The Visit takes the sweet grandparents archetype and twists it away from the lovable people who pack your pocket and your stomach towards an image of psychos capable of murder. For the most part, it actually succeeds. Grandkids Becca (Olivia DeJonge) and Tyler (Ed Oxenbould) visit their mother’s parents for the first time after years of estranged silence after their mother left home with her then boyfriend and current ex-husband. Becca is there to remedy their relationship with her sidekick brother, Tyler, and her trusty camera.
The Visit manages to craft a combination of creepy and bizarre situations into something that works. The movie has enough funny one liners from Tyler, heart from the little brother and older sister dynamic, and exceptionally creepy scenes of Nana to succeed. The Visit might not be The Shining but it holds its own in the modern line of scary movies, each cheaper and less believable than the last. It’s convincing enough to make anyone check Grandma’s pearly whites a little more closely.