This feels like the film that should have been the first release of 2024. We always seem to need to sacrifice and suffer through a mediocre or terrible horror film to start every year, like a ritual sacrifice. I also sat through a barrage of reviews trashing this film, so when I finally got around to Imaginary, I was ready to believe that this would be battling my eventual thoughts on a Winnie The Pooh: Blood and honey sequel for worst picture. But, no. It’s not good, but there are worse films this year. there are films that have made me viscerally angry. This isn’t one of them.

Imaginary has a pretty decent audio description track by Deluxe, narrated by Roy Samuelson. At first, the film is so oddly terrible that you can’t quite appreciate the audio description, and it isn’t until the bonkers third act that the description gets to work overtime. Most of the film centers around a woman who moves with her recently acquired family to the house she grew up in, where her younger step-daughter finds a stuffed bear… from hell. I don’t know about the hell part, but it is certainly best friends with Annabelle, that’s for sure.

So, creepy shit happens, there’s a husband/dad who just kinda peace’s out because the story doesn’t need him. There’s a neighbor who is aggressively sketchy. The older daughter is very much in constant “I cannot be bothered” mode. It’s a pretty obvious film, with some very average talent, that goes off the wall in the final act. I was expecting something a little more along the lines of an Annabelle, or perhaps a Megan or Chucky, but we get into “the writer was probably microdosing when writing the screenplay” territory. It kinda saves the film, a little bit, because it can’t be accused of being derivative or boring. It may not make sense, but it certainly isn’t dull.

Blumhouse, which seemingly will put their name on anything, is claiming this. While there’s some lore and backstory here, I can’t imagine a sequel would ever happen, nor do I think anyone will truly remember this film in five years. Again, it isn’t terrible. i hated Night Swim a lot more than this. But, I could never recommend this either. It isn’t really ever scary, and the direction always feels like it is a first feature, with actors who feel just happy to be in a movie. I’m shocked this got a wide release, and wasn’t just like a Tubi original, or a Shudder exclusive.

Final Grade: C-