Dolly(2026)(Review)

It feels like it’s been a while since we’ve had a proper backwoods, hillbilly-centric horror film. The ‘Wrong Turn’ reboot was less than stellar, and I personally love any opportunity to wander in the thick of the woods. So, when I saw the initial reviews for this grisly little indie flick coming out, I had to check it out.

“Dolly” is a very simple story in its setup. Happy couple Macy & Chase (played by Fabianne Therese and Sean William Scott) are going for a hike through the woods when they come across a strange scene. Nailed to the trees and lined up in circles, they find a massive grave of porcelain dolls. As they dismiss it and carry on, they are lured back by the sound of strange music, and come face to face with a hulking beast of a human we know as Dolly (played by Max the Impaler). After the initial encounter, the film basically turns into a captivity horror film where our stars try to escape a home they are being confined to – all while Dolly tries to carry out their dreams of being a mother.

It’s a very throwback styled film that feels like a good cross between grindhouse exploitation films of the 70s, mixed with a bit of the 00s hillbilly horror. The story itself isn’t really spelled out for us, instead we have to put the pieces together ourselves based on what we find as we wander around this house looking for an escape. This is an interesting way to set up a story and a backdrop without being too heavy-handed or exposition dumping, but at the same time it does make it easy to feel disengaged as an audience member.

To put it bluntly – it’s a film you either vibe with it, or you don’t. And I don’t feel there’s much wiggle room to convince you otherwise once you’ve made your decision. The violence is rather splattery and comical in a dark, mean-spirited way. This goes a long way when all is said and done, as well as giving us an interesting aesthetic, a gorgeous house to play around in, and a rather terrifying new slasher.

Where the film does have its soft spots are really when we dive into the story and the script itself. As I said at the top, it’s a simple premise, and I’m honestly cool with that. But this does make it so our survivors end up in almost an infinite loop of just screaming and asking “why are you doing this?” and neither us nor them are getting any answers besides this ominous, haunting wheezing noise. While I wasn’t truly bothered by this by the end, I completely understand the criticisms saying that there isn’t a whole lot here to engage with.

This is a film that wears it’s heart on its sleeve – it’s a vicious, creepy, splattery good time. It’s not striving to do anything more or be anything less. Writer & director Rod Blackhurst went out to make a particular aesthetic with a throwback vibe to the films he loved, and that’s exactly what he did. So, for those who are looking for something in this specific vein, I would say this one doesn’t disappoint. But for those looking for the next big slasher series or a brilliant IP jump-off, this will probably be a bit underwhelming.

3.5/5

“Dolly” will be coming to Shudder in April.

‘Til Next Time,
Mike Cleopatra

The Gruesome Gazette

Your source for everything horror

http:www.gruesomegazette.com