My quick rating – 3.6/10. Sometimes a film can have all the right ingredients—monsters, family feuds, a sprinkle of magic, and even a dash of tragic romance—and still manage to come out tasting bland. American Cryptids is one of those frustrating cases. On paper, it’s a setup that should at least be entertaining: two warring families, one human and one not-so-human, caught in an uneasy attempt at peace. Inevitably, violence erupts. Unfortunately, instead of delivering a tight horror-drama, the film meanders, leaving more yawns than chills in its wake.
To give credit where it’s due, director Erynn Dalton clearly knows how to handle aesthetics. The production values are far above what you’d expect from a mid-tier creature feature, and the decision to stick with practical effects is a welcome one. Nothing looks overly cheap or distracting; the monsters, while mild in design, fit the budget and avoid the dreaded SyFy Channel look. From a purely technical standpoint, Dalton nails the presentation.
Where the movie falls apart is in its execution of the story and pacing. The script never gels into a coherent narrative. We’re told these families are locked in conflict, yet the film never truly shows us the weight or history of that war. Instead, we get bits and pieces, peppered with a limp Romeo-and-Juliet subplot that feels like an afterthought rather than a driving force. Actions happen, people die, skeletal hands get stolen, but very little of it carries consequence or clarity. You’re left watching events unfold without ever being invited to care about them.
The cast does what they can with the material. The acting is adequate—nobody embarrasses themselves—but there’s no spark to latch onto either. It’s the cinematic equivalent of polite small talk: serviceable, but unmemorable. The problem isn’t the talent on screen but the script they’re working from, which offers too little characterization and too much empty motion.
And that’s really the crux of American Cryptids. It isn’t a disaster. It isn’t laughably bad or insultingly cheap. Instead, it’s worse in some ways: boring. The promise of monsters and magic fizzles into long stretches of flat storytelling that sap the life out of what should have been a pulpy, fun ride. By the end, the bloodshed and claws feel like window dressing for a story that never figured out how to be engaging.
It’s a shame, because there are good elements here, practical effects, solid production values, even an earnest attempt at myth-making, but they never add up to something satisfying. I wanted to like this one, but American Cryptids just doesn’t work.
I am not seeing any streamers for this one yet on JustWatch.
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Hi Jackmeat, Erynn Dalton here (director of American Cryptids). Thanks so much for your feedback. The film isn’t publicly available yet, so I’m curious how you were able to view it? As you can imagine, small indie filmmakers like me are truly negatively impacted by the film getting out before it’s been released into the world, so please share how you received a screener since one hasn’t been made available yet. Thank you!
I watched it off of a friend’s link. I’ll message them and alert them to this, since I doubt he would be aware this isn’t released yet, he is not from the USA. I noted there were no streamers available which I found quite odd but since IMDB had an August 15th release date, I just assumed it was a slow starter. There were multiple user reviews as well, mostly your buddies 10s I would guess, but some were critical. Thank you for reading, and hopefully you will continue to lurk around Jackmeats Flix.