B Movies Blog

Hello, Movie Mavens! Welcome back to the B Movies Blog. Today, we’re popping 

Steven Soderbergh’s Presence into the ol’ VCR.

Now, I don’t want to spoil Presence for you because a) it just came out and b) there’s one reveal that I think is worth the surprise. 

But, I want to talk about it because I’m…torn. 

Let’s start with everything I liked. 

I really liked how Soderbergh played with the haunted house genre and put us in the POV of the entity itself. 

In my humble opinion, it almost felt like playing a video game while watching a play unfold simultaneously. 

Doing something this bold was dicey, but it worked for me. 

I also love the first big reveal. 

I thought it went to a place I didn’t expect, and I was shocked (in a good way). 

I also want to give Lucy Liu’s performance a big shoutout; it was vulnerable and raw. 

Now, let’s switch gears and talk about what didn’t work for me.

Y’all know I’m a stickler for dialogue, and there were times when I thought it was either too pretentious or too stiff with Chris (Chris Sullivan) having some of the stiffest dialogue and Ryan (West Mulholland) having some of the most pretentious. 

However, the big thing that has me torn is the second big reveal, which is the big reveal of the entity’s identity. 

I’m going to talk in what will probably be annoying generics to avoid spoilers, so apologies in advance. 

We’ve…seen this plot point before in other media. 

In fact, I thought of at least three examples on the way home. 

Additionally, Lisa’s (Natalie Woolams-Torres) warning to Chris doesn’t quite align with what happens (in my opinion), so it feels a little disjointed. 

And, I think this goes back to what we talked about in our Wolf Man review from last week. 

I don’t necessarily think it’s right, but when you’re a heavy-hitting director, little things like this are going to matter more than if you’re a new director. 

TL;DR: People are going to be less forgiving, myself included. 

I’m not sure if that’s why I’m still torn, but I can’t quite figure out my feelings about Presence. 

Unlike Wolf Man, I would recommend seeing this one in theaters if you can, especially if you’re a fan of movies like A Ghost Story or shows like The Haunting of Hill House. 

I really like most of it, but just keep in mind that one of the big reveals is…a little predictable.