Looky-loo (2025) Review

Weird on Top Pictures, makers of Straight Edge Kegger and Night Terror, bring a stripped-back serial killer flick with their new release Looky-Loo.

Directed by Jason Zink and written by Nolan Mihail, the film follows a stalker’s escalation to serial killing through his own documentation of his crimes. His obsession with film and the women he terrorizes results in an uncomfortably intimate found footage gem.

The opening shots are somewhat serene as the setting of a quiet, cute town is established. That serenity quickly halts and the creep factor shoots up with every step Looky-loo takes. It feels like you are following people around, to their homes, and trying to open their doors. The voyeuristic ick becomes even more intense as Looky-loo records his own workspace.

This is a very slow-burn horror film. Clocking in at just over an hour and 20 minutes, I wouldn’t say it’s the longest-feeling film I’ve seen but it will take patience to get through. It honestly felt like despite the slow pacing, I couldn’t interrupt what was happening. I had to sit and become a Looky-loo myself. Those with morbid curiosity and decent attention spans will have no trouble sitting in this world for a while.

It is reminiscent of similar genre films like Maniac and The Poughkeepsie Tapes, although much less intense in terms of gore and psychological terror. There are also callbacks to the classic killer films of Hitchcock and Argento making this film approachable enough for newer fans of the genre and keep film buffs interested.

Mihail and Zink really did a lot with a little here. The plot is pretty simple and something that has been adapted many different ways but the sheer time we spend in Looky-loo’s perspective, in his routine, strikes a different cord and gives the film a unique, lasting impression. The specialness of Looky-loo is in it’s subtleties. A shaky hand here, or a gasp there reveals where the plot is headed rather than the repetitive actions Mihail and Zink got the audience accustomed to. They nailed the obsessive and compulsive aspects of this type of personality, humanizing him very slightly but not going so far as to suggest that anything other than stalking and killing were of importance to him.

The experience of watching this was, not comfortable and I don’t believe it was meant to be. The tagline does read “You’ll Never Feel Safe at Home Again.” Following the escalation of a serial killer first-hand and in such a raw manner is not pleasant in the least. Especially as a woman, the target of this fictional but also scarily lifelike maniac.

In a time when popular media trends include romanticizing and glorifying serial killers, it is refreshing, and I would even say needed, to see a sobering take on these monsters. It was chilling to watch these women be preyed upon to fulfill some sick fantasy. To have their life slip away and see the culprit immediately move on to the next like it was nothing. That is closer to the reality that we occupy, with no dramatic score, no exposition provided by a disembodied narrator, and no pretty theatrics.

Although Looky-loo felt a bit drawn out, it’s slow-build ambient take on a serial killer story had little sparks of originality to keep it interesting. Being a little too close for comfort with Looky-loo was cushioned by its unique cinematography and sound design. While not being especially gorey, the suspense and realism will surely have audiences triple-checking their locks after watching.

Looky-loo will be released on VHS and Blu-Ray with pre-orders open through screamteamreleasing.com. You can also keep up with Weird on Top Pictures at weirdontoppictures.com or on Instagram @weirdontoppictures.

Movie Rating:

Looky-loo trailer