I’ve seen a lot of slasher films, but I can’t say I’ve seen one that’s a military slasher.
Onslaught is the latest from director Adam Wingard (who wrote the film with Simon Barrett), starring Adria Arjona, Dan Stevens, Reginald VelJohnson, Blake Kennedy, and more. I was curious going into this one – I’ve been a fan of Wingard’s work in the past. Some of his films aren’t so great, but the ones I love, I really love. People tend to be lukewarm on his Godzilla and Kong movies, and I know that’s a hot take, but I think those films honor the legacy of the older Godzilla and King Kong movies really well, even if the human stories aren’t always the strongest part. So when the trailers for this super-soldier sci-fi horror flick looked cool, and with Adria Arjona in the lead, I was in.
I’ll start by saying I had a good time with Onslaught. I have some gripes, and there are elements that hold it back from being a truly great movie, but I left on more of a high than not.
If you’re a fan of ’80s films, this is an homage through and through – the style, the editing, the way certain scenes are shot, the score, the slasher structure, even the way it leans into its own silly sci-fi premise. Tone, atmosphere, and especially the music all give it that throwback feel, and I enjoyed that a lot.
The film has some genuinely brutal moments. There’s a lot of action and plenty of blood, especially once you get into the back half. I’ll give it credit for not being overly gory, though – the ending is where it gets bloodiest, with characters drenched in it by the end. For most of the runtime, I was actually surprised by how much it cut away: a blood squib hits the wall instead of the kill happening fully on screen. Still, it’s a fairly bloody film, and if you’re sensitive to characters with guns hunting people down in cold blood, this one isn’t for you. But if you want a bloody, gory ’80s throwback, Onslaught delivers.
I want to highlight the score, composed by Matthew Pusti. It’s great, especially in the heightened moments, and it does a lot of work setting that ’80s tone – like when an axe comes through a wall or a chainsaw comes through a door. It plays like an ’80s slasher with military super soldiers standing in for the killer. They’re straight-up monsters: no dialogue, lit-up white eyes, an aesthetic that feels like something out of a Call of Duty game (Ghost from that franchise came to mind). Visually, they’re a lot of fun, and there’s real craziness and violence in how they’re used.
The cast is a strength too. Adria Arjona is great as the woman at the center of it all – someone you can root for. The film sets up her past trauma and the fact that she’s caring for her daughter this weekend, unexpectedly, after the father drops her off following a bit of a fight. Now she has to protect her kid in an incredibly dangerous situation, which gives her more reason to fight. She’s down on her luck, dealing with the aftermath of war like a couple of other characters in the film, mostly keeping to herself instead of chasing anything bigger. Arjona builds a character worth rooting for, and she rises to the occasion in the badass moments – chainsaw in hand, gun in hand, more blood-soaked as the film goes on.
Dan Stevens is a standout despite limited screen time, playing the eccentric scientist behind the super-soldier program. He’s worked with Wingard before, on The Guest and the recent Godzilla and Kong movies, and I always enjoy him. I wish the film had done more with the character – more on that below – but the performance itself is solid. Reginald VelJohnson brings a lot of levity and some good badass moments too; he’s someone I found myself rooting for even in his smaller scenes. Most of the cast holds up, big role or small. Rebecca Hall, another Wingard regular, is here as well; her role is basically a nothing burger, but it’s nice to see her, and she’s fine in it.
Narratively, this is where things get mixed. The slasher, sci-fi, super-soldier chaos is a blast to watch, but the story underneath is paper thin. To end on a positive note first: I liked how the film handles government control and the treatment of veterans. Arjona’s character is a veteran, so is VelJohnson’s, and so are the three men turned into super soldiers. The film has real things to say about how the government treats these people – discarded without real resources, left to survive on their own, or engineered into killing machines with no regard for who they are underneath. Thematically, there’s something there.
But the story itself suffers. At an hour and 32 minutes with credits, Onslaught is short, and it shows. Drew Starkey plays Cyrus, government personnel sent to clean up and contain the situation as the super soldiers wreak havoc – an interesting character, but part of a bigger problem: the government subplot doesn’t add much to the movie. It gestures at ideas about control and rewriting the narrative to suit those in power, but never develops them. Dan Stevens’ character, the program’s creator, is pivotal early on and then just fizzles out. So much of this film feels surface level once you look past the style and the action. Is it entertaining? Yes. Action-packed? Definitely. Is that third act in the trailer park a lot of fun? For sure. But if you’re looking for rich characters or a deeper story, you won’t find it here.
I didn’t expect a riveting, award-worthy narrative going in, but I wanted a little more than “super soldiers versus a veteran living in a trailer park,” which is essentially what this movie is. It’s entertaining, and I had a good time, but it’s not among my favorite Wingard films, and it’s not among my favorites of the year. Most people will probably enjoy it once in theaters, but I don’t think the characters or story will stick with anyone beyond that first watch.
Even the finale felt anticlimactic. The final showdown between Arjona’s character and the lead super soldier is bloody and entertaining, but rushed – the film spends the whole runtime building toward this fight, setting up her backstory and why it matters, and then it’s over almost as soon as it starts. A lot of the film has that problem: undercooked subplots, undercooked side characters, undercooked story.
Still, Onslaught is packed with style and plenty of brutal, crazy action – I just can’t say the story did much for me. I don’t think most people will be captivated on that level either. The film could have used another 15 or 20 minutes; the concept is cool, but the story and characters never quite catch up to it. It’s a solid, fun time that I’m glad I caught in theaters, but not one I’m rushing to rewatch.
Rating: 7/10