Blumhouse's The Black Phone is a riveting adaptation of the short story of the same name by Joe Hill. While much of the attention is on Ethan Hawke's villain The Grabber, who kidnaps children, keeps them in a basement, and then murders them, the child actors in the film make it the strong movie that it is.
Before The Grabber takes Finney (Mason Thames), he and his sister Gwen (Madeleine McGraw) are shown living a sad existence, as their corner of 1978 Denver involves bullying at school and an abusive father. There are a lot of reasons why the child actors in The Black Phone are super impressive.
The child characters in The Black Phone make the movie the impressive story that it is. They're reminiscent of The Losers Club members in Stephen King's famous book, miniseries, and movies IT. The IT remakes are split into two chapters from 2017 and 2019, and the kids are bullied and experience trauma but help each other through. The kids in The Black Phone have seen a lot of terror and abuse that no one should ever have to face, with Gwen and Finney being hurt by their father Terrence (Jeremy Davies), who misses his wife and their mother, who had visions and then took her own life.
There are three child characters who stand out the most: Finney, Gwen, and Robin (Miguel Cazarez Mora). All three have dealt with broken families and abuse, which bonds them and helps them understand each other, as they are just trying to survive their childhood, grow up, and hopefully move away, able to break the cycle and have a happier, better life. The Black Phone has scary moments and that is even before The Grabber takes Finney, as it's horrible watching Terrence yell at his children. But it's even worse seeing him ignore them in favor of drinking more and more, trying to forget what he has gone through.
Finney's classmate and sometimes friend Robin stands up for him against some other kids who bully him, as Robin is tough and doesn't listen to anyone. Audiences sympathize with Robin because while he has done his fair share of beating up, he tries to be a good person, and he helps Finney a lot.
In an interview with Game Rant, Mason Thames shared what it was like playing Finney, who has experienced so much pain in his young life. The actor said, "It was definitely hard, you know, digging deep down where Finney is, I mean, how scared he probably is. I really just had to dig down and think about what it'd be like without my family, and what he's going through. It's was really hard for me but I got to know Finney very well, and the story he goes through— which is terrifying."
The child actors are incredible, allowing audiences to see the pain on their faces at all times, as they don't have a soft, safe place to land. Ethan Hawke's Black Phone villain is horrifying, but so is the fact that these kids are bullied and beaten up at school and then yelled at (or worse) at home. It's incredibly sad watching Gwen and Finney's father scream at Gwen because she had a vision about one of The Grabber's victims and the police showed up at their dad's job to talk to him about it. After, Gwen leans her head on Finney's shoulder as they watch TV, showing their strong bond and how they love and take care of each other since they don't have a father who acts like a real, compassionate parent.
When Gwen has a dream about where The Grabber lives, she lets the police know, and Finney is able to kill the villain, get home safely, and be reunited with his sister. This is an important plot point that is very moving as it proves how close Gwen and Finney are. Even when Finney has been kidnapped and he's hidden away in a basement, his sister can tell that something is wrong, and she is able to be there for him. Some horror movie villains can't be killed but, thankfully, The Grabber can.
Ultimately, the child actors in The Black Phone are the emotional beating heart of the movie. They have seen a lot, felt a lot of pain, and yet they are still hopeful, believing that they can use their intelligence, compassion, and ability to think fast to get out of horrible situations. While they have learned harsh lessons that no one should ever have to, they have grown up quickly and are determined to save themselves, survive, and help each other along the way. They are some of the best child characters in any horror film.