14/19
Only this time, the fight isn’t for himself; it’s for his family
Scenario
When a sinister threat from his childhood returns to haunt him, a father desperately battles his deepest inner fear. In Spain, it was titled “El hombre del saco (Bagman)” to avoid confusion with El hombre del saco (2023), a Spanish horror film released a year ago about the Spanish bogeyman, also called Bagman, a child abductor who used a large bag or sack to stuff children inside, take them from their rooms, and disappear with them.
Bagman is essentially the definition of a generic horror film
Almost everything it attempts has been done before, and audiences are tired of these tropes. An evil entity tries to lure a child away from his parents, who are too clueless to take effective action against it.
Perhaps the most frustrating aspect is the irrational behavior of the parents
There are cheap thrills, weak scares, silly characters, and a child who sounds eerily similar to Gage Creed from Pet Sematary (1989). When your child seems to be in danger and there are multiple break-ins in your home, you should make sure to stay close to them.
There’s also the typical exposition dump and one of the most generic modern horror plots imaginable
However, these parents do a remarkable job of either ignoring their children or keeping a significant distance, allowing the entity to enter the house undisturbed. Honestly, though, I kind of liked the entity, and I think there was some potential to create a decent horror film with it as the antagonist.
While there were a few moments that I appreciated, overall, it’s far from good
Unfortunately, the film fails to stand out amidst all the subpar horror that’s being released these days, making it hard to imagine many people will enjoy it. [5.2/10]