers for trying to have the viewer invest in an utterly repugnant character. In this case it is the abusive and vulgar Patrick who just sucks so much. I complained about this with the protagonist in Last Straw and it is such a big problem in horror lately. Anne is fine, but whether there is any real point investing in her particular situation is left up in the air by an ending that is as confusing as it is ridiculous. Again, Black Cab really attempts to usurp Dead End’s uncanny vibe but just fails massively.
Should You Watch Black Cab?
Black Cab is a disappointing and unsatisfying paranormal horror movie disguised as something much more interesting. Whereas Nick Frost’s excellent performance may leave you feeling like you had a good journey. The ultimate end destination will have you wishing you just stayed at home. Confused, messy, not at all scary and disappointing. I can’t help but feel as though this was a massive wasted opportunity.
Our Scoring Philosophy: A Fair Fight
Horror is a genre that thrives thanks to indie film makers and low budget creators. At Knockout Horror, we firmly believe that every movie that we review deserves a fair fight. That's why we grade on a curve. Our star ratings are all about context, judging a film on what it achieves with the resources it has.
A 4-star rating for a scrappy indie horror made for $10,000 is a testament to its ingenuity and raw power. A 4-star rating for a $100 million blockbuster means it delivered on its epic promises. We don't compare them side-by-side; we celebrate success in every weight class, from the back-alley brawler to the heavyweight champion. Please keep this in mind when considering star ratings.
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