Stephen King Praises New Blumhouse Horror Movie as “A lost, low-budget Steven Spielberg film”

Stephen King Praises Night Swim
Late Night with Conan O’Brien and NBC/Universal / © Universal Pictures /Courtesy Everett Collection

Stephen King doesn’t seem to care about the general consensus of a horror film before sharing his unfiltered opinions on the internet. If I were the most successful horror novelist in the world, I might consider showcasing similar online behaviors. It seems that the master of the macabre has a hot take on Atomic Monster/Blumhouse’s recent theatrical offering, Night Swim. Now that the film has become accessible via VOD purchase, the author has taken to Twitter to share his views on the poorly received poolside fright fest.

Night Swim was, inexplicably, a January release from the new Blumhouse and Atomic Monster collaborative deal. It also happens to be an original horror concept from newcomers Bryce McGuire and Rod Blackwell about a haunted pool. The movie is as silly and twice as earnest as it sounds, making it an easy target for negative reviews and online responses.

While the majority of horror fans seemed nonplussed, some of us were more welcoming to the movie’s aquatic mayhem as it’s arguably authentically reminiscent of a different era of genre cinema. This includes Stephen King, who compares Night Swim to the works of early Steven Speilberg. The Salem’s Lot author also called out some of the film’s more joyously campy moments.

See his thoughts here:

The Atomic Monster/Blumhouse release made a splash at the box-office earlier this year, already earning itself over $50,000,000 on a budget one-quarter that size. Dread Central’s Editor-in-cheif Mary Beth McAndrews had mixed feelings about the chlorinic experience in her review, writing “Night Swim is the cinematic equivalent of a belly flop: silly and fun to watch but the end is a bit painful.

Check out the trailer for the movie here:

Lastly, what did you think of Night Swim? And if you haven’t seen it yet, will you be checking out now that you can watch it at home? Let us know on Twitter via @DreadCentral. We are always around to chat about all things Stephen King!

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