This Review Reveals Minor Details About the Plot.
Family Game Night
Plot Overview
A hapless initiate is left
bleeding and on the run in the Le Domas family mansion. He seeks
help from a boy Daniel who instead gives him up to the hunters. Daniel's
brother Alex is cowering in the closet while this goes on. Daniel
is a true son of the family whose acceptance ritual for new members
entails playing a game with them, one drawn from a box of Civil War
cards. It might be chess or dominoes or checkers or—. There is only
one “bad card” in the whole deck. Small comfort, that.
Scion Alex (Mark O'Brien) has since been
living apart from the family for thirty years. After a whirlwind,
1½ year courtship, he is about to marry Grace (Samara
Weaving), of a former foster family, who is thrilled to be joining
Alex's clan. Attendance at the mansion is mandatory. So is the initiation
game. She draws: Hide and Seek.
Ideology
(Prov. 14:10) “The heart knoweth his own bitterness; and a stranger doth not intermeddle with his joy.” Alex does offer Grace “an out” before she goes through with it, which she doesn't take, because she is so totally thrilled by the prospect of joining them. The thrill is not contagious. At the end of the night, when she stumbles bloody and disheveled onto the dark road to flag down a lone car, the driver just yells at her to get off the road. He's not understanding her distress.
(Prov. 14:11) “The house of the wicked shall be overthrown: but the tabernacle of the upright shall flourish.” The wicked house will meet its demise unless they can effect the required blood sacrifice by dawn. Alex was doing fine apart from them. Why did he return?
(Prov. 14:12) “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” The family tradition seems right to all involved—except for the “goat”—but it likely won't end well.
(Prov. 14:13) “Even in laughter the heart is sorrowful; and the end of that mirth is heaviness.” The in-law joke is indeed funny, but its implications are grave.
Production Values
“” (2019) was directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillet. Its screenplay was written by Guy Busick and Ryan Murphy. It stars Samara Weaving, Adam Brody, and Mark O'Brien. Samara Weaving is awesome as the main character, playing the part of an excited bride transforming into a disillusioned survivor if she even makes it. Also of note is Adam Brody playing the brother of the groom, ambivalent about the whole situation. All the characters were pretty good.
MPAA rated it R for violence, bloody images, language throughout, and some drug use. They sure don't spare the blood in it. Two standouts on the soundtrack are, “The Hide and Seek Song” by Headquarters Music, and “Love Me Tender” performed by Stereo Jane. It's a well crafted and solidly paced movie. Much of it was filmed on location at the Parkwood Estate in Ontario, a gothic mansion setting.
Review Conclusion w/ Christian Recommendation
Audience member comment overheard while leaving the theater: “I thought it was funnyish.” I concur. It was a high caliber dark comedy thriller.
Movie Ratings
Action factor: Edge of your seat action-packed. Suitability For Children: Not Suitable for Children of Any Age. Special effects: Absolutely amazing special effects. Video Occasion: Fit For a Friday Evening. Suspense: Don't watch this movie alone. Overall movie rating: Five stars out of five.
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