Whistle
Director Corin Hardy’s return to horror deals a death blow.
Blow your brains out: Dafne Keen.
Image courtesy of IFC.
by CHAD KENNERK
The cursed objects subgenre is rife with innocents meeting horrible fates thanks to artefacts of the occult. There was that videotape from The Ring, the Oculus mirror, the Talk to Me hand, and now an ancient Aztec death whistle. Something to think about before you head antiquing. The Warrens' Occult Museum, the inspiration behind the $2.8 billion Conjuring Universe, was purchased last year by comedian Matt Rife, who plans to open it back up for tours and overnight stays. Conjuring spin-off The Nun held the title for the highest-grossing global entry in that franchise for a record seven years, until the recent The Conjuring: Last Rites, with its story of a haunted mirror, took the crown. His first film since The Nun, director Corin Hardy returns to the big screen and to horror with Whistle.
Adapted by Owen Egerton from his own short story, Whistle opens with, well, a whistle, as high school basketball star athlete ‘Horse’ contends with the visage of a burnt man during the big game against the Stalkers. Things don’t go well for Horse in the cold open, and when transfer student Chrysanthemum (Dafne Keen) — who thankfully goes by Chrys — matriculates to Pellington High, she inevitably inherits Horse’s locker, including an ancient Pandora’s box with the eponymous whistle. After some unprovoked ire from Horse’s teammate Dean (Jhaleil Swaby), a hallway scuffle lands Chrys and an entire pack of teens in detention, Breakfast-Club style. There’s a lot that doesn’t warrant trying to sort out beyond that, the least of which is a local pastor that’s also the town drug dealer. Needless to say, someone blows the whistle, and it’s all bad juju from there. Anyone who hears the screech of the whistle is fated to meet their death, literally.
A form of Final Destination without the elaborate Rube Goldberg contraptions, Whistle is a splatterfest showcasing gnarly special effects. There’s not much to recommend between all the horror cliches and the grinding teenage bones and flesh. Other than some cursory attempts at character development, the expendable young cast drifts through the various set pieces as the deaths pile up. A few inventive deaths do land well, but the effects are the real star. As with all franchise-aspiring horror movies, there is a tag scene teasing more to come. It’s a genuinely effective stinger, but by that time, most of the air has gone out of Whistle, leaving only the lingering whine of its gimmick.
Cast: Dafne Keen, Sophie Nélisse, Sky Yang, Jhaleil Swaby, Ali Skovbye, Percy Hynes White, Michelle Fairley, Nick Frost.
Dir Corin Hardy, Pro David Gross, Whitney Brown, Macdara Kelleher, John Keville, Screenplay Owen Egerton, Ph Björn Charpentier, Pro Des Jennifer Spence, Ed Nicholas Emerson, Music Doomphonic, Costumes Leslie Kavanagh, Sound Steve Fanagan.
No Trace Camping/Wild Atlantic Pictures-Independent Film Company (US)/Black Bear Pictures (UK)
100 mins. Canada/Ireland. 2026. US Rel: 6 February 2026, UK Rel: 13 February 2026. Cert. PG-13 (US), 15 (UK).
