Whistle

Much like the comparably horrible Primate, Corin Hardy’s Whistle serves up a handful of memorable deaths — and not much else.

Though competently filmed by The Nun director, the hopeless screenplay by Owen Egerton reminds viewers early and often that they're watching yet another shoddy Shudder Original horror film.

Providing few answers but raising plentiful questions, the story of an ancient Aztec death whistle bringing early demise to all who hear it plays like a particularly awful Final Destination rip-off — minus the delicious Hitchcockian build-ups.

As with Whistle’s superior inspiration, it's high schoolers yet again trying to elude the Grim Reaper. But if Egerton’s rushed presentation of these teens’ one-dimensional personalities was meant to elicit investment in their plight, it doesn't work.

Brief appearances by Nick Frost as a depressed teacher and Michelle Fairley (Game of Thrones) as a cancer-stricken antique collector do little to enliven the proceedings. And the forced inclusion of a drug-dealing youth pastor (Percy Hynes White, Xavier from Wednesday) should win a special Razzle for Shoehorned Character of the Year.

Not even the usual fallback of “this might have worked better as a short film” can rescue this mess, whose lone salvation (if anyone is bored enough to take on such an assignment) is as a supercut of its bloody kills.

Grade: D-plus. Rated R. Didn’t even last a week on local screens.

(Photo: IFC Films)