Rating: 2/5 stars

“No One Will Save You” is a newly released sci-fi thriller that follows Brynn (Kaitlyn Dever, “Ticket To Paradise”) as mysterious alien-like creatures begin to terrorize her. Directed by Brian Duffield (“Spontaneous”), “No One Will Save You” takes a unique approach to this classic horror genre. With almost no dialogue and few characters, Kaitlyn Dever delivers an impactful performance that captures the audience. 

Although the acting was good, other parts of this movie were lacking. A big issue it seemed to have was its delivery. The message was pretty obvious from the beginning, but it did not feel complete or fully developed. The horror aspect and message did not line up so the alien creatures almost felt pointless. The movie follows a troubled girl, so an unreliable and confusing narrator is to be expected, but it felt lost. 

The jump scares and fight sequences began to drag on by the end. Using the same ideas for each scene felt repetitive and no development in learning about what these aliens are or what they are doing did not happen until the end, and even when the big “twist” is revealed it falls short. 

Another big issue was the aliens themselves. The first introduction and the unknown of what they were was scary, but as soon as the camera shows them, all the fear goes away. The beginning was the only part that felt uneasy, and when the aliens were revealed it just felt like a drawn-out action scene. They were poorly designed and just were not terrifying at all. A few shots toward the end had an absurd look to them, almost leaning towards comical which certainly was not the intention. If the direction of the movie delved more into this fantasy world and into Brynn’s troubled mind, the movie would have felt more uneasy and thriller-like. 

The beginning and end were the highlight of the movie, and those were the parts without the aliens. Dever’s acting and facial expressions were very well done. Without much dialogue, she creates a sense of fear through her eyes which is such a powerful tool as an actor. The silence of the film was really interesting and did add a dystopian feel that was really impactful. 

Of course, a big part of psychological thrillers is the confusing element, but “No One Will Save You” felt unanswered. It felt unfulfilling and predictable. The aliens could have been used in a powerful way, adding more to the psychological aspect of it and creating imagery of Brynn’s troubles, but it seemed to do the opposite and distract from the main point. It almost seemed that the two should have been made into different movies, one alien action movie and one psychological thriller about Brynn, but they were put together and it was done poorly. 

Although “No One Can Save You” lacked a lot of different things, Dever’s performance was truly captivating. Watching her and how she developed the character on screen without any use of words was interesting. If a few things were done differently and the message and delivery were different, this movie could have been really interesting, but overall it fell short, making it an odd and unsatisfying watch.

Image from 20th Century Studios via YouTube.com