From haunted dollhouses to creepy jack-in-the-boxes, the idea of a murderous artefact is a well-worn trope in horror — so don’t expect anything wildly new from director Corin Hardy as he returns to familiar scare territory. This time, the weapon of choice? A whistle. Yes — a whistle — and one that brings doom and death to a group of unsuspecting teenagers.
The film opens cold with a basketball player being burned alive in the shower, courtesy of a ghostly presence. It’s a nasty, effective opener — the kind that promises plenty of carnage ahead and will satisfy those viewers just looking for their next gore fix.
We’re quickly introduced to the new girl in town, Chrys (Dafne Keen), who discovers the very object at the centre of it all — an Aztec Death Whistle — hidden away in a locker once used by the unfortunate student from the opening. Naturally, its suspicious origins barely raise an eyebrow, and before long it falls into the hands of Nick Frost — yes, that Nick Frost — who delivers the all-important warning: don’t blow it. Of course, that advice is ignored… and he soon pays the price in suitably grisly fashion.
The concept itself is genuinely intriguing: whoever blows the whistle essentially fast-forwards their death. Their future self returns to claim them, killing them in the exact way they’re destined to die. It’s a neat idea — one that could have tapped into the twisted fun of Final Destination — but the film plays things too straight. The serious tone dampens what could have been a far more inventive and enjoyable ride.
That said, the real saving grace here is the kills. One standout sequence — a slow-motion car crash without a car — is genuinely inventive and will likely stick with audiences long after the credits roll. A tense chase through a maze also delivers some genuine chills, ensuring WHISTLE never quite becomes a chore to sit through.
Fans of Yellowjackets will be pleased to see Sophie Nélisse branching further into horror, and while the climax slips into predictable nonsense, WHISTLE does carry the feel of a throwback — a horror cut from a bygone era.
It’s a film that will satisfy those craving nasty, inventive kills, but anyone looking for more bite in the story may find themselves drifting by the time the final whistle blows.
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