FNaF movie: Reviews for long-awaited adaptation arrive

The Five Nights at Freddy's movie has finally been released in the UK, and early critic reviews are in.

It's taken almost 10 years to get a film version of the popular horror game - FNaF for short - into cinemas, and expectations from fans are high.

Directed by Emma Tammi, the movie has been the subject of hype and fan theories for months.

The first reviews are underwhelming, but the film is still expected to do well at the box office.

* This article contains no spoilers for the FNaF movie *

Released in 2014, the first Five Nights at Freddy's game stars Mike Schmidt - a security guard who works at the abandoned Freddy Fazbear's Pizza restaurant.

In the film, he's a desperate man, played by Hunger Games star Josh Hutcherson.

Mike takes a night job at the diner given to him by mysterious Steve Raglan, portrayed by Scream and Scooby Doo! star Matthew Lillard.

But he's not alone - a cast of murderous animatronic creatures stalks the diner at night.

One of the big questions has been whether the movie can replicate the game's intense atmosphere and jump-scares.

Critics have praised the film's animatronics and its attention to small details from the games.

But they've been less kind about its story and the level of horror.

At Gamesradar, Neil Smith said the film was "about as scary as Barney the purple dinosaur in what is ultimately a ploddingly predictable, gore-lite yawner".

The Independent's Clarisse Loughley said the film was "drawn out" and had "a lot less robot murder than you'd have hoped for".

Digital Spy's Ian Sandwell was also unimpressed, finding the film offered little to engage long-time fans or newcomers.

But he did admit that "after so long, fans might just be glad to see Five Nights at Freddy's recreated so faithfully on the big screen".

Based on the reaction of British YouTuber Dawko, who's known for his FNaF videos, he might be on to something.

Dawko was invited to a preview screening and posted a positive review on his channel, describing the movie as an "emotional" experience.

FNaF's age rating has prompted lots of discussion among fans.

It's a 15 certificate in the UK, meaning that you need to be over 15 years old to see it.

In the US it's a PG-13, meaning that even under-13s can see it as long as they're accompanied by an adult.

The announcement got some fans, who'd hoped the movie would be a no-holds-barred scarefest, worried that it wouldn't be that scary.

In Belfast in Northern Ireland, the local council wants to give the film a special 15A rating, allowing children to see the film with a parent.

But they won't make that official until 1 November at the earliest, so younger fans wanting to see FNaF at the cinema might have to wait.

The FNaF games' success is linked to YouTube, where the first game became a viral hit thanks to people sharing their reactions.

YouTuber CoryxKenshin appears in the film, and Easter eggs referring to other FNaF content creators are hidden in some scenes.

But Markiplier, a YouTuber well-known for his FNaF reaction videos, is not in the film despite rumours he would be.

Director Emma Tammi also teased the appearance of a character from the games not seen in any trailers.

At an early screening on Tuesday night, the BBC spoke to eager fans of the video game such as content creator Joe Bentham.

"Me and my friend used to record us playing it for YouTube and I guess that's put me where I am now on social media."

Reviewing the film on his TikTok, he rated it a seven out of 10, saying it has "a few flaws" and was "not that scary" but still worth a watch.

Regardless of reviews he says he hopes the film "brings new life to the game".

Tea Pearn, a cosplayer, agrees that turning FNAF into a film has "so much potential".

As for casting, she says the producers "have really done it justice", highlighting the "iconic" Lillard as a particular favourite.

"I know him mostly as Scooby Doo so it's weird to see him play such an evil and maleficent character."

Fans in America, where the film comes out on 27 October, will need to be on the lookout for FNaF spoilers as reviews come out.

You might also want to avoid a new FNaF game surprise-released last week by series creator Scott Cawthon.

He warned fans that FNaF: The Movie: The Game "basically gives away the plot of the whole movie".

Cawthon, who suggested he would retire in 2021 over criticisms about his political views, revealed he'd actually been working on the game in secret for the last two years.

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