By George & Josh Bate
Serial killer thrillers are commonplace as television shows but rarely take the form of feature films nowadays. That’s a shame, because the likes of The Silence of the Lambs, Se7en, and M are among the greatest movies in cinema history. Admittedly, The Whisper Man, the latest in the increasingly rare breed of serial killer thriller films, does not match the quality of these esteemed titles, but it certainly makes for a gripping, foreboding, winding, and bone-chilling watch.
Streaming August 28 on Netflix and based on the novel of the same name by Alex North, The Whisper Man takes place years after a serial killer known as The Whisper Man was captured and imprisoned. As crimes that appear eerily similar to those of The Whisper Man decades earlier puzzle Detective Amanda Beck (Michelle Monaghan), the eight-year-old son of widowed crime writer Tom Kennedy (Adam Scott) is abducted, forcing Tom to reunite with his estranged father Pete Willis (Robert De Niro), the detective who stopped The Whisper Man all those years ago.
It should be no surprise to those who have watched The Rule of Jenny Pen that the follow-up for the director of the haunting psychological drama is as foreboding as it is absorbing. In The Whisper Man, New Zealand filmmaker James Ashcroft once again demonstrates his propensity for arresting visuals and sustained tension that, together, induce a sense of dread in the audience.
The Whisper Man moves and operates much like numerous other serial killer films and shows, but its relative lack of novelty hardly detracts from quickly becoming consumed by the story. Ashcroft, working from a screenplay by Ben Jacoby and Chase Palmer, kicks things off immediately with Monaghan’s Detective Beck uncovering the dead body of a child that bears an uncanny resemblance to how the convicted serial killer The Whisper Man used to leave his victims. From there, however, Ashcroft takes his time, allowing Adam Scott’s Tom Kennedy and his son Jake (Acston Luca Porto) move into a new home in a new town, blissfully unaware of the horrors ahead of them.
The possible reemergence of The Whisper Man does not directly concern the Kennedy family for quite some time, although the writing is on the wall that the conflict will soon become very personal for them. A distraught Tom brings in his estranged father Pete, played by an understated, internal, and economical Robert De Niro, who relies heavily on stillness and quiet authority to command the screen. Surprisingly, De Niro emerges as arguably the film’s central character as the mystery unravels as it is he, rather than Scott’s traumatized father, leading the pursuit for Jake.
De Niro’s quietly commanding performance is accompanied by a compelling turn from Scott, who authentically captures the anguish and anxiety of a troubled father desperate to reunite with his son. The estranged father-son relationship between De Niro and Scott’s characters is disappointingly underdeveloped and, in turn, rather underwhelming, although the two actors do well given the material at their disposal.
Michael Keaton, meanwhile, produces a scene-stealing turn as a character critical to the overarching story. Keaton has played some memorable antagonists over the years, whether it be in Pacific Heights, Desperate Measures, or Spider-Man: Homecoming, but arguably none are as unsettling as his performance as Frank Carter in The Whisper Man.
Although the film shows its hand too early and plays out a tad predictably, the journey to the ultimate reveals is the exact kind of twisting, turning, intriguing, and red herring and clue-filled route fans of the serial killer genre come to these movies to experience. The fact that its narrative wraps up so tightly and without a semblance of a loose end may be a product of things being a bit too tidy and procedural, although it speaks to the sturdy structure and storytelling of a movie uninterested in redefining a genre, but, rather, determined to enthrall with its winding mystery.
VERDICT: 7/10
Based on the novel of the same name, The Whisper Man refreshingly brings serial killer thrillers back to feature film format with a gripping, foreboding, winding, and bone-chilling watch. Director James Ashcroft follows up the superb The Rule of Jenny Pen with yet another film that employs calculated pacing and demonstrates his propensity for arresting visuals and sustained tension, in turn inducing a palpable sense of dread in the audience. The Whisper Man moves and operates much like numerous other serial killer films and shows, but its relative lack of novelty hardly detracts from quickly becoming consumed by the exact kind of twisting, turning, intriguing, and red herring and clue-filled mystery fans of the serial killer genre come to these movies to experience. Although the father-son relationship between Robert De Niro and Adam Scott’s characters remains disappointingly underdeveloped, De Niro excels with a quietly powerful lead performance that relies heavily on stillness and quiet authority to command the screen, while Scott plays the role of an anguished father with raw authenticity. Michael Keaton, meanwhile, produces a scene-stealing turn as arguably the most unsettling character in his entire filmography. Intriguing and ominous, if not a tad unoriginal and predictable, The Whisper Man is a reminder that, despite serial killer thrillers’ mass migration to television, these kinds of stories can still compel and unnerve when unfolding over the course of a feature film.