Ryan Reynolds plays a man who hears his pets talk, and he stabs a woman to death with a hunting knife. That is the setup for The Voices, a 2014 black comedy-horror film directed by Marjane Satrapi and written by Michael R. Perry. It is a film about mental illness dressed as a cartoon, and it wants you to laugh at the same time it wants you to cringe.
Jerry Hickfang is a plumbing fixtures factory worker with schizophrenia. He lives above a bowling alley, has a crush on his coworker Fiona, and spends his days talking to his dog Bosco and his cat Mr. Whiskers. The film opens with Jerry inviting Fiona to a Chinese dinner theater, but she stands him up to do karaoke with her colleagues Lisa and Alison. When Fiona’s car fails to start, she flags down Jerry as he drives by. The rest of the film is a series of escalating horrors, each one stranger than the last.
“Hearing voices can be murder.”
That tagline sums up the whole picture. The film is not interested in subtlety. It is interested in spectacle, in the moment where Jerry’s hallucinations become too much for him to bear and he snaps.
Trailer, via Arrow Films.
Jerry Hickfang’s Two Voices
Jerry’s two animals represent opposite forces. Bosco is the voice of reason, telling Jerry to call the police and face his crimes. Mr. Whiskers is the voice of violence, encouraging Jerry to kill and to hide the bodies. The film spends its runtime playing these two forces against each other, with Jerry caught in the middle, unable to choose either path fully.
Gemma Arterton plays Fiona, the woman Jerry falls for. She is a nurse who works at the factory, and she represents the world Jerry wants to enter. He wants to be normal, to have a girlfriend, to live a quiet life. But his condition keeps pushing him away from that life. When Fiona flags him down, the film sets up a romantic arc that quickly collapses into violence. The moment where Jerry stabs her is the turning point of the film, and it is handled with surprising brutality.
Anna Kendrick plays Lisa, one of Fiona’s coworkers. She is a minor character, but she gives the film some of its best comic moments. Jacki Weaver plays Dr. Warren, Jerry’s court-appointed therapist, who tries to help Jerry manage his condition. The film keeps Jerry’s therapy sessions brief, which is a missed opportunity. A more developed relationship between Jerry and Dr. Warren could have anchored the film’s psychological stakes.
The Talking Pets
Mr. Whiskers and Bosco are voiced by Reynolds himself. The film does not explain why Jerry hears them talk. It just presents them as part of his reality, and lets the audience accept them alongside Jerry. This is a bold choice, and it mostly works. The animals are distinct enough that you can tell which one is speaking, even when the film cuts away from Jerry’s face.
The other voices in the film are more problematic. Fiona’s severed head begins talking to Jerry after he dismembers her, demanding he take his medication. This is the film’s central horror, and it is effective in the moment. But the film does not give Fiona’s head enough time to develop. She is a living woman one minute, a dead head the next, and the transition feels rushed.
The Nightmares of Abuse
After Jerry kills Fiona, he experiences nightmares of his abusive father. These nightmares are presented as flashbacks, showing the trauma that drove Jerry to his current state. The film does not spend much time on these scenes, but they are important for understanding Jerry’s behavior. The nightmares suggest that Jerry’s violence comes from a place of fear, not of malice. This is a rare moment of empathy in a film that otherwise treats its protagonist as a monster.
When Jerry wakes up, his apartment is covered in garbage, animal waste, and blood. The film shows this in full, with a shot of the mess piled high. This is a visual representation of Jerry’s inner chaos, and it works better than the dialogue ever does. The film understands that a messy room says more about a person than any speech ever could.
The Medication Loop
Jerry takes his medication, and the hallucinations stop. Then he washes the pills down the kitchen sink drain, and the apartment goes back to pristine. The film uses this loop as a metaphor for Jerry’s condition. He can control his symptoms, but only at a cost. The clean apartment is a lie, and the mess is the truth.
The film does not resolve this loop. It simply ends with Jerry washing the pills down the drain, leaving the audience to wonder what happens next. This is a deliberate choice, and it is the right one. A tidy ending would have ruined the film’s point.
Comparing the Voices
| Voice | Role | Performance |
|---|---|---|
| Mr. Whiskers | Violence | Sharp, cruel |
| Bosco | Reason | Soft, kind |
| Fiona’s Head | Medication | Demanding, urgent |
The table above shows how the film uses its voices to create tension. Mr. Whiskers wants Jerry to kill, while Bosco wants him to confess. Fiona’s head wants Jerry to take his medication, which is the opposite of what Mr. Whiskers wants. The film sets these voices against each other, and Jerry is forced to choose.
Where It Falls Short
The film’s weakest element is its pacing. The middle section drags, with long stretches where nothing happens except Jerry talking to his pets. The film is 104 minutes long, and it could have been tighter. Some scenes feel like padding, included only to stretch the runtime.
The film also struggles with its tone. It wants to be a comedy, but it is too violent to be funny. It wants to be a horror film, but it is too silly to be scary. It settles into a middle ground that is neither one nor the other. This tonal confusion is a persistent problem throughout the runtime.
The film’s ending is abrupt. It cuts away from Jerry just as the loop begins again, leaving the audience hanging. This is a risky move, and it does not always pay off. Some viewers will find it frustrating. Others will find it brave.
Final Word
The Voices is a flawed but ambitious film. It takes a difficult subject and attempts to make it entertaining. It mostly succeeds, though it stumbles along the way. The performances are strong, especially from Reynolds, who carries the film with a mix of vulnerability and menace. The film is not for everyone, but for those willing to sit through its rough patches, it offers a rewarding payoff.
The film is currently available to stream, and it holds a critic score of 5.8 out of 10.
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