Warning: It’s best to watch the film before reading this film review.
Sci-fi horror may be a rare combination of genres, outside of the popular Alien series. “No One Will Save You” is a fresh choice that feels like it takes a different approach. Directed by Brian Duffield, who has been involved in sci-fi films such as “Love and Monsters” (2020) and “Underwater” (2020), this film is played solo by Kaitlyn Dever, and what’s unique is that this film has almost no dialogue. “No One Will Save You” was released by Disney+ in mid-September, and it’s a shame; I just missed this classy film when it was released.
Brynn (Dever) is a lonely young girl who lives alone in her big house since her late mother left her. After a traumatic incident that killed her best friend, Maude, Brynn was ostracized by the townspeople. One night, a mysterious figure entered her house, and who would have thought that this figure was actually an extraterrestrial creature intending to harm her? It seems that one small town is being completely invaded by possessing human bodies as hosts. Without anyone’s help, Brynn can only survive in her house from the aliens who are targeting her.
For horror sci-fi, this is truly a rare achievement. Indeed, this film reminds a lot of “Signs” directed by M. Night Shyamalan, but its narrative and aesthetic offerings are truly unexpected. The story only focuses on the figure of Brynn, and the dominant location is only around her house. The resulting tension is truly extraordinary, even though the jump scare aspect is not the filmmaker’s main choice. The story is solid, not only focused on how Brynn can survive with all her luck but also the subtext. This is what differentiates “No One Will Save You” from many other horror films.
Typically, the subtext in a horror film is just a hidden “message” that is the core point of the story. The “good vs. evil” is the main feature of the story with suspenseful actions with a jump scare “gimmick” that entertains the audience. For example, Megan, the monster, is just a lesson for the character to love and love his niece sincerely. Many horror films use “monsters/ghosts” as a feeling of trauma/fear that the characters should release. “No One Will Save You” is similar, the only difference is all the story elements lead to the subtext.
The traumatized side (Brynn) is the key to the story. From the start, we can only guess what really happened to this young girl. The script brilliantly provides information slowly, which becomes the biggest mystery for the audience. The alien invasion plot is not the main presentation that usually leads us to a “solution” to eradicate them. However, this film does not go there and remains focused on the figure of Brynn alone. Even the alien, with its psychic abilities, makes Brynn face to face with her guilt. This also brings the story to a “happy ending” resolution for the character. Guilt or trauma will always be a part that cannot be separated from the human mind. The star who plays solo appears so charming throughout the film with only a handful of dialogues coming out of her mouth.
It could be that “No One Will Save You” is a sci-fi horror film that purely emphasizes subtext rather than the narrative of an alien invasion with a unique and effective aesthetic approach. Several horror films have also provided very special similar examples, such as “Night of the Living Dead,” “Get Out,” and “The Babadook.” “No One Will Save You” is strong proof for the genre that horror exploration can still be taken to an unprecedented level of depth. It’s really fun to see the makers of this film playing with the concept of theme/message by combining it brilliantly with the aesthetic aspect.
