• Horror

Control Freak 2025

Control Freak, a 2025 American body horror film directed and written by Shal Ngo, plunges into the unsettling world of Valerie "Val" Nguyen (Kelly Marie Tran), a successful motivational speaker grappling with a secret, compulsive urge to scratch the back of her head. This intensifying behavior is triggered by the death of her mother, Chi, during a traumatic childhood boating accident. As Val prepares for an international tour, the need for her birth certificate forces her to reconnect with her estranged family. Her Aunt Thuy directs her to her father, Sang (Toan Le), a former soldier turned monk, who possesses the required documents. Their relationship is strained by past traumas, including her mother's death and Sang's history of addiction. During her visit, Sang shares a Vietnamese folk tale about the Sanshi, a parasitic ghost that feeds on human hosts, driving them to destructive compulsions. Meanwhile, Val's husband, Robbie (Miles Robbins), discovers her secret use of birth control pills, creating a rift in their plans to conceive. Confronting Sang, Val learns the horrifying truth: he summoned the Sanshi during the Vietnam War and inadvertently passed it to Chi. He reveals that Chi attempted to drown Val as a child to prevent the Sanshi's spread, leading Sang to kill his wife to save their daughter. Val's condition deteriorates, culminating in a breakdown during a speaking engagement and subsequent hospitalization. Doctors discover she has scratched a hole into her skull, leading to vivid hallucinations. In a terrifying climax, Val battles a monstrous manifestation of the Sanshi, attempting to drown it in a swimming pool, echoing her father's desperate act. The film explores themes of generational trauma, assimilation, and the struggle for control, leaving the audience to question whether the parasitic entity is a literal monster or a metaphor for deeper psychological wounds. The cast also includes Callie Johnson as Crystal, Kieu Chinh as Aunt Thuy, Zack Gold as Mason, and Scott Takeda as Dr. Chen. Read More

• 2025
• 1 h : 44 min
• 264 views
• 4.462
• R