Whistle, the upcoming horror movie starring Dafne Keen and Sophie Nélisse, has dropped a creepy new trailer. Slated for release on 6 February, the film has already received early reviews, with The Mary Sue hailing it as a “terrifying” watch that leaves you “hooked”.
Adapted from Owen Egerton’s short story, Whistle follows a group of high school students who discover an Aztec Death Whistle. Unbeknownst to them, the whistle’s sound summons their deaths, which begin hunting them down one after the other.
Directed by Corin Hardy, the filmmaker behind The Nun (2018), Whistle stars Dafne Keen as Chrys and Sophie Nélisse as Ellie. Meanwhile, Sky Yang, Jhaleil Swaby, Ali Skovbye, Percy Hynes White, Michelle Fairley and Nick Frost round out the cast.
Among the early reviews, critics have lauded Whistle, with some comparing it to the Final Destination franchise. “Whistle is, at its best, a lively and ferocious teenage slasher ditty that brings that breakneck overdrive appeal… an engaging rearrangement of Final Destination,” wrote the Daily Dead.
Likewise, The Blogging Banshee raved: “Featuring incredible kill sequences and strong performances, Corin Hardy’s ‘Whistle’ is a deeply effective piece of teen-centric horror storytelling.”
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Speaking about the film, Hardy told Deadline: “Whistle is made with the same heart-on-sleeve, disenfranchised-teen-spirit found in my favourite genre movies that I grew up watching.
“I was drawn to the mysterious mythology surrounding the ‘Death Whistle’ and how it presented me with the opportunity to create a variety of cinematic, imaginative and terrifying deaths. This film is built for the big screen experience, so I can’t wait for audiences to blow the whistle with the Independent Film Company and Shudder in cinemas!”
Sony Pictures
Providing further insight, Nélisse reflected on her character Ellie’s role in the movie. “I think my character’s greatest weakness would be that she’s a goody two-shoes,” the actor told Collider.
“She plays by the rules, which is what really draws her to Chris [sic]. She admires that Chris will just do what she wants, and she’s very rebellious and will kick people in the genitals. That’s something that Ellie would never do. She wants to be a nurse, wants to be a doctor, and already has her future set up. I don’t think she’s someone who’s willing to take any risks until she meets Chris, which will change her. But I think that is also somewhat her greatest strength. She sees the best in people.”
Whistle will land in UK cinemas on 6 February.
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Megan is a freelance news reporter for Digital Spy.