Five Nights at Freddy’s is a movie adaptation of the classic indie horror game from 2014, created by Scott Cawthon. The game follows a new security guard controlled by the player working the night shift at an old pizzeria. The pizzeria accompanies four classic animatronics that tend to act up during the night, but stop once the clock hits 6 AM. The premise of the game is to avoid the animatronics from entering the security room to survive the night. The game was simple and easily controlled, but had an eerie and horrific plot that was slowly leaked through mini games unlocked throughout gameplay. It quickly gained popularity and launched many prequels and sequels to the franchise. After many years of waiting, die hard fans finally got their wish, and an official Five Nights at Freddy’s movie was produced. To not many’s surprise, the film was not well received by critics, but highly loved by its fans.
Five Nights At Freddy’s is not only famous because of its classic animatronics and their jumpscares, but also because of its confusing and convoluted plot. The FNAF lore has always been difficult to follow, which would become an issue to shove it into one movie. One of the biggest complaints from critics was that the movie was poorly written and tried to cram in as much information as possible. Despite this negative review, most of the audiences had gone into the movie expecting a messy story, therefore leaving them pleased and unbothered. A consensus was reached that the movie had many flaws and imperfections, but was easily overshadowed by the excitement of seeing a classic and universally loved video game come to life. This excitement and love for the game was not mutual for most critics, as the game was not something they grew accustomed to. Because of this, the movie received very mixed reviews.
Despite the differences in ratings, something that shocked all individuals going to see the movie, was that the animatronics were fully real and not robotic. The animatronic suits had been built to be worn as a suit, where actors Kevin Foster, Jade Kindar-Martin, and Jess Weiss would wear the suits. The animatronics being puppeteered and not being actual animatronics or computer generated added a more whimsical feel to the movie. The suits had remained fully functional and surprisingly flexible.
The making of the Five Nights at Freddy’s movie had been in the works longer than fans would have imagined. With stories being written then tossed, and being handed to multiple different directors, the film had finally been put in the hands of Emma Tammi. After so much trial and error, Emma had created a lore accurate and pleasing story that would appeal to its older fans and younger audiences. The movie clearly paid its respect to the fans with adding cameos to famous YouTubers who promoted the games, and campy songs dedicated to the characters.
Even though the film did not appease the critics, it satisfied the young hearts of its fans. The movie was released five days before Halloween, and after many many years, the public has officially spent Five Nights at Freddy’s.
