By Villanelle March, MoreHorror.com,
Synopsis:
When Beth (Keegan Connor Tracy) and Kevin Parsons' (Sean Rogerson) son Joshua (Jett Klyne) brings home an imaginary friend named "Z," they become concerned that he is falling too deep into a world of make-believe. He starts to display extremely destructive behavior, blaming Z for all of his actions.
They ask Dr. Seager (Stephen McHattie) for advice, but when Joshua is kicked out of school, Beth is forced to find a drastic solution. She medicates her son, making him unable to see his imaginary companion. But now Beth and Kevin begin to see glimpses of Z. When Beth invites Dr. Seager to come over to their house for a consultation, he suggests Z has been using Josh to try to reconnect with Beth.
“Z”, from Brandon Christensen is a ferocious paranormal film in the vein of “The Babadook” and “Poltergeist” as the movie tells of a supernatural entity that engulfs a family.
This low budget entry is a bit weak on the special effects side, but that's to be expected when there isn't a larger budget. There are quite a few jump-scares, which can get old after a while, but it's not completely distracting.
Josh Parsons (Jett Klyne) is an introverted eight-year-old who starts to play with an imaginary pal named "Z". Josh's parents Elizabeth (Keegan Connor Tracy) and Kevin (Sean Rogerson) are initially stoked that their kid is opening up and having some fun. If you've seen any horror films along this line in the past, you know that it inevitably turns into terror, jump-scares, and violence.
The film explores the mental health issues of a son who begins to act erratic, similar to how The Babadook touched on the mental health of a child. The screenwriter's Brandon Christensen and Colin Minahan give a slick two-act-structure, with a creepy kid and brutality which eventually unfolds. We in due course come to find that there's some family history at play, which makes for a fun, rough around the edges horror film.
"Z" is a perfect film for horror fans to check out on Shudder and a great addition to their lineup.
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