Abigail (2019) - Severely underrated imaginative science-fiction steampunk epic - 8/10 (24/08/20)

Abigail is a Russian fantasy movie for teenagers and young adults that should appeal to fans of the Alita: Battle Angel, Divergent and Mortal Engines series. This stylish steampunk film tells the story of a teenage girl who is living in an isolated city menaced by a pandemic. Her infected father had been taken away by local security when she was just a child. While investigating her father's fate, she discovers that she has supernatural abilities. She realizes that the security department is not what it seems to be and joins an uprising organized by secretive magicians. She soon becomes the central role in the clash between the dictatorial government and the desperate rebels.

Despite its negative reviews, Abigail convinces on multiple levels. First of all, the story comes around with quite a few ideas, turns and twists to keep the movie entertaining from start to finish through a running time of almost two hours. The locations are contrasting, creative and diversified. The colourful special effects add a lot of magical atmosphere to this inspiring fantasy blockbuster. The characters are interesting enough and portrayed by a cast of strong young actors and actresses with Georgian lead actress Tinatin Dalakishvili being the best. The film offers a great balanced mixture of action, drama, romance and suspense that should appeal to large audiences.

There are only minor flaws to find in this movie. The main idea of the film isn't exactly new and the script could have been a little bit more creative to really stand out. The movie's final third is overall quite rewarding but the ending itself should have come full circle instead of leaving room for a potential sequel in my opinion. Still, a potential franchise would certainly have a lot of potential after this strong movie.

In the end, Abigail is highly recommended to fans of steampunk fantasy films and dystopian science-fiction movies. The special effects are impressive, the settings are charming and the characters are attaching as well. Ignore the harsh negative reviews and enjoy this imaginative movie that should appeal not only to teenagers but also adult genre fans.