The superhero genre can’t quite do horror yet.
The superhero genre has proved to be remarkably mutagenic, reshaping itself to fit almost any niche; action, comedy, western, sci-fi, fantasy, drama, sometimes all of the above, simultaneously.
Brightburn intrigues by promising to expand the superhero genre into uncharted territory — horror. But it’s a tricky genre to squeeze a traditional, cape-wearing superhero into, and the film fails to do anything remotely interesting with the concept, even failing at the level of a mediocre horror film, because said superhero is simply not frightening, not for a single moment.
What if Batman was right about Superman? Brightburn runs with the question, the film’s titular antihero sharing an identical backstory with the Man of Steel, a baby from another planet who crash lands on a farm, subsequently raised by a wholesome, all-American couple.
The difference being that Brightburn is evil, intent on world domination. Or rather, the spaceship he crashed in carries an evil signal which possesses him. The boy seems perfectly nice before being influenced by his intergalactic Moses basket.
It might have been interesting if Brightburn’s parents were abusive, or smothering, pushing their superhero son into villainy, but the shift happens instantly, not motivated by character, but by a signal from the spaceship that appears to be controlling Brightburn, manipulating him into killing the townsfolk in increasingly gory ways.
Bad horror films fail to entertain beyond their scary scenes, and Brightburn is completely flat when it’s unhinged superboy isn’t stalking and slaughtering people. The acting is wooden, the dialogue dull; the mystery behind the alien intent to destroy, or rule, Earth, is the only element that maintains interest, but in the end, is never explained.
Brightburn is evil simply because he is. That would have been perfectly fine if the boy was frightening (mystery can be intimidating), but he’s… not. He’s a kid wearing a red cape and a homemade mask that is supposed to look unsettling, but feels like a low-effort Halloween costume.
