“No One Will Save You” stars Kaitlyn Dever, Zack Duhame, Lauren Murray, Geraldine Singer, Dane Rhodes, Daniel Rigamer, and Dari Lynn Griffin. Released on Hulu on September 22, 2023, the film has a teenager confronting a mysterious entity in her home. The film was written and directed by Brian Duffield, who directed “Spontaneous” and wrote screenplays for films like “Jane Got a Gun”, “The Babysitter”, and “Love and Monsters”. Home invasions are undoubtedly terrifying for everyone. Someone can break in and either steal your belongings, threaten your life, or even both. It shows that people like the invaders are too lazy to live their lives and instead ruin our own. However, for this particular home invasion, locking the windows and doors may not be enough to protect them. In fact, the person doing the invading isn’t actually human at all. With Halloween around the corner, I think now is an excellent time to check out a film I’ve been waiting a long time to watch, and it’s on Hulu. This seemed like another home invasion thriller at first, but its intergalactic twist makes this latest Hulu original film a supposedly unique take on the dangerous and realistic scenario. But is it enough to provide a frighteningly fun thrill ride for home viewers? Let’s find out. The story follows Brynn (Dever), a shunned seamstress living in her childhood home in the woods alone. She copes with the loss of her mother, Sarah (Murray), and her best friend, Maude (Griffin), by constructing a model town in her living room. One night, Brynn wakes to discover that her home’s been invaded by an intruder. Upon investigation, she realizes the intruder isn’t human but an alien sent to subdue her. This led Brynn to escape her comfort zone, only to find that the mysterious space creatures had already invaded Earth. Brian Duffield has had a pretty good track record recently regarding his writing credits. His approach toward some absurd multi-genre ideas resulted in some entertaining and clever takes on their traditional tropes, including “Love and Monsters”. Additionally, his directorial debut, “Spontaneous”, made Duffield a filmmaker worth watching due to his gross yet highly charming depiction of its rom-com story. Who knew blowing people up could make a romantic comedy more interesting? So when I heard Duffield had a new movie on Hulu a few days before its release, I immediately became curious about whether he could continue his streak with something that combines home invasion with alien invasion. I’ve heard plenty of good things about this one, so I assumed I would be in for a treat. After viewing it for myself, I can easily say that my assumption was correct. Was it best-of-the-year material? Not really. Did I have a good time watching this terrifying experience? Absolutely. One major element to know before watching the film is that “No One Will Save You” is another movie that features little to no dialogue. Aside from the five words spoken, every character does not communicate with words at all, mainly Brynn. It’s basically 93 minutes of Brynn sighing, screaming, panicking, and surviving against the aliens while the rest of the townspeople do nothing but shun her. This may seem unusual for a feature-length film, but it’s not. A dialogue-free story can be used effectively to explore its characters and simplistic plot in an emotional sense without them speaking a single word. It’s one of the reasons why silent films were popular back in the day. The phrase “actions speak louder than words” has been thrown around often, whether in real life or on the screen. “No One Will Save You” takes this well-known phrase and molds it into a thrilling and surprisingly emotional take on the home invasion storyline. The “emotion” part of the film comes from Brynn, who is despised by the townspeople. At first glance, I thought that they were being buttholes to her for no reason. But, as the film progresses, I start to understand why. “No One Will Save You” is basically Brynn’s journey of healing the past wounds that affected her while surviving against the otherworldly intruders. Regarding the direction and screenplay, Brian Duffield had the challenging task of providing this type of story and delivering good old-fashioned horror fun with minimal dialogue. It’s far from perfect regarding a couple of questionable moments, but it further proves Duffield’s ability to revitalize the tired genre tropes with a balanced mixture of suspense and heart. Every sequence in “No One Will Save You” is respectfully paced, wonderfully shot, and immensely tense, with little room to breathe. So basically, you would feel like you’re in a similar situation as Brynn. It’s terrifying, but chances are you would have fun being terrified by the not-so-friendly extraterrestrials like I did. Of course, the screenplay also proves that you don’t need dialogue to emphasize the characters’ actions, as it carries the same emotional weight as any other film with people speaking. With Brynn only being the center of attention, this left Kaitlyn Dever with the task of carrying the film through her physical and mental acting without talking a lot. The result is honestly her best work since “Booksmart”. Dever’s performance as Brynn resembles not only the pain and guilt she suffered from an incident from her past but also the vulnerability and fear of her being the only survivor. If her performance in “Booksmart” isn’t enough to consider Dever a real star, then I’m sure this one will. The rest of the cast also did well despite not saying anything, including Dane Rhodes as the police chief Collins. I would also credit the movie for its use of visuals, mainly for the aliens. The extraterrestrials in “No One Will Save You” have their simplistic designs, but they work in being creepy due to the large, contorted limbs. However, what makes them more unsettling is their movements. Most of the time, the aliens rapidly twitch when they move their limbs, which is actually quite scary when I think about it more. Even the sound designs are enough to make my skin crawl but in the best way. It’s pretty amazing what a low-budget horror movie can accomplish regarding its unnerving visuals and sound effects. Overall, “No One Will Save You” is a riveting and suitably directed experience that combines sci-fi thrills with thought-provoking emotion. It has a couple of moments that may not work well for everyone storytelling-wise, but aside from that, it’s an entertaining take on the genre that’s well-crafted, refreshing, and frighteningly fun. It’s too bad that it fell victim to the direct-to-streaming method because I think this could’ve worked as an immersive theatrical experience regarding its concept and Duffield’s ideas. Kaitlyn Dever continues to be a phenomenal young actress due to her magnetic performance, and Brian Duffield further proves himself as a talented filmmaker with a refreshing voice regarding his direction and screenplay. It makes me regret not watching it sooner when it first came out. However, I am glad I chose the right opportunity to see it around Halloween. After watching a couple of bland theatrical horror films that barely scare me, it’s nice to see one that saves the spooky month from being a bore…at least in my eyes. So, if you’re looking for a fun and creepy experience you can watch at home, “No One Will Save You” on Hulu will likely satisfy your thirst for alien invasion goodness. B+
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