This is decent movie . The boy is exceptional and gives a very scary performance at times. I do think it's hard to make a decent horror now and obviously you think of Damian. It's not that good but the suspense is good with plenty of jumpy bits. It's well worth a watch.
413 Reviews
Wasted Potential
kjproulx10 February 2019
I've never been a huge fan of the horror genre, aside from a few gems that stand out to me. It takes a lot for a horror film to impress me, as the genre has become somewhat of the butt of many jokes these days. The Prodigy wasn't ever going to be the best horror film to come along in decades or anything like that, so I had no expectations when going into this one. With that said, this is the definition of a film that has a lot of promising elements, but ultimately fails to capitalize on them. I can't get myself to recommend this movie, but I also don't feel the need to rip it apart either. The Prodigy is a middle of the road experience at best, but there is some good in it.
After failing to conceive a child for many years, a couple gains the happiness they've been seeking when it finally becomes possible. After just months of being born, Miles shows signs of being a genius, hence the title, The Prodigy. When mysterious things begin to occur due to his behaviour, religious beliefs and myths come to light and this film becomes incredibly intriguing. Without ruining what powers are really at work here, I'll just say the twist of this story had me hooked. It's a little silly an overly convoluted, but it worked in the context of the film.
Sadly, that's where most of my praise ends. With a solid cast including Taylor Schilling, Colm Feore, and young Jackson Robert Scott, they're able to sell this material and make it very believable. The third act, however, is one of the dumbest conclusions to a film I've seen a while. To even get into it would be a spoiler, but it felt like the climax to a completely different film and it felt mean-spirited to me. It's like a unique idea was building to something cool, but ultimately takes a super easy route out of the story and the fact that it's a child playing this certain role was slightly disturbing (in a bad way).
In the end, The Prodigy is a horror film that benefits from a few great jump-scares that had me jumping out of my seat and some very devoted performances, but the movie truly does unravel by the time the credits roll. This is the worst kind of film to watch because it's not terrible by any means, but it doesn't fully embrace its premise. This movie was like watching a superhero film where the hero of the story tells you everything they can do, but never showcases much of that power. The Prodigy may please some viewers, but I found it to be a waste of potential and mean-spirited from start to finish. Even though I wasn't excited for this movie in any way, I was still disappointed.
After failing to conceive a child for many years, a couple gains the happiness they've been seeking when it finally becomes possible. After just months of being born, Miles shows signs of being a genius, hence the title, The Prodigy. When mysterious things begin to occur due to his behaviour, religious beliefs and myths come to light and this film becomes incredibly intriguing. Without ruining what powers are really at work here, I'll just say the twist of this story had me hooked. It's a little silly an overly convoluted, but it worked in the context of the film.
Sadly, that's where most of my praise ends. With a solid cast including Taylor Schilling, Colm Feore, and young Jackson Robert Scott, they're able to sell this material and make it very believable. The third act, however, is one of the dumbest conclusions to a film I've seen a while. To even get into it would be a spoiler, but it felt like the climax to a completely different film and it felt mean-spirited to me. It's like a unique idea was building to something cool, but ultimately takes a super easy route out of the story and the fact that it's a child playing this certain role was slightly disturbing (in a bad way).
In the end, The Prodigy is a horror film that benefits from a few great jump-scares that had me jumping out of my seat and some very devoted performances, but the movie truly does unravel by the time the credits roll. This is the worst kind of film to watch because it's not terrible by any means, but it doesn't fully embrace its premise. This movie was like watching a superhero film where the hero of the story tells you everything they can do, but never showcases much of that power. The Prodigy may please some viewers, but I found it to be a waste of potential and mean-spirited from start to finish. Even though I wasn't excited for this movie in any way, I was still disappointed.
Not Bad at all.
stevedudesp16 January 2020
The Prodigy (2019)
rockman18210 February 2019
Warning: Spoilers
Always down for a horror film no matter what. The trailer for The Prodigy was intriguing though its one of those cases where it should have shown less, less is more for this one. That jump scare that ends the trailer would have been fantastic if we didn't know it was coming in the theater. Anyways, this film has things going for it in the beginning and starts off intriguing before degenerating into a mess.
The film is about an eight year old boy named Miles. Initially, his parents believe him to be gifted but they soon realize that something is off about their son. His actions become bizarre and border on psychopathy. It turns out Miles is possessed with the reincarnated spirit of a deranged serial killer who died at the same moment that Miles was born. His parents must figure out what to do to set their son free from the evil that has embodied him.
There's an intriguing premise here. The kid actor on display as Miles is good, and Taylor Schilling is as well. The film doesn't offer so many jump scares as I thought it would from the trailer and is driven in its plot. The mood and tone set up at first really works. I'd say the last quarter of the film is where it goes to hell. When the endgame and the progression towards it is revealed, I really lost interest.
The character motivations and actions are also extremely idiotic. To the point where I wanted to curse at the screen in the cinema. The film needed to arrive at its conclusion in a way that kind of respected the build up and quality of the beginning. Still for horror seekers who aren't too critical, this could be something to enjoy.
5.5/10
The film is about an eight year old boy named Miles. Initially, his parents believe him to be gifted but they soon realize that something is off about their son. His actions become bizarre and border on psychopathy. It turns out Miles is possessed with the reincarnated spirit of a deranged serial killer who died at the same moment that Miles was born. His parents must figure out what to do to set their son free from the evil that has embodied him.
There's an intriguing premise here. The kid actor on display as Miles is good, and Taylor Schilling is as well. The film doesn't offer so many jump scares as I thought it would from the trailer and is driven in its plot. The mood and tone set up at first really works. I'd say the last quarter of the film is where it goes to hell. When the endgame and the progression towards it is revealed, I really lost interest.
The character motivations and actions are also extremely idiotic. To the point where I wanted to curse at the screen in the cinema. The film needed to arrive at its conclusion in a way that kind of respected the build up and quality of the beginning. Still for horror seekers who aren't too critical, this could be something to enjoy.
5.5/10
As a viewer, the Prodigy givess a lot of information too early, making the film quickly predictable and long-lasting.
movieman6-413-92951010 February 2019
Warning: Spoilers
The Prodigy is a new horror film directed by Nicholas McCarthy, the director of The Pact, Home and Holidays.
In the film, Sarah (Taylor Schilling) has just received her first child. Her son Miles (Jackson Robert Scott) seems to be a special child from a young age with a clever intelligence and a high pain threshold. Furthermore, Miles also shows strange disturbing behavior.
When she has Miles tested, nothing special comes out of the research results. Only a spiritual researcher assumes that two different souls live in Miles. Miles his own soul and the soul of a reincarnated person who has not yet finished his life on earth. This soul belongs to a malicious man who tries to find and kill his escaped victim. Sarah is faced with a choice to help the evil soul and get her son back or to have her son locked up in a special institution so that the evil soul can not do any damage to the world.
This film is quickly told in a predictable way thanks to the information you get as a viewer at the beginning of the film. They could have left this information better from the beginning and could only tell later in the film. So the only question you can have as a viewer while watching the movie is which soul has control of the body of Miles. Usually the events and actions of the characters quickly give away who has the control.
Due to the predictability of the film, the film soon becomes a bit tedious, because as a viewer you know what to expect. For example, the horror moments in the film are not really scary anymore.
It is not clearly explained how reincarnation has happened in the film. It is simply stated that it is reincarnation without further explanation. The same type of horror story about reincarnation has been used in other horror films as in the Child's Play films. In these films, the soul of a murderer has entered an innocent doll by using a voodoo ritual, in order to create further chaos in the world.
The acting is well done by the protagonists. Jackson Robert Scott delivers good acting in this horror film for a young actor. In the remake of the horror film It also provided good acting as the young Georgie. Taylor Schilling also provides good assault as the mother, who is confronted with the two souls in the body of her son and the choices she is faced with. The acting of the two carries the film. The rest of the cast is not very special in the film. This is mainly because their characters have little more to do.
Killer look !
xvubojypasyhwurhxkedivvr9 June 2019
Poor unbelievable writing and Too many holes in the plot
ladolemorris28 April 2019
Warning: Spoilers
This movie started out with real potential...but then became so unbelievably horridness....The unbelievable factor of this film was too much for me take...There are just way too many holes in the plot to make it a believable movie....Yes I know it's a movie and writing a movie is definitely not an easy task....But a writer should be able to look at what is written and being out on film and just simply say"Jesus, this is💩"....Then offer and make suggestions....And most likely the director was pulled in different directions to suit the desires of the producers and the input from others.... But come on man... Driving your child to the survivors house....or the Psychiatrist not videoing the session with the minor...Just the unbelievable factor was way too much for me to handle....
Another supernatural child killer movie with it's ups and downs
theromanempire-18 February 2019
This was an interesting effort from the supernatural genre and most specific from the child killer genre which u can place in the category of films like the omen trilogy and stuff like that.
the movie started well then it had a few scenario flaws in the middle of the movie u may be bored kinda and then like 30 last minuted the movie finally explained things and those last minutes were the best part of the movie including a few disturbing scenes with the child killer.
those scenario flaws here and there (like the mother should realize what's really happening a lot sooner than when she did) were important cause those kind of movies need to be as realistic as can be to be...real scary movies.
Anyways it could have been a lot better but still it gets easily the average grade and then some.
from me it's a C+ // 6 out of 10
u can check this out and judge for yourselves. the ending leaves the door open for a sequel.
from me it's a C+ // 6 out of 10
u can check this out and judge for yourselves. the ending leaves the door open for a sequel.
Quite disapointing to me
pvamerongen8 February 2019
After seeing the trailer a couple of time I was quite excited for this movie. When I heard they had to edit some scenes because they were to scary for the test-audience I thought I would finally be seeing an actual horror movie. Unfortunately, this movie did not deliver for me. There were only two scary shots, one which was in the trailer. Furthermore, the movie explained way too much, way too soon for me, following a standard formula without any true twist. There wasn't anything to second guess, no 'did he or didn't he?', no other explanations or roads explored. A very straightforward movie that wasn't all that scary. Disappointing.
What movie did you guys watch?!
dam-2442127 February 2019
Okay listen, me and my friend are horror movie lovers, and we don't know anything about how they should he made. BUT we seriously loved this movie, I don't scare easily, but I was seriously sitting on the edge of my seat throughout the entire film.
Usually im not very impressed by children's acting skills, but this kid played it of pretty darn well if you ask me. Dont listen to all the people saying its bad, because its not.. <333
This pleasantly surprised me
laila-ynl9 February 2019
I don't know about you, but one more 'whoops my kid is possessed' flick and I'm about to scream. I ended up seeing this one and I was in for a treat. Not only did I like the start of this film, bringing me back to 70's and 80's gritty slasher classics - it also intrigued me; 'what am I in for?' The film contains thriller and horror elements, it feels like a blend. The cast is solid and Taylor Schilling and Jackson Robert Scott especially were a great match. The biggest and for me personally most annoying cliché ('my kid would NEVER do that' / insert surprised face emoji) is pretty much avoided here, and that gives it a genuine feel plus a hurrah from me. Director Nicholas McCarthy included a couple of very nice shots. The dark introduction scene and the wide shot of Miles in Halloween outfit felt to me like classic horror scenes and make you wonder 'what is going on?' I would like to see McCarthy also try something a little less supernatural with more character depth. In this case especially, I was interested in learning more about the main character and their motivation. Overall, I enjoyed it! A sequel could be good, but only with young Scott back in the game and more background information revealed...
Meh...
sugarnspices13 May 2019
Warning: Spoilers
I remember seeing previews for this movie and then never heard about it again. Should have been a sign when I was then surfing Redbox, but I'm willing to give movies a shot that are basically straight to dvd release, I've been pleasantly surprised before. The Prodigy was not one of those times.
This movie lacked a real "heart" and solid ground storyline that could then be grown upon and shaped into a horror or thriller movie to stand alone on its own two feet.
Issues I had:
The passing/skipping of this movie. We go from birth to 8/evil within the first 10 min. I realize they wanted to show the beginning evil man being murdered/Miles being born to cover the soul jump, but was that 3 min scene really necessary? Could they not have had that be researched and found later on? Or could they not have then showed a progression of Miles being evil throughout his life? With such a time jump and being thrown straight into the movie, there is 0 to none character development. What do we have when there is no character development? Lack of care of our characters and their journey/stories. I could care less about this family. The dad is barley even in it to start, I thought maybe they would make the evil soul be his father, Miles grandfather, explaining the soul jump. But no, it is only alluded he had a POS dad so he could then be absent throughout Miles' transformation. The whole movie is way too choppy, like they rushed at the end and just threw scenes together to make the final cut.
Speaking of, the soul jump. It is completely random and does not make any sense other than Miles being born when the evil man dies. There is no common thread there, complete and utter strangers. None. Zip. Made for no real impact on whose soul was in him or why.
Soul jumping. We go from a therapist to a what I can only assume an "expert" in this soul jumping within a scene. No discovering, no research, no doubt or other theories. "My son has a problem, listen to what he said in his sleep" to "He has an evil soul in him, seen it before, you have to let the evil soul/person finish his business before you can have your son back." Period. The mom does not believe it at first; but what do you know? Within the next scene she is a firm believer, I think bc of the jump scene of Miles having a man head or something. Yawn.
The dog. I am so sick of "scary" moves killing the family dog. It's been done. It's played out. It's annoying. Leave the dead horse alone. The second I saw the dog, I said it will be murdered. Why? Bc it has to. Why? Ummm, I don't know stupid directors, you tell me why? Just to emphasize how "evil" your characters are. Boring and over it, it's actually become a movie pet peeve for me these days. Come up with something new, you dud.
The ending. Was predictable as all get out.
This movie was so forgettable and not well made, I wish I hadn't even spent the $1.49 or whatever Redbox costs these days. Don't waste your time on the choppy mess.
This movie lacked a real "heart" and solid ground storyline that could then be grown upon and shaped into a horror or thriller movie to stand alone on its own two feet.
Issues I had:
The passing/skipping of this movie. We go from birth to 8/evil within the first 10 min. I realize they wanted to show the beginning evil man being murdered/Miles being born to cover the soul jump, but was that 3 min scene really necessary? Could they not have had that be researched and found later on? Or could they not have then showed a progression of Miles being evil throughout his life? With such a time jump and being thrown straight into the movie, there is 0 to none character development. What do we have when there is no character development? Lack of care of our characters and their journey/stories. I could care less about this family. The dad is barley even in it to start, I thought maybe they would make the evil soul be his father, Miles grandfather, explaining the soul jump. But no, it is only alluded he had a POS dad so he could then be absent throughout Miles' transformation. The whole movie is way too choppy, like they rushed at the end and just threw scenes together to make the final cut.
Speaking of, the soul jump. It is completely random and does not make any sense other than Miles being born when the evil man dies. There is no common thread there, complete and utter strangers. None. Zip. Made for no real impact on whose soul was in him or why.
Soul jumping. We go from a therapist to a what I can only assume an "expert" in this soul jumping within a scene. No discovering, no research, no doubt or other theories. "My son has a problem, listen to what he said in his sleep" to "He has an evil soul in him, seen it before, you have to let the evil soul/person finish his business before you can have your son back." Period. The mom does not believe it at first; but what do you know? Within the next scene she is a firm believer, I think bc of the jump scene of Miles having a man head or something. Yawn.
The dog. I am so sick of "scary" moves killing the family dog. It's been done. It's played out. It's annoying. Leave the dead horse alone. The second I saw the dog, I said it will be murdered. Why? Bc it has to. Why? Ummm, I don't know stupid directors, you tell me why? Just to emphasize how "evil" your characters are. Boring and over it, it's actually become a movie pet peeve for me these days. Come up with something new, you dud.
The ending. Was predictable as all get out.
This movie was so forgettable and not well made, I wish I hadn't even spent the $1.49 or whatever Redbox costs these days. Don't waste your time on the choppy mess.
Left Wanting More
baileyandy28 April 2019
Warning: Spoilers
Yes, there were moments when I found myself saying "really?" (Like most cheesy horror movies) But the story of a serial killer reincarnated into a young boy is one which I find myself wanting more. With the storyline and obvious setup for a second movie I can't help but find myself wanting more from this movie. At times the obvious "stupid" moments like leaving the book out in plain sight and telling the boy that they were taking him to an institution seemed almost like they were looking for a reason to move the plot along became almost cringe worthy, but the bare bones of a great storyline still remain. With the boy now in a new home and completely taken over by the serial killer it leaves me wanting a conclusion to the plot. While not worthy of an Oscar nomination by a long shot, the bare bones of the story create a dark and sinister narration in which I can't help but want to know what will happen next in the saga of "Miles". There were times in which I found myself feeling as if maybe there could be a happy ending but alas this was no fairy tale story. A dark and suspenseful tale, "The Prodigy" is a psychological thriller which takes two things, the innocence of a child, and the evil of a serial killer and merges them together in a way that will leave you with goosebumps and questions galore. Overall not the best horror movie but good enough to leave the audience with cold chills and a curiousity of what will become of this serial killer trapped in a child's body and whether or not he will ever be stopped.
Not original but not bad.
deloudelouvain26 April 2019
In the horror/thriller genre The Prodigy isn't a bad movie. It's not totally new, this story has been done before, but nonetheless it is entertaining. Maybe the mystery is revealed a bit too soon, they could have dragged it a bit more, I would have elaborated the story of the serial killer more, but even then it still has a dark ambiance and there is the mandatory suspense. It's nice to see Taylor Schilling in something else than Orange Is The New Black, I thought she did a good job. As well as the young Jackson Robert Scott (remember little Georgie Denbrough from Stephen Kings "It"), he was freaky when he needed to be. All in all The Prodigy gave me the entertainment that I was expecting so I'm not disappointed like some others aparently are.
Need another writers strike!
amufan24 February 2019
Evil Reincarnation
claudio_carvalho15 May 2020
Warning: Spoilers
In Ohio, police officers kill the serial-killer Edward Scarka (Paul Fauteux), when one of his victims flees from him and discloses his hideout in a farmhouse. Fifteen minutes later in Pennsylvania, Sarah Blume (Taylor Schilling) delivers her son Miles Blume (Jackson Robert Scott). Soon Miles becomes the pride and joy of Sarah and her husband John Blume (Peter Mooney) with his intelligence. When Miles is eight years old, his parents note his aggressive behavior and Sarah records his words during a nightmare. She brings Miles to the psychiatrist Dr. Elaine Strasser (Paula Boudreau) that shows the tape to Dr. Arthur Jacobson (Colm Feore), who is specialist in reincarnation. Soon he concludes that Miles is possessed by an evil entity and may lose his soul. What will Sarah and John do?
"The Prodigy" is a predictable horror movie with a story of a child possessed by an evil reincarnation. Despite the well-known theme, the screenplay is not bad and keep the attention of the viewer. Therefore, it is worthwhile watching this film with lower expectation and the viewer may have a surprise. My vote is six.
Title (Brazil): "Maligno" ("Malign")
"The Prodigy" is a predictable horror movie with a story of a child possessed by an evil reincarnation. Despite the well-known theme, the screenplay is not bad and keep the attention of the viewer. Therefore, it is worthwhile watching this film with lower expectation and the viewer may have a surprise. My vote is six.
Title (Brazil): "Maligno" ("Malign")
Ridiculous ;
duckboy-9417124 April 2019
Creepy..!
vijaychandrank8 February 2019
I wouldn't classify it as full on horror movie.. It will fall into the category of thriller, mystery genre. Creepy is the word you will associate for some scenes. I went into the movie with low xpectations since my last horror movie "The Nun" was a disaster. I don't think movie disappointed me. Sure the story is very old and you will see some usual shenanigans and cliches for this type of stories. Taylor schilling is decent and the kid acted really well. There are 2-3 jump scares but overall this is a decent one time watch . I liked climax and was a worthy ending to story. 7/10 for me.
One word, Mayonnaise.
jpompa-3413110 February 2019
Warning: Spoilers
Trash, compete trash.
**Warning Spoilers**
He's a reincarnated serial killer who's looking to finish one last victim who got away.
His parents (of course) have plenty of warning signs and far enough time to deal with their "possessed" son. This movie makes reincarnation look like a joke, more like a possession movie. The mother and father are insufferable throughout the entire movie, both making the dumbest decisions. The endings terrible. This movie is definitely Redbox worthy, not worth a movie ticket. Again, complete trash.
**Warning Spoilers**
He's a reincarnated serial killer who's looking to finish one last victim who got away.
His parents (of course) have plenty of warning signs and far enough time to deal with their "possessed" son. This movie makes reincarnation look like a joke, more like a possession movie. The mother and father are insufferable throughout the entire movie, both making the dumbest decisions. The endings terrible. This movie is definitely Redbox worthy, not worth a movie ticket. Again, complete trash.
Ya Know What...I Really Dug This!
dominickvanderlinden9 February 2019
Right up front i wanna say i've glanced at the mixed reviews so far on R.T. & Metacritic, so here we have another case of "Man of Steel-Itis", and i'm on the positive sign. For one the actors here do a great job, Taylor from "Orange Is The New Black" does a great job with ehr looks of concern, doubt & fear and for her first horror film, wouldn't mind seeing her do more. Course it's a great sign when you have young Georgie from "IT" in your film, and i'll say the whole theme the plot goes for i REEEEEALLY dug, especially some interactions between two specific characters, and that ending...well let's just say the kinda person I am, i really dig endings like this. Overall i would highly recommend seeing this year
Prodigy Kid
shaun_lime21 September 2019
I feel this film has been underrated, It deserves more credit because it was a decent Horror/Thriller.
I loved the performance from the child actor, played his creepy role good and kept it strong all the way and even better, he never new he was doing It or did he.
Overall a good film and worth your time.
I loved the performance from the child actor, played his creepy role good and kept it strong all the way and even better, he never new he was doing It or did he.
Overall a good film and worth your time.
Disappointing
sharifahzahira3 February 2020
Warning: Spoilers
I don't think this movie is aptly titled 'the prodigy'. The prodigal moment only lasted about 5-10 minutes, and the rest is about this boy having another soul of a killer (the killer who is a pathological liar isn't shown as a prodigy here.. mostly displayed as a troubled man with obsession over hands).
Must applaud the child actor for his talent though. The storyline, hmmh.. not so much. A dad runs away for a night or two just because he had an argument with his kid, and left the mother with the son. What an easy escapism for a parent?! The story didn't reveal what the killer motives were.. why he was like that? So many loopholes. Maybe they are reserving some plot for prodigy 2, i dunno.
And i really dislike horror stories with closures like in this one.
Must applaud the child actor for his talent though. The storyline, hmmh.. not so much. A dad runs away for a night or two just because he had an argument with his kid, and left the mother with the son. What an easy escapism for a parent?! The story didn't reveal what the killer motives were.. why he was like that? So many loopholes. Maybe they are reserving some plot for prodigy 2, i dunno.
And i really dislike horror stories with closures like in this one.
Better than average.
13SecondFilmReviews27 May 2020
I usually judge a thriller/horror film by the color of my undies at the end. White means it was lame and not very exciting. Brown, well, you get the idea. When credits came up, I checked and I'm rating this a sunflower yellow. It had some genuinely creepy, jump from your seat moments. But ultimately, I didn't get my panties in a twist.
its not that bad!?
ops-5253524 April 2019
Prodigy is an horror drama with lots of correlations to the horror blockbusters ''the omen'' we are following the growth of a boy with sinister aliens within, it a kind of sole jumping,as when a man dies his sole take mansion in a newborn body, kind of reincarnation.
its a movie with lots of suspence and the childacting are very good. the story and plot has its loopholes that makes some of the real horror seem daft. the score are well embroidered into the film, and the lightsetting are cfredible and makes some boost to the flick.
its well worth a look if you believe in superstition and reincarnation. so mthe grumpy old man thiks that to kill the beast is best, but its still alive for a sequel to come so join the consept.its recommendable watching
its a movie with lots of suspence and the childacting are very good. the story and plot has its loopholes that makes some of the real horror seem daft. the score are well embroidered into the film, and the lightsetting are cfredible and makes some boost to the flick.
its well worth a look if you believe in superstition and reincarnation. so mthe grumpy old man thiks that to kill the beast is best, but its still alive for a sequel to come so join the consept.its recommendable watching
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