Most avid movie fans are going to be more than a little bit familiar with Ryan Reynolds at this point, even if they haven't seen The Voices. He is most well known these days for his comedic roles, and for being one of the only actors out there that the internet somehow could all agree was meant to play Deadpool, but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t given other genres a try. Eventually, he would step into the horror genre again, though this time with a bigger hint of comedy with it in 2015’s The Voices.

Initially showing up at the Sundance Film Festival, this bizarre and imaginative film would get a limited release before quickly being forgotten by audiences. Directed by Marjane Satrapi, written by Michael R. Perry, and carried by serious talents like Ryan Reynolds, Anna Kendrick, Gemma Arterton, and Jacki Weaver, everything was there for this film to be a hit. On a low 11 million dollar horror budget, this small film has the potential to take audiences by storm long after its initial release if enough attention comes its way.

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What Is The Voices About?

The Voices stars Ryan Reynolds as Jerry, a simple man with a factory job, a rundown apartment over a bowling alley, and an adorable cat and dog waiting for him in that apartment each day. By every metric, Jerry is just an ordinary guy who’s trying his best after some kind of past trauma. The struggle is that Jerry has been going to a therapist, Dr. Warren, on a court order in order to help come to grips with and treat his mental illness, schizophrenia. That schizophrenia just so happens to manifest in his two pets, Mr. Whiskers, a relatively evil cat, and Bosco, one of the best dogs a guy could have.

After some fierce conga line dancing at a work function, Jerry finds himself deeply invested in the beauty of the office, Fiona. Though she would attempt to avoid his advances, she would find herself in need of a ride one rainy night after standing Jerry up. On the ride to get something to eat, Jerry ends up hitting a deer, and when it asks him to put it out of his misery in front of Fiona, Jerry does what he believes is best. Terrified, Fiona tries to run, but Jerry gives chase with a knife in hand, accidentally stabbing her when he trips before taking a few more stabs in his emotional state.

Later, Mr. Whiskers reminds Jerry that he has to do something with Fiona’s body so he brings her home and hacks the body apart, placing her head in the fridge. After this event, Jerry decides to go back on his medication, but the horror of the things this unreliable narrator saw in his apartment causes him to flush them all away. Things take a turn for the stranger when Fiona’s head begins to talk to Jerry and even requests a friend for the fridge. That is when Jerry turns his attention to a girl at work who has a crush on him, Lisa.

Despite planning to kill her at the house he grew up in, Lisa ends up comforting Jerry after he explains his horrific past, leading to him having a change of heart and the two spend the night together. Unfortunately, Lisa liked Jerry a bit too much and decided to surprise him at his home, something that ultimately resulted in her becoming Fiona’s new friend. With two women missing from the same workplace, people begin looking into Jerry, though another girl from work winds up joining Fiona and Lisa in the fridge. With the voices in his head becoming more aggressive and Jerry beginning to spiral, he turns to his therapist for help before he can kill again.

What Is The Voices’ Rotten Tomatoes Score?

When it comes to critic ratings on Rotten Tomatoes, The Voices is doing fairly well. With nearly one hundred critic ratings, The Voices is sitting at a solid 75%, making it just barely a certified fresh film. The general audience on the other hand hasn’t looked quite as favorably on the movie, giving it a measly 58%.

Major critics seem to agree that Ryan Reynolds gives a unique and surprising performance in the best way possible. While the tone and story may be a bit jumpy at times for some, many more see the film as a triumph of the black comedy genre and acknowledge that the strange plot hindered the film as it kept it from being a much more mass-appealing movie. At the same time, the general audience seem torn on whether or not the film was funny, whether or not mental illness was handled appropriately, and whether or not the story was even worth their time.

How Does The Voices End?

Jerry turned to his therapist for help, but someone killing multiple people is bound to alarm anyone even if the murders are forgettable, resulting in Dr. Warren’s attempt to call for help. Knowing he can’t let her go now that she knows he’s dangerous, Jerry kidnaps his therapist, though she does continue to try to help him despite her fear. Knowing he needs to take care of his pets, Jerry heads home with Dr. Warren, though the police arrive at his apartment shortly after thanks to the calls from his coworkers. Already spiraling, Jerry isn’t sure what to do as police surround the bowling alley, so he leaves his therapist and escapes down into the abandoned bowling alley beneath his apartment.

On his way down, Jerry accidentally breaks a gas pipe, allowing dangerous gas to fill the apartment and bowling alley. The police break their way into the apartment and rescue Dr. Warren, who begs the police to not hurt Jerry, though they tell her that they have to treat him like he’s a danger to the officers. The previous gas leak eventually leads to an explosion and fire that engulfs Jerry’s apartment and eventually the bowling alley as well. This leaves Jerry with a choice, he can either remain in the bowling alley and suffocate or attempt to flee in order to continue his murderous ways. For once, Jerry makes some semblance of the right decision and remains in the bowling alley, eventually succumbing to the smoke and flames.

Rather than the moving ending there, Bosco and Mr. Whiskers say farewell to one another in the afterlife before things get weird all over again. Jerry appears in a bright blue suit and is confronted by all the women he killed and his parents. Rather than having some kind of fight, the group quickly forgives Jerry and they engage in a musical number to a happy song as the credits play.

The Voices can be streamed on Amazon Prime Video.

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