Why Malignant is predictable, bonkers, and so worth watching

We love James Wan movies not for the stellar performances or clever and unpredictable stories, but for the guaranteed thrills, gore, and bonkers final sequences. If you’re familiar with Wan’s formula and you know what to expect from these movies, you’ll very much enjoy Malignant.

The movie follows Madison (Annabelle Wallis), a woman with a dark and troubled past who begins having visions of gruesome murders after her abusive husband bangs her head on a wall. The horrors escalate when Madison realizes that these are not visions, but actual murders happening in real-time.

Madison is helpless and paralyzed as she watches the killings happen. This mystery attacker is someone from Madison’s past, though she can’t remember who or what he is. But Madison does know that she has some sort of connection to him.

The Malignant finale forgets all the rules and wreaks havoc

Malignant is predictable. You may be able to correctly guess who the attacker is before the end of the first act even. Most of the scenes are pretty bonkers, and not always in a good way. The story is messy as it tries to stuff too much into each scene.

However, make no mistake, this does not mean Malignant is not worth watching! You can see the ideas the movie tries to illustrate, but instead of trying to figure it out or giving up on it, be patient, it’ll pay off.

As predictable as each moment is, the last act (the last 30 minutes or so) has all the action, gore, and thrills you crave. The action-packed finale forgets all the rules and wreaks havoc, allowing itself to go wild.

It’s bizarre, it’s bloody, thrilling, and fun — you’ll be on the edge of your seat.

Malignant is rated R for language, gruesome images, and strong horror violence. The movie is playing in theaters and streaming on HBO Max