Five nights at Freddy’s Movie

Five Nights at Freddy’s. The indie gaming giant that first started gaining popularity a little under 10 years ago, and the new movie, released Oct. 27, 2023, was an adaptation of the Five Nights at Freddy’s franchise. The movie is breaking box office records to the surprise of many. The movie had a budget of less than 20 million dollars, but it grossed more than 220 million dollars worldwide. Let’s look at how this came to be. How did this horror gaming icon transition to the big screen? 

The production originally began in 2015 under Warner Bros Pictures. After multiple delays and resignations of the project, further development was transferred to Blumhouse Production. The movie was well received by the audience however the critical review was generally negative. 

“We aren’t trying to attract a new audience, we’re trying to make our current audience happy,” Scott Cawthon, the creator of the franchise, said. 

I thought the move was a good watch.The cinematography was amazing. I also appreciated the detail in the animatronics themselves. Additionally, being a long time fan myself, I liked the continuity and new lore that came with the movie along with a different perspective that we never got in the games. For example, in the movie we the viewers get to see into the kitchen which notoriously was hidden in the games.What I also really liked about the movie was the amount of callbacks to the games. For instance there’s a scene where an animatronic kills someone while being in the kitchen. This said animatronic is infamous for being in the kitchen in the first installment of the franchise. In another scene, another animatronic was shown running in the hallway to catch his target. In the first game this animatronic was infamous for being the only animatronic that can move in real time.What I didn’t like about the movie was the lack of realism and gore. I understand that they had to keep it family-friendly, but the games aren’t family-friendly and the lore isn’t family-friendly. Nothing about the franchise was family-friendly until the movie was released. I think the movie should’ve been rated R just based on the contents of the games. One aspect that I am indifferent about are the plot holes. The only reason I feel indifferent about some of these plot holes is because a sequel is rumored to be in the works. In conclusion, the Five Nights at Freddy’s movie was polarizing no matter how you look at it. These game characters transition to movie characters was truly a great thing for the franchise.