The Endless (2018)
78%RT Audience Score: 61%
Awards & Nominations: 5 wins & 8 nominations
The Endless benefits from its grounded approach to an increasingly bizarre story, elevated by believable performances by filmmakers Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead
The Endless is like a rollercoaster ride that starts off slow and steady, but then takes a sudden turn into sci-fi territory that might make you feel a little dizzy. While some might find the narrative a bit bland, the film makes up for it with its imaginative concept and playful ideas. Plus, the cinematography is so fluid and the performances so cool and precise that you might just want to form a cult around it. Just don’t forget to bring some Dramamine for the ride.
Production Company(ies)
Warner Bros., Star Thrower Entertainment, Westbrook Studios,
Distributor
Well Go USA
Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Limited)
Filming Location(s)
Camp Oliver – 8761 Riverside Dr., Descanso, California, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Not Rated
Year of Release
2018
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby
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Aspect ratio:2.35 : 1
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Runtime:1h 51m
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Apr 6, 2018 Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 26, 2018
Genre(s)
Horror
Keyword(s)
Worldwide gross: $956,425
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $1,125,496
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,573
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 122,737
US/Canada gross: $272,020
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $320,106
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,442
US/Canada opening weekend: $9,083
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $10,689
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,687
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Lionel Barrymore – Grandpa Martin Vanderhof
James Stewart – Tony Kirby
Edward Arnold – Anthony P. Kirby
Mischa Auer – Kolenkhov
Ann Miller – Essie Carmichael
Director(s)
Aaron Moorhead, Justin Benson
Writer(s)
Justin Benson
Producer(s)
David Lawson Jr., Justin Benson, Aaron Moorhead, Thomas R. Burke, Leal Naim
Film Festivals
Berlin, Tribeca
Awards & Nominations
5 wins & 8 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (132) | Top Critics (34) | Fresh (121) | Rotten (11)
Unfortunately the filmmakers introduce a sci-fi element in the second half that deflates much of the interpersonal tension and shifts the focus from the subtleties of mind control to the vagaries of time and space.
March 5, 2020
J. R. Jones
Chicago Reader
TOP CRITIC
The biggest lesson of The Endless is how we can allow our lives to loop around in one crappy cycle until we cop out.
December 31, 2018 | Rating: 3.5/4
Robert Daniels
812filmreviews
TOP CRITIC
Despite an imaginative concept, the narrative feels surprisingly bland, even when the pieces begin to fall into place – and when there’s no quick punchline to fall back on, the film suffers.
August 25, 2018 | Rating: 2/5
Kambole Campbell
One Room With A View
TOP CRITIC
A mind-bending Möbius strip of a movie, this indie sci-fi makes up for what it lacks in budget with a wealth of playful ideas.
July 2, 2018 | Rating: 4/5
Wendy Ide
Observer (UK)
TOP CRITIC
The cinematography is fluid. The performances are cool and precise. The film itself is worth forming a cult around.
July 2, 2018 | Rating: 4/5
Donald Clarke
Irish Times
TOP CRITIC
It’s slightly baffling at times, but always inventive and disquieting.
June 29, 2018 | Rating: 4/5
Ed Potton
Times (UK)
TOP CRITIC
This independent film is a unique balance between Lovecraftian world building, the intimacies of family dynamics, and the horrors of the personal limitations.
May 6, 2022 | Rating: A
Alachia Queen
Alachia Queen
I felt like it was very confusing about the whole history behind the boys… but I do feel like there is some great production value in there.
April 14, 2021 | Rating: 6/10
Emma Wolfe
SpookyAstronauts
…the thin premise is, at 111 minutes, consistently stretched to its breaking point.
March 17, 2021 | Rating: 2/4
David Nusair
Reel Film Reviews
Two brothers pay a visit to the “UFO death cult” they left ten years earlier, and have their eyes opened in ways they could not have expected. Starring and directed by Aaron Moorhead and Justin Benson, The Endless screams cult potential.
February 1, 2021 | Rating: 4/5
Alix Turner
Ready Steady Cut
The Endless doesn’t scream at the top of its lungs. Instead, it leaves you asking, “Did I just see what I thought I saw?”
July 24, 2020
Scott Phillips
The Movie Isle
A puzzle to unravel, a maze to solve, it presents a smart, satisfying mind-bender of a sci-fi/horror hybrid.
July 1, 2020 | Rating: B+
Brent McKnight
The Last Thing I See…
Plot
This mind-bending thriller follows two brothers who receive a cryptic video message inspiring them to revisit the UFO death cult they escaped a decade earlier. Hoping to find the closure that they couldn’t as young men, they’re forced to reconsider the cult’s beliefs when confronted with unexplainable phenomena surrounding the camp. As the members prepare for the coming of a mysterious event, the brothers race to unravel the seemingly impossible truth before their lives become permanently entangled with the cult.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
NA
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