There is no doubt that Stephen King is the perfect horror author for cinema. The writer has more than seventy films and series adapting his work, and more and more are added every year, as it never gets old. This weekend, however, saw the release of a film based on a King book that has had little previous run: Boogeyman.
Titled El Coco in Spain, this original 1978 book has traveled around the world and has, of course, passed through the audiovisual world on several occasions. But the 2023 film wants to be one of the most recognized, and the intention is to be on a par with other great recent feature films by King such as Doctor Dream or, of course, It.
But who exactly is Boogeyman and why do we know him as El Coco? Below we explain the history of this monster and, above all, if he is really someone more terrifying than Pennywise the clown.
Who is Boogeyman?
The synopsis of Boogeyman centers on Sadie Harper (Sophie Thatcher), a high school student who lives with her younger sister Sawyer (Vivien Lyra Blair). Both have not yet recovered from the recent death of their mother and, devastated by their own grief, their father Will (Chris Messina), a therapist by profession, does not give them the support and affection they try to ask for. When a desperate patient shows up unannounced at their home asking for help, he brings with him a terrifying entity that preys on the families and feeds on their greatest suffering.
As we have seen, Boogeyman has a similar profile to Pennywise. While the clown is a kind of alien that feeds on the fear of humans, Boogeyman is a scaredy-cat that attacks when they are most desperate. However, while the former takes all sorts of forms and plays on clown phobia to challenge kids, the latter is a more terrifying and classic monster.
As early reviews have read, Boogeyman is one of the scariest films ever made about King’s books. In fact, director Rob Savage, known for productions like Host, has stated that it’s the scariest film he’s ever made. And that makes us wonder if, in fact, it’s an even more terrifying being than the rest we’ve seen in films by the writer.
Without a doubt, Boogeyman makes anyone shudder. But for surprising reasons. Throughout the entire film the monster appears very little, so the scares are based on shadows, small appearances and other classic horror film resources. This makes it a figure that seems less powerful… but at times it manages to give more terror. Undoubtedly, it does not reach the level of Pennywise, but it can provoke nightmares just the same.
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