Never Let Go review: Halle Berry delivers fearless performance in heartbreaking horror

Halle Berry dominates the screen in Never Let Go, playing a mother desperate to protect her children from some unseen – and potentially non-existent – force, no matter the cost.

Never Let Go follows in the footsteps of recent horror movies like A Quiet Place and Bird Box, where the high-concept hook reels you in, before the film itself delivers drama and emotion.

In A Quiet Place that hook was a world of silence, and in Bird Box it was enforced blindness. During Never Let Go, the hook is literal, and takes the form of a rope.

That’s because there are monsters surrounding a remote cabin in the woods, and unless you are tethered to a rope that’s tethered to said house, you’re dead meat. At least that’s what Momma claims…

What is Never Let Go about?

The inhabitants of that cabin are a mother (Halle Berry) and her twin sons, who are living in a world that has apparently been destroyed by some ambiguous evil out there in the surrounding forest.

But that force can’t touch them when they are tied to said rope. In the film’s early scenes, we see how that works, with Momma and her kids each tethered to huge lengths of rope, that allows the starving family to embark on a mission to kill squirrels, collect bugs, eat frogs, and climb trees to steal eggs.

But then one of the boys seems to hear a voice, which starts a chain reaction that results in his becoming untethered, with a monster on his tail. Trouble is, only Momma sees said monster, immediately putting doubt in the audience’s minds.

Which is compounded by the fact that – as played by Halle Berry – Momma seems to be at the end of her own rope, with the family’s desperate plight resulting in her potentially losing touch with reality. Making Never Let Go ambiguous from the off.

What is the evil?

The narrative never explains the threat outright, with Kevin Coughlin and Ryan Grassby’s script leaving much to the imagination. But it does offer hints and clues as to the nature of the evil.

At the start of the movie, via voiceover, we learn that it first came to Momma as a snake, then took other forms to torture and torment her.

Keeping it vague, the evil apparently wants to destroy the love inside each victim; to possess, then have them turn on each other. But the rope is their lifeline, which is why – according to Momma, at least – these three survivors must “never let go.”

It’s a simple premise, which makes for a consistently downbeat movie. Either Momma is right, and the family is doomed. Mother has lost her mind, with it a tragedy in itself. Or she’s lying, and we’re dealing with a serious case of child abuse.

Don’t eat the dog!

Aside from the monsters, hunger and starvation is the driving force of the film’s first half, with food so scarce that the family considers eating their loyal and beloved dog. In scenes that are tough to watch.

It doesn’t get more upbeat after that, but intrigue is added to the mix, as at about the same time we are questioning Momma’s claims, so too does one of her boys.

This leads to conflict within the family as brother turns on brother, and son turns on mother. While said script masterfully keeps both characters and audience guessing until the final few reels.

Is Never Let Go good?

Director Alexandre Aja’s last movie was pretty much a single-location horror flick, with Crawl concerning a father and daughter trapped with a giant alligator.

Never Let Go explores similar themes of familial bonds being tested while something terrifying attacks. But where its predecessor was dumb fun, this new movie is more serious, both in terms of tone and theme.

Lionsgate

Aja knows how to structure a terrifying sequence, though some of the more cynical jump-scares feel a little out of place. While he also knows there’s as much horror to be gleaned from realizing the person you love most in the world might also be the one person you shouldn’t trust.

But those scenes only work if the actors playing these characters are at the top of their game, and the three leads in Never Let Go are superb. Halle Berry is all intense fury as the mother who is willing to sacrifice everything to save her sons.

She masterfully walks the tightrope that Never Let Go demands, delivering a fearless performance that amps up the tension in all of her scenes.

And she’s ably supported by Percy Daggs IV and Anthony B. Jenkins as her boys, relative newcomers who carry much of the movie on their shoulders, and manage to match their Momma in the movie’s darkest scenes.

Never Let Go score: 3/5

Never Let Go is pretty much the opposite of a feel-good movie, but delivers genuine scares, while a thin story is carried by three superb central performances.

Never Let Go premieres at Fantastic Fest, before going on general release on September 20, 2024. For more scary stuff check out the best horror movies at FrightFest, and the 250 horror movies new to streaming in September.