Stay Alive (2006)

Stay Alive (2006) Horror Movie Review
Written By: DMG
Edited By: Grave Reviews Staff

Film Information

Director: William Brent Bell
Producer: Peter Schlessel, James D. Stern, et. al.
Screenwriter: William Brent Bell, Matthew Peterman
Date Released: March 24, 2006

Cast:

Jon Foster as Hutch
Frankie Muniz as Swink
Samaire Armstrong as Abigail
Sophia Bush as October
Jimmi Simpson as Phineus

Rating = 2/5 Graves

***May contain some spoilers***

Synopsis

A group of friends play a horror game called “Stay Alive.” But what they don’t realize is that anything that happens in the game also happens in real life. When some members of the group begin to die in real life, they must find the source of the evil before it’s too late.

Gore Factor

There are not many blood-filled scenes. The film portrays deaths in real life based on how the players/victims die in the game. The method of how the victims die is creative. Nevertheless, Stay Alive does not have a lot, if any scenes, that would be considered gore scenes.

The Grave Review

The idea behind the horror film, Stay Alive, although not original, is certainly a fun one. A haunted video game causes anyone who plays the game to meet heir demise in real life. Although, the story never went into detail how the game initially went into circulation, it does briefly mention the company who sent out beta testing samples. But, the question of how the game, itself, became possessed for lack of a better word, is unanswered. Moreover, the idea of a ghost or paranormal being distributing a cursed video game is certainly a plot stretch.

The film also gave a lot of promotional time to major video game companies. For example, there is a scene that displays Stay Alive as a Sony Playstation 2 game in a clearly presented Playatation 2 game console. Other companies also received some air time like Sega’s Dreamcast. Yes, this film is partially marketing at its finest.

Further, the villain as seen in the game is not very scary. The scare comes from the fact that the events that happen in the video game, happen in real life. That being said, Stay Alive is a fun watch with an interesting twist on gaming. The graphics are corny and dated but Stay Alive (2006) attempts to change your typical slasher film into a unique plot.

For the above reasons, Grave Reviews gives Stay Alive (2006), two graves out of five graves.

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You may also like our review of the film, Escape Room.