Ready or Not review

READY OR NOT:

THIS GAME OF HIDE-AND-SEEK IS DARK, TWISTED, FUN!

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: *** ½ out of 4

FOX SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES

Samara Weaving in Ready or Not

            After getting married to her new husband, a young bride joins him and her rich in-laws in a game of hide and seek that goes to dark, horrific places in Ready or Not, the new black-comedy thriller from directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett (V/H/S, Devil’s Due, Southbound). I was hyped for this movie the moment I saw the trailer, the premise alone sounded so bizarre and wild that I had to know what the end result was going to be, kind of like an old murder-mystery plot mixed with Saw but with a more comedic edge to it. 

            Granted horror movies with a humorous tone is nothing new, films like the Scream franchise, The Cabin in the Woods, and recently Get Out all blended terror and comedy in a seamless fashion and were all huge hits. Granted I’m not familiar with any of Olpin and Gillett’s other work, I haven’t seen V/H/S and I skipped Devil’s Due when it was released, so I’m coming into Ready or Not with zero knowledge of these filmmakers and…I had an absolute blast.

            I don’t think I’ve laughed this hard at a scary movie while still being on the edge of my seat at least since the release of Get Out, but there you go. Ready or Notgave me what I wanted, a well-made, completely bonkers homage to the murder-mystery genre with a dark sense of humor and top-notch performances by its cast.

             The film follows Grace (Samara Weaving-Out of the Blue, SMILF, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri) who has just been married to a young man named Alex (Mark O’Brien-Republic of Doyle, Halt and Catch Fire, Arrival) coming from a rich, eccentric family. As a family tradition, Grace joins her husband and in-laws in a game of hide and seek where they attempt to find her before dawn. However, things go horribly wrong when Grace realizes that her in-laws intend to hunt and kill her for a satanic ritual and must find a way to escape this crazy, CRAZY family with only her wits and Alex going against his family as her only chance of survival.

            The film also stars Adam Brody (Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Thank You for Smoking, Shazam!) as Daniel, Henry Czerny (Mission: Impossible, Clear and Present Danger, The Exorcism of Emily Rose) as Tony, Andie MacDowell (Sex, Lies, and Videotape, Groundhog Day, Michael) as Becky, Kristian Bruun (Murdoch Mysteries, Regression, Orphan Black) as Fitch Bradley, Melanie Scrofano (Saw VI, Nurse 3D, Wynonna Earp) as Emilie, Elyse Levesque (Normal, Stargate: Universe, The Originals) as Charity, Nicky Guadagni (Street Legal, A Nero Wolfe Mystery, Lars and the Real Girl) as Helene, John Ralston (Flash Gordon (2007), Degrassi: The Next Generation, On the Basis of Sex) as Stevens, and Nat Faxon (Club Dread, Hamlet 2, The Way, Way Back) as Justin.

            Overall, Ready or Not is some of the most fun I’ve ever had watching a scary movie and Pennywise could be facing some rough competition for the craziest horror movie of the year, we’ll have to wait and see when It: Chapter Two comes out in a few weeks. I was laughing and on the edge of my seat all throughout the movie fully invested in the plot and main characters. 

            The film fully embraces its bizarre narrative and gives a unique twist to the murder-mystery formula with a darkly comedic edge while still having a chilling mystery at its core. I’m so relieved that the trailers didn’t spoil the actual film and most of the time you’re not sure where the movie is going and whenever you think you’ve figured everything out it throws you for a curveball. 

            As a matter of fact, there was almost a twist in the movie during the climax that I wasn’t a fan of but was quickly redeemed before the credits roll. I dare not ruin it here, it is absolutely hilarious once you get to that point.

            With all the slaughtering and madness happening, the film doesn’t shy away from having a horror movie protagonist worth following all the way through thanks to Samara Weaving’s performance as Grace. She’s far from being the stereotypical dumb-blonde you would normally see in a Platinum Dunes horror remake (Aye-Yo!) and instead goes from a defenseless woman stuck in a creepy old mansion with her in-laws trying to kill her to a tough badass that you want to root for as she fights for survival even if it means having an excessive body-count and a lot of one-liners. 

            Ready or Not delivers the right amount of crazy to your murder-mystery movie watching thanks to its dark sense of humor, over-the-top deaths, twists and turns, and a strong performance by Samara Weaving at the heart of it. If you’re looking for something different than the usual horror/suspense movie fare then this is a game of hide and seek definitely worth playing, gory deaths, sadistic in-laws, and all.