Five Nights at Freddy’s (FNaF) started off as a point-and-click horror survival game known for its jump scares. Scott Cawthon created the first game back in 2014. Since then, FNaF has evolved into a multi-game franchise loved by many.
Basic plot
FNaF follows the storyline of a pizzeria (which takes several names and locations throughout the games) with haunted animatronics.
The animatronic mascots of Freddy’s inhabit the souls of missing children who were murdered by one of the pizzeria’s owners, William Afton.
Throughout the games the plot delves deeper and expands the universe of the games. Books have even been released with a modified plotline.
With such rich lore, and such a dedicated fanbase, it’s no surprise that this franchise was adapted into a movie.
Movie vs Games
The Five Nights at Freddy’s movie, named after the games, was released on October 27, 2023. The movies follow a different plot from the games.
While they keep the same location and animatronics from the first game, the character’s relationships to each other have changed.
The movie follows the plots of the books more closely than it does the games.
Five Nights at Freddy’s, the movie, follows the story of Michael Schmidt, looking after his younger sister and trying to uncover the truth of who kidnapped his brother.
In the games, William is Michael’s father. Here, he is his employer.
One thing that stays the same is William’s character as we see him play the role of the murderer and don the Springtrap suit.
Ratings
FNaF is a long-loved cult videogame which grew alongside many of us. So, it’s not surprising that fans had strong opinions about the movie.
Rotten Tomatoes critics scored the movie an underwhelming 38 per cent. Audience scores were much higher, at 88 per cent.
The movie has already been predicted to “become a cult classic” by one critic.
Audiences have praised the movie, with a consensus provided by Rotten Tomatoes that describes it as “perfectly capturing the lore — and the spirit — of the source material, Five Nights at Freddy’s is a long-awaited treat for fans of the games.”
Fans of FNaF
Upon hearing about the production of Five Nights at Freddy’s, many fans were sceptical if it would actually reach the big screen. Once the movie started releasing trailers and looked like a real deal, fans freaked out online about their childhood franchise becoming a film.
FNaF started trending on TikTok on the run-up to release. One prominent trend arrived just weeks before the film played in cinemas.
TikTok users were posting pictures of themselves back in 2014 when the first FNaF game released alongside recent pictures of themselves. The trend was that it was fans as kids who were really going to be watching the movie, an important thing for many to heal their inner child and relive their childhood.
Fans were also grateful for more content.
One Rotten Tomatoes review said: “It was a real joy to watch, and I thought it showed a side of Five Nights at Freddy’s not seen in any of the games or books, which is always refreshing.”
All in all, the Five Nights at Freddy’s movie sparked controversial reviews and opinions. However, for the majority of fans it was a childhood dream come true.
Featured Image Credit: Universal Pictures
Second year student journalist studying Bachelor of Arts with Honours in Journalism Studies.
Writer for Brig and Discovery Music, Chief Sub Editor for Brig
