No assembly RequireD

Not everyone loves horror movies. Some downright detest them while others may be too nervous to admit to their friends how scared they get. Sometimes it is just nice to have a fun horror film that feels like an exciting and comfortable way to ease into the madness. Yes many horror fans like to claim their first horror films were classics like “The Exorcist,” “Night of the Living Dead,” or for a newer generation “Hereditary” and “Get Out,” but let’s be honest if horror is your bread and butter chances are you started easy. Maybe you caught an old 1950’s black and white film on television or you remember being terrified of Judge Doom in “Who Framed Roger Rabbit.” The point being sometimes a kid just needs to take a first step into the genre. ICK directed by Joseph Kahn, with the energy of a goofy kid, is just that film. A rambunctious throwback to B-movie creature features. For the new generation just getting into film it’s a great jumping off point that will connect them to a world that will leave them in wonder, and for the older generation it’s a reminder to always have fun when you go to the cinema, especially in a genre film. ICK feels like a Saturday afternoon movie, or one that young teenagers can watch at a sleepover cackling as an everyday American town battles flesh eating plants, and the community of teens more hellbent on not being problematic than actually running for their lives. It also doesn’t hurt that this Kahn allows for all American dream boy Brandon Routh to take charge as a man possibly getting a second chance at his glory days and save the town. That is if the plants and even the teens don’t drive him crazy first. But as Hank, Brandon Routh gets his own chance of growing as a performer and a man learning to age alongside the next generation. ICK may be the main title but one could even call this ICK: or how Brandon Routh learned to stop worrying about Gen Z and Love the Ick. Goofy yes, but hey that’s the world Kahn wants to live in and frankly it seems a lot more fun, Ick or no Ick.

Life is pretty great for Hank. Afterall it’s the mid 2000’s and when you’re a white male and the star quarterback life does not get much better than that. Hank (Routh) is dating the hot head cheerleader Staci (Mena Suvari) and they spend their days making out and blasting every pop punk song that once dominated the radio. Before the film premiered at Fantastic Fest Kahn introduced the film saying he wanted to make the “Terrifier of pop punk movies” and boy did he mean it. Half the fun is getting surprised by what songs Kahn has in store, so to list them all would be cruel, but let’s just say that ICK is so packed full of pop punk songs that you feel like you are back at Warped Tour. Yes I know it was Brat summer, but the weather is dropping so lets call it ICK soundtrack fall.

For just a small sneak peek at the music, an opening montage (which feels like a fun little homage to “American Pie” especially with Suvari being cast) is supported by the belting beats of All American Rejects’ “Swing Swing.” It’s a blast to nod your head to it during the highs of Hank’s life but anyone who peaked in high school can tell you the fall to reality really hurts. A broken leg due to the Ick (a toxic plant that seems to grow everywhere) as well as being dumped, and of course the endless amount of drinking that leads Hank into AA, a janitorial job and eventually teaching science back in the same classrooms he once fell asleep in every day.

We know Hank, he’s the guy you hope you don’t bump into when revisiting your old hometown bar, but Routh as Hank brings such a charm that even for all his mishaps its impossible not to see that Clark Kent smile that Routh donned many years ago. In fact for audiences of or near Routh’s age you may even find a little bit of yourself in Hank especially when it comes to his frustration with the new generation. Gen Z, and now even Gen Alpha are a constant reminder of what we once had and how this new generation may be ruining that. But thankfully this is not the “those meddling kids” type movie, nor is it the “old man yells at cloud” genre. No ICK may have a millennial in the lead, but it is a clear observation of one’s fears and possible acceptance of those that will lead after we are gone. As a teacher Hank battles his students as they throw labels like ableist, sexist, racist, cultural appropriator and more with no weight to them. It is quite humorous but again Kahn, a father himself, gets to poke fun but is still dealing with his own self fears and working them out through this film. It’s admirable as opposed to other filmmakers that want to just prove their own ways. Hank however has his hands cut out for him in Grace (Malina Pauli Weissman) his student who also happens to be Staci’s daughter and possibly (maybe just maybe) his actual daughter (those pesky high school reunions!) But does any of this even have time to be addressed after all the Ick keeps growing, destroying buildings, cracking into the streets and yet nobody seems to even care. In fact when things get so bad and rumors start brewing that the Ick could be deadly and flesh consuming what do the kids do? Well make TikTok “lick the Ick” challenges of course! Even when the Ick does attack in a hilarious “The Blob” fashion it is met with debate of all sides of the political and social line of what the Ick really does represent.

As Hank tries to get closer to his maybe daughter Grace, the circumstances of not just a deadly Ick but the generational gap seems to slowly becoming a safe space for the two of them. The world right now for them is scary but seeing Hank and Grace try to learn who one another is whether it be for Hank’s misunderstanding of the Beatles or his shock that Grace doesn’t know Creed gets big laughs. But more so is the endearing performances of Routh and Weissman who are as much fun to watch connect emotionally as they are battling the Ick and the bizarre, possessed town members which includes Grace’s douchebag boyfriend Hank (a hysterical and perfectly cast Harrison Cone). ICK certainly is a creature feature as the film rips and shreds nearly everything in sight. Black goo pours out everywhere and with its almost hairlike tentacles the Ick certainly loves tearing people apart from the inside out. The CGI of Ick or even limited practical effects of ICK never reaches the heights of what modern day horror filmmakers seek out to disturb their audience but with a PG-13 rating its fun to see Kahn push the boundaries in one are and just be plain silly in the next. CGI or not there’s something just insanely entertaining about a director that just wants to cover his performers in as much slime as he can. One could even call this the Kid’s Choice Awards of PG-13 horror movies. That is if Nickelodeon decided to use black goo to cover Adam Sandler next year as opposed to the traditional green.

A lot of people laugh when someone claims a horror film as their comfort movie, but when you have something like ICK, it is easy to see why. For all its social satire, gooey slime, ICK is a warm hug. It’s a redemption tale in a time where far too few want to give it to people, it’s a familiar story with an unfamiliar generation and above all else it’s just a ton of fun. Kahn in his introduction said he wanted to make a horror film he could show his daughter, well for Hank and his maybe daughter ICK has found a way to do just that and bring entertainment to all generations, even the “old guys” like me that just want to blast Teenage Dirtbag and feel young again. Or is that too lame and gives you the ick?

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ICK SCREENED AT THE 2024 FANTASTIC FEST IN AUSTIN TEXAS. IT CURRENTLY DOES NOT HAVE A U.S. RELEASE DATE