Horror Movie Review: The Old Ones (2024)

There have been significantly more lows than highs in the realms of H.P. Lovecraft adaptions and far too many lazy spins that offer nothing fresh or interesting. From the lowest budget offerings to the moderate budget offerings (let’s be honest, nobody is stumping up a lot of cash for one of these movies), there have been more bad H.P. Lovecraft adaptations than good.

So, when one comes along that isn’t necessarily great, but really tries hard and offers up some freshness, it’s well worth crowing about.

Writer/director Chad Fernin did a decent job with his 2020 adaption of Lovecraft’s The Deep Ones and now offers up a sequel of sorts. One that has all the Lovecraftian hallmarks, borrows from several different sources, has plenty of the lore infused into it, but takes some liberties and focuses on a more comedic style of horror. Which is to the film’s benefit in the end, and importantly, the viewer’s overall enjoyment.

Following a very cool animated introduction that sets up the story surrounding the lead character of sea captain Russell Marsh (Robert Miiano), the film introduces Gideon (Benjamin Philip) and his father (Scott Vogel). The pair are out fishing and Gideon ends up hooking a big one.

It’s not a fish though, it’s Russell Marsh, who has spent the last 93 years with his body inhabited by a Great Old One. Forced to commit evil acts in the name of the Esoteric Order of Dagon and unable to escape their grasp. Until now…

Free and desperate to find a way to reverse all the evil deeds he did while under the control of The Great Old One, Russell enlists the help of Gideon. Who has no choice but to go along with the madness as the Deep Ones have risen and his father is the first of many casualties. The cult isn’t willing to just let Russell get away. Not with all the knowledge he has about their dealings and plans.

What follows is a ‘odd couple’ style of comedy with plenty of sinister and fun aspects of horror. One that combines several different Lovecraft properties using story elements, concepts, and with plenty of references from the likes The Shadow Over Innsmouth, The Call of Cthulhu, and From Beyond. It’s an inspired decision to mix these together while telling an original story and allows the film to be judged on its own merits, rather than just as an adaptation. It also helps that Chad Fernin clearly has a love for the source material, but also knows a lot of it can be unwieldy.

While all of this, and more, such as the tight story telling, good acting, and solid comedy touches, ensures it is a strong film overall, it does have notable limitations that stop it being truly special.

There’s a cheapness to it, evident in the overall B-movie feel, and while practical effects are at the forefront, it’s not always the best to look at. Even if there’s plenty of gore and plenty of imagination in how it is showcased. Alas, the CGI leaves a lot to be desired, although the amount of goodwill the film builds up, some dodgy CGI transformations can be forgiven.

Had The Old Ones been a straight up adaptation of a specific piece of Lovecraft work, its B-movie style would probably have resulted in something wholly unremarkable. Thankfully, the bold decision to combine aspects and go down a more comedic route pays off. It’s not a great film, but the effort put in to making it ‘something’ makes it so much more likeable.

Hopefully this idea, combining different aspects of Lovecraft and wrapping them around an original idea, continues to be something that director Chad Fernin is willing to explore further. After all, The Old Ones is already a sequel, even if it can be viewed and enjoyed as a standalone film.