It’s What’s Inside (2024) Movie Review and Film Summary

   October 14, 2024
its whats inside
It’s What’s Inside (2024), directed by Greg Jardin

It’s What’s Inside Movie Review

To its credit, It’s What’s Inside makes a few choices to make itself memorable. The premise is inarguably fascinating, and the consequences of the central plot engine are enticing at times. But It’s What’s Inside becomes frustratingly convoluted, compounded by a set of characters that I simply could not care less about.

But again, the premise of It’s What’s Inside is enticing. A group of 20-somethings stuck in a mansion playing a game where they switch into one another’s bodies. It’s the product of a weird briefcase brought to the party by a weird dude. That dude is Forbes (David Thompson), a brainiac willing to test a piece of new equipment on his friends in order to reconcile with a few of them, and gain revenge on a few for ostracizing him from the group (and society) for a consequential party years prior.

So the group begins to play a bizarre party game where they try to identify who is in who’s body. The visual language during this section is intoxicating, not unlike the best moments of a few other teen horror movies the last few years. I was reminded a few times of the Talk to Me sequence where the friend group interacts with the ceramic hand for the first time.

And perhaps It’s What’s Inside is the perfect double-feature with Talk to Me because I thought both movies fell apart for nearly the same reason. Once the fun is over, the story has to hold enough weight to make the second half worth it. Talk to Me is formulaic, while It’s What’s Inside is ridiculous, and quite frankly, dumb.

The two main characters, Shelby (Brittany O’Grady) and Cyrus (James Morosini), are going through relationship struggles. Shelby is insecure about her figure and popularity, while Cyrus is a wholehearted dipshit. The two’s misunderstandings of one another become a major plot device for the film, but it never wavers on the opinion that Shelby is in the right and Cyrus is in the wrong. The characterizations are clear from the beginning, never once becoming interesting or dynamic.

It doesn’t help that the performances rarely elevate the material, either. Brittany O’Grady is the exception, but the other cast members are serviceable at best, porous-Netflix-quality at worst. It’s What’s Inside feels right at home on Netflix, where cheesy, undesirable acting lives and thrives. Morosini is one of the biggest offenders, with his whiney performance being more annoying than worthwhile.

It’s What’s Inside has the premise of a movie that’d be a genre hit, but poor performances and unlikeable characters become too much to overcome. Netflix acquires and distributes a fascinating genre piece with low quality results.

Score: 4/10

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