It’ll Be Okay, a new short film directed by independent filmmaker Richard Russell, is a bit of a departure from the type of films that I generally tend to review on this site. While there has never been much of a rhyme or reason behind what films (or other topics) I choose to cover for Horror And Sons, It’ll Be Okay definitely provided a massive change of pace from what I’m used to watching and discussing. I admittedly don’t recall many of the films that I’ve reviewed over the last 9 years of running this site. I’ve even tried desperately to forget a few. However, I’m fairly certain that It’ll Be Okay is the first “family drama” that I’ve reviewed.

Now, as the words “family drama” may already be compelling some readers to head to other review sites, let me assure you that the film does have a common, well-trodded horror element at its core. In fact, it’s this particular aspect that forms the basis for the film’s plot and drives its story and characters. However, it’s immediately undeniable that this becomes secondary to the emotional and downright depressing nature of the events that transpire throughout. Let me explain…

Dan (Doug Esper) and Julia (Allison Marie Rogers, who also wrote the script) are your seemingly normal, “everyday” married couple, living what would appear to a perfectly content life in a quiet neighborhood. They have a teenaged son named Christian, who, for all accounts, is a well-behaved, well-adjusted kid that deeply loves his parents. They have a wonderful, idyllic, drama-free life… except for the fact that Christian has this bad habit of becoming a werewolf during a full moon.

For years, Dan and Julia have been able to keep Christian’s ailment a secret, chaining and shackling up their son and locking him away in the basement of the family’s home. While this approach is meant to keep Christian from harming others (themselves included), it’s just as much to keep others from harming him. However, now that Christian is approaching adulthood, the lycanthropic creature living inside him is only increasing in strength and ferocity. They all know that this method is not one that they will be able to employ for much longer.

Christian does indeed finally break free from his confinement, escaping from the basement and venturing out into the night. As with many werewolf tales, Christian has no memory of what he does in his changed state, but his parents know that they can’t risk such a thing happening again. Living with both guilt and fear, the parents devise a plan to curb their son’s uncontrollable animalistic side, one requiring rather drastic measures.

As mentioned earlier, despite having horror themes as the center point of the film’s plot, these aspects are secondary to the real story that the films yearn to tell. Truth be told, Christian’s werewolf form is never shown, nor are his actions while in that state. The closest we get to either is the sounds that he makes as he undergoes transformation or overhearing a radio report of the aftermath of the beast’s actions. While this may come as something of a disappointment for those looking for the more visceral thrills of the genre, It’ll Be Okay‘s true horror comes from the mental and emotional effects this situation places on the family, as well as the horror of how these parents determine to control the situation. The film undoubtedly poses the question of “what would you do?” if one of your loved ones, particularly your child, were afflicted with such a curse.

Made for what I can only assume was a very low budget, It’ll Be Okay chooses to place all of its eggs in the baskets of its cast, eschewing the special effects and “scare tactics” generally associated with the horror genre. While the cast does a respectable job, I did feel there were moments that called for more of an “emotionally unstable” approach. Obviously, as no member of my family is a werewolf (at least, not that I know of), it would be rather difficult for me to say just how I would react if I found myself living with the burden that these parents face, let alone with the burden of the decisions they ultimately make, but I do feel fairly certain that the emotional reactions from my wife and I would occasionally veer more towards utter hysterics. Dan and Julia, however, tend to handle matters in a much more calm, rational, and composed matter. That’s not to say that there isn’t plenty of crying and sadness to be found, but there’s not one instance of screaming or uncontrollable shaking. I, on the other hand, tend to lose my shit over far less critical life events, such as broken XBox controllers or drinks spilled on the carpet.

Overall, It’ll Be Okay is a fairly compelling watch, albeit one that at times feels more subdued than it probably should. The film undoubtedly won’t appeal to all horror fans, but I can’t help but respect the story it has to tell and the chances that it takes to get it told. That said, I can see the film easily appealing to some that normally wouldn’t consider watching anything remotely “horror”, which I firmly believe to be a good thing.

EDIT: It’ll Be Okay became available to watch exclusively on YouTube as of August 30, 2023. As promised, here is a link to watch the film: It’ll Be Okay Short Film Link