A mother and her two children living in the woods are protected from the evil destroying the world as long as they stay tethered to their home. 

Momma (Halle Berry) has explained to her twin children Nolan (Percy Daggs IV) and Samuel (Anthony B. Jenkins) since birth that the world has been destroyed by an evil that only she can see. If it were to touch you then you would want to kill your own family. The only way to stay safe is to remain tethered to the wooden home they live in that has been sanctified so that evil cannot touch it. So the three of them will only ever leave the home if tethered to ropes that are tied to the homes foundation. 

The children know nothing of the world as it used to be and have never known anyone other than their momma and their dog. What they do know are the various rhymes, incantations and rituals their mother has made them practice since birth to maintain their safety. 

When a particularly hard winter makes food scarce one of the children begins to question his mother’s stories. He knows that their mother killed his grandmother, grandfather and father because the evil touched them. He knows that he has never seen this evil that his mother can see. And he knows they are starving to death. But what will happen when he questions his mother’s belief? Is the evil real? 

Never Let Go initially has an intriguing premise. Is this a story of mental health issues and child abuse? Is this a story about religious zealotry and the dangers of fundamentalism? Or is there an evil that is slowly destroying the world? 

The script gives us ample options to chew on. The mother talks about the fact that her mother before her could see the evil suggesting a form of schizophrenia. We see the family eating frogs and tree bark for sustenance suggesting perhaps a level of poisoning and hallucinations. Perhaps more overt are the religious overtones. The evil is represented by a snake. The brothers begin to be at odds with each other. The mother references a strict religious upbringing, a wayward period where she left for the city followed by being brought back into the fold. Whilst all the rituals performed reflect those of the faithful. 

But then after a clever balancing act asking us to consider all of these options the film struggles to grasp a satisfying ending and dare I say it becomes rather rote and boring. 

The performances are good. Halle Berry is convincing as the mother who believes absolutely that she is saving her children. Whilst Daggs and Jenkins are some of the best child actors I have seen for some time. Especially as so much of the film rests on their shoulders. The tension built in the first half of the film is solid. But everything falls flat when the film fails to land a satisfying ending. 

An interesting premise that loses its way in the final stretch.