**“Noseeums”** just had its premiere at FrightFest, and the marketing hook says it’s **“Get Out meets Candyman.”** That’s a bold claim, but the comparison is skin-deep. Sure, it shares themes of racial injustice and swaps **Candyman’s** bees for tiny swarms of biting insects, but that’s about where it ends. Those classics worked because they had ideas that haunted you long after the credits rolled. Here, the intent is admirable—tackling generational trauma through a horror lens—but the execution feels heavy-handed and obvious, like being spoon-fed the message instead of discovering it through the story. Add to that a lead performance weighed down by direction that pushes panic too early, and the impact dulls instead of sharpens. Visually, the film’s fine until the bugs show up, and then it slips into the realm of distraction. The noseeums never look convincing, especially in the climax, and that hurts the immersion. It’s not a bad movie—the ambition is there, and the themes matter—but the uneven acting, on-the-nose writing, and shaky effects keep it from reaching the heights it’s aiming for. For me, that lands it at a D, 47 out of 100 stars. Admirable effort, not memorable execution.

A college student joins rich friends at a country house, finds a grave in the woods, and the swarming no-see-ums start biting. Premonitions, flashbacks and land-back lore point to buried crimes and vengeful spirits. I get what it's going for, but the didactic streak overwhelms the horror. When a film keeps lecturing rather than letting dread accumulate, the scares deflate. It's earnest, it's angry, and it'll work for some, but the sermon tramples the story for me. If you liked… Get Out, Candyman (2021), Master.