Sandy Kenyon reviews Kevin Bacon thriller 'You Should Have Left'
NEW YORK (WABC) -- Most movie theaters remain closed in our area due to the coronavirus pandemic, and a few Hollywood producers are taking advantage of that by sending new movies straight to your homes as videos on demand.
The latest to reach home screens is a new horror film called, "You Should Have Left."
Kevin Bacon plays a rich guy who was accused of and then acquitted of killing his wife, but he's still haunted by her death in a bathtub.
His character, Theo, is now married to an actress, Susanna, played by Amanda Seyfried, who is his junior by more than a quarter of a century.
An older leading man has often been shown playing opposite a much younger woman, but here the age difference is a source of tension -- and the strains on their marriage become obvious when they travel to the English countryside for a vacation with their daughter in Wales.
The rental they get is a haunted house, which becomes like another main character because the layout keeps changing and the boundaries of what is real and what is in Theo's mind never stop shifting.
"'You Should Have Left' is about a man fighting his demons," Bacon has said.
It is a domestic drama and a horror film, but by trying to be both, the picture risks alienating fans of each genre. But for me, the mix was just right.
The movie is available now to stream for around $20, which makes it expensive if you're seeing it by yourself. But it's more reasonable for a family or a group of friends who want to get together to share a few thrills.
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