Quartile rating: 6.5/10 · 1 rating
As an evil takes over the world beyond their front doorstep, the only protection for a mother and her twin sons is their house and their family’s protective bond.
Never Let Go presents a claustrophobic supernatural horror premise centered on familial bond as a literal protective force, which is a reasonably distinctive conceit. The execution is competent but uneven — Halle Berry delivers a committed performance and the film builds tension well in its first half, but the psychological ambiguity regarding what is real grows muddled rather than meaningfully unsettling. The cinematography captures the isolated woodland setting with serviceable dread but rarely elevates beyond functional genre craft. The shapeshifting/supernatural threat has some originality in its rules but doesn't fully exploit its premise. The ending is the weakest link, resolving its central tension in a way that feels rushed and unsatisfying given the buildup, undercutting the emotional stakes the film worked to establish.