Sometime after their mother has passed away and their father has deserted them, brothers Lucas (August Maturo) and Tom (Mike Manning) are left to fend for themselves. Living alone in a shabby house in the woods, Tom spends his days going to work and then going out at night to drink, whereas Lucas roams about the woods and is picked on by bullies. When things get rough at home, Tom proposes a game of Slapface – where the two take turns slapping each other. One day as Lucas is exploring an abandoned building, he comes across, and eventually befriends, a monstrous being. Though things seem playful at first, this monstrous being represents a greater danger than Lucas is aware of.

Written and directed by Jeremiah Kipp, Slapface struggles much in terms of pacing; we spend a lot of time with Lucas and the monster (Lukas Hassel), and with that of Tom and his girlfriend Anna (Libe Barer), with events sort of just playing out. However, Slapface is primarily more interested in being a character study, which it works best at being. Life for Lucas and Tom has become fractured, with Tom trying to hold it together emotionally for his younger brother, while also acting abusive towards him. At one point when Tom brings up Slapface to Anna, he expresses that it is for them to blow off steam – when you really watch these moments though, they’re predominantly one-sided. Including the harassment that Lucas receives from other bullies – and considering the bullying his girlfriend Moriah (Mirabelle Lee) endures – Slapface’s thematic focus is on bullying.

Through this lens, the monster exists more as a metaphor, displaying how Lucas internalizes the bullying and violence done to him, and how his suffering is festering. Even with some violent scenes that involve the monster, it is those scenes where Lucas is being picked on or Tom is being cruel where the film provides its darkest moments. As the prominent voice of reason, Anna strives to tell Tom how he should reach out for help and look out for Lucas, only for Tom to lash out at her. Tom too internalizes his trauma like Lucas is, slowly evolving into his own form of monster. The cycle of the brothers’ lives is toxic, consumed by unresolved trauma and abuse. With a consistent tonal drive that’s dreary and heartbreaking, there are only slivers of cheer to be seen in Slapface.

While the film struggles with a narrative pace that meanders at times, Slapface is a mean-spirited story with purpose. Tom is too stubborn and problematic to reach out for healthy assistance, and Lucas is too young to know how to reach out. The world of these brothers is bleak, with Lucas finding his only solace in a monster that is misguided and violent. Even with its minor speedbumps, this film works as an important and harrowing exploration – shining a light on real life pains that need to be addressed.

Slapface is now streaming only on Shudder.