Ready or Not (2019)
Written By: HR
Edited By: Grave Reviews Staff
Film Information
Director: Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett
Writers: Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett
Producer: Tripp Vinson, James Vanderbilt, et. al.
Date Released: August 21, 2019
Cast:
Samara Weaving as Grace Le Domas
Adam Brody as Daniel Le Domas
Etienne Kellici as young Daniel Le Domas
Mark O’Brien as Alex Le Domas
Chase Churchill as young Alex Le Domas
Henry Czerny as Tony Le Domas
Andie MacDowell as Becky Le Domas
Kate Ziegler as young Becky Le Domas
Nicky Guadagni as Helene Le Domas
Elana Dunkelman as young Helene Le Domas
Rating = 3/5 Graves
***May contain some spoilers***
Synopsis
Grace, a foster child who just married her fiancé Alex, finds herself tangled in the tradition of the rich yet eccentric family of the Le Domas. As part of the Le Domas family tradition, every new outside addition to their family must draw a card before they get fully recognized as a family member. Grace, unaware of the gravity of this tradition, participates and draw the card that tells them to play “hide and seek” so Grace plays along and hides. However, unbeknownst to Grace, the Le Domases begin to hunt Grace with the intent to murder her. Eventually, Grace begins to understood the real stakes of the game: the le Domas family must kill her before sunrise, or they will experience the “curse,” and will all die.
Gore Factor
Ready or Not is by no means a gore fest film like those from the Saw franchise, but it was able to naturally incorporate blood, gore, and violence throughout the film. There are several deaths that are very sudden and shocking. The main character suffers many injuries that are often graphic. Being that the whole plot centers around a twisted game of hide and seek, it is often very intense and suspenseful. By the end of the film, there is certainly plenty of blood and gore considering the physical state of Grace and the Le Domas family although is by no means an overly gory film. Nevertheless, the film incorporates these special effects in a controlled by well-incorporated way.
The Grave Review
Ready or Not (2019) was able to start the story piquing the interest of the viewers and raising curiosity on the ways and the characteristics of the Le Domas family. It managed to deliver a perfect blend of horror, thrill, and a bit of humor in between. The fact that the film did not go with the usual story format of most horror movies (evil spirit or being terrorizing the characters) served it well.
The film also had decent pacing. It started the “ride” making sure that the viewers are properly acquainted with every major character and their elements first: in at least the first 15 minutes of the film, it was already established that Grace was different from the Le Domas and that the Le Domas is hiding a secret that her new husband Alex is afraid for her to find out.
After the game started, the filmmakers did not waste any time in putting the character of Grace through the terrors of the Le Domas family. The choice of use in sound effects and background music–or the occasional absence of it–also helped to make the audience feel more immersed in the scenes. This applied especially to the scenes where Grace almost gets caught by the family members.
The story did not attempt to give a deeper or bigger meaning to what was happening, which gave the chance for the film to focus more on the cat-and-mouse chase between Grace and the Le Domas.
Though the end part was bloody and gory, the film could have made it better by giving it more blood and gore, and perhaps even using better CGI. Aside from that, the film was a fun, thrilling, and sometimes shocking. Character archs can really make a big difference in a film and Ready or Not incorporated this well. Grace, who started as a pretty, less-confident, bride, ended as a fearless, confident woman after losing the loss of her newly wed husband and this traumatic experience. The character arch, although different, certainly played a factor in adding another dimension to this film.
Overall, Ready or Not (2019) is a scary and gory film that did not forget to be smart, scary, bloody, and entertaining at the same time.
For the foregoing reasons, Grave Reviews gives Ready or Not (2019) three graves out of five graves.
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