Lisa Johnson Mandell’s Night Swim review says the latest Blumhouse movie is horror light, which is fine for those who don’t want to be too scared to go near the water.

I usually defer to my fellow critic, horror expert Staci Layne Wilson, for reviews of frightening films. She knows so much more about the genre than I do.

But the title of Night Swim brings back such fond adolescent memories that I have a special affinity for the subject matter.  I’ll never forget those sleepovers at Cathy Carter’s house when we’d rise after midnight and skinny dip in her backyard pool, or sneaking up the fence and over the roof to the high school pool complex, and splashing around with classmates well after dark.

I thought Night Swim might revive those memories, and perhaps give them a little more risky excitement. I wasn’t wrong. But I wasn’t exactly right, either.

Night Swim review — The Plot

Of course it’s the story of a haunted pool. How could it be anything but? But there are interesting nuances to this one. Ray (Wyatt Russell, son of Kurt) is a former pro baseball player, currently dealing with multiple sclerosis. He and his wife Eve (Kerry Condon, recently nominated for an Oscar for The Banshees of Inisherin) are looking for a new home in a new town where they can raise their two children in relative peace.

They settle on an older home with a pool, where Ray believes he’ll benefit from water therapy. That may be true, but it comes at a cost. It doesn’t take long for something in the water to start acting up, and not in a nice way.

Could director Bryce McGuire’s first big film be scarier? Absolutely. Could the story be told better? No doubt. But I believe that the savvy creators at Blumhouse (Get Out, M3gan and so many more) know that not everyone wants a horror movie soaked in blood and gore and grisly monsters. Sometimes it’s okay to just focus on things that go bump (or in this case glug) in the night.

I like my horror movies like I like my salsa. Mild, with good, fresh ingredients. Actors Russel and Condon fit into that category. Feel free to take a dip.

Rated PG-13

1 Hour 38 Minutes

If this Night Swim review entices you to enjoy an evening out at the cinema, get times and tickets at Fandango.com.

Lisa Johnson Mandell’s Night Swim review says the latest Blumhouse movie is horror light, which is fine for those who don’t want to be too scared to go near the water.