Hiya!

I looked at my calendar and I was surprised to see it wasn’t Halloween yet. It may seem like an odd reaction, seeing as we’re in the sweltering heat of the summer season in the Philippines. Still, if it’s not the season for spooky stuff, then why are most of the movie houses showing us horror themed films as of late. There’s Late Night with the Devil, The First Omen, Sting, Immaculate and Abigail! I mean, what gives?

Anyway, the reason why I bring this up because I did see the trailer for Abigail my mistake recently. Yes, a scaredy cat like myself who thought Resident Evil 7 was too frightening to play accidentally saw a trailer for a horror film. It popped up as an ad on YouTube and I was too far away from my smart TV’s remote to skip it. So I saw the entire thing under duress and, in all honesty, it wasn’t so bad! I actually liked the goofy concept of a pre-teen ballerina vampire killing off her would-be kidnappers. Still, it’s a horror movie so I’m not sure if I can actually watch it without hyperventilating.

I then saw the film was directed by the same guys who were behind a film called Ready or Not. Well, I’ve seen that specific movie pop into my recommendations on Disney+. Why Disney+ would recommend this to me, I have no idea. Serendipidy, maybe? So, after grabbing my oversized teddy bear, I decided to actually watch Ready or Not to see if I can actually watch my target movie, Abigail.

By the way, I know Ready or Not is kind of an old movie as it was released in 2019. However, I’ve never heard of the film before so I’m still going to make this a SPOILER FREE review. With that out of the way, let’s get into the review of Ready or Not!

Ready or Not focuses on Grace, played by Samara Weaving. She has just gotten married into the wealthy Le Domas family who made their fortune making board games. On their honeymoon night, Grace is called in by her in-laws to partake in a tradition in their family: play a kid’s game chosen at random. While most of the games are supposedly mundane, Grace is unlucky and selects the “hide-and-seek” game. It seems harmless at first but it turns out the Le Domas family made a deal with the Devil for their fortune and, in return, they have to kill the new bride if they pick “hide-and-seek” or they themselves will supposedly die by sunrise the next day. This leads to Grace desperately trying to survive until the morning by trying to get away from her, admittedly, incompetent hunters.

Now, this early on, I will say, even though I am a huge coward, I was able to watch most of Ready or Not with a devilish grin on my face. I would say my experience was mostly like when I watch the 2017 film, It: Part 1. While you can tell it was supposed to be scary, it just wasn’t for me. Maybe it’s because of how idiotic most of the Le Domas family were and some of the kills were gory but hilarious in their own dark and morbid way. Either that or I’m just some sicko and I haven’t realized it until now!

I also have to give a lot of credit to acting as well. Honestly, how come I have not heard of Samara Weaving before this? She does seem to have this charm as the hunted Grace but her character does develop throughout the movie’s brief 95-minute runtime. She starts out as the standard helpless female who needs to be saved into a more badass person who realizes she has to fight for her life. I really need to see what else Samara Weaving has been in because, after watching this, I am a fan.

I was also surprised to see some… well, I can’t really say “big named stars” but there are some recognizable names here. I was shocked to see Adam Brody and Andie MacDowell as part of the Le Domas family. They both pull off really good performances but they do come off as rather bland as they’re the more “normal” members of the Le Domas family. It’s the dumber family members who drew my attention because of how, well, dumb they were! Sure, they’re a murderous bunch but they are incredibly inept and unprepared for the task at hand. It’s fantastic.

I also do appreciate the overall plot. While it’s deceptively simple as it’s essentially just the Le Domas clan trying to murder Grace, I do love how there’s a time limit and how it leaves you second guessing throughout the film if the so-called “deal with the Devil” really happened and if something bad will actually happen if they don’t get Grace by sundown. The question is indeed answered by the end of the film but, as this is a SPOILER FREE, review, I won’t reveal the answer. I will say I thoroughly enjoyed the execution of how it’s answered. To me, it wasn’t so much of knowing the answer but how the answer was told.

I weirdly did have some issues with the cinematography of Ready or Not. While I get the majority of the movie is supposed to be set in some really dimly lit mansion mostly illuminated by flames and old-fashioned incandescent light bulbs, I just couldn’t adapt to the amount of orange light used. It just came off as distracting. In hindsight, I understand the choice as it’s supposed to be a dark and hellish time for Grace as she tries to elude her pursuers. It’s certainly a choice but I really do wish they went with a more neutral light source. I will acknowledge it’s mostly my preference but it did affect my enjoyment of Ready or Not so I had to mention it.

I also do have to mention there were some moments where I did squirm in my seat because of the more painful moments Grace had to endure throughout the film. Oh, I was able to get through most of the deaths and I actually enjoyed how cartoonish they looked. Still, for some reason, the scenes where Grace has to go through some more torturous moments which really got to me. So, if you are squirmish when it comes to maiming, just be aware it’s there.

Overall, I really loved Ready or Not. I’m really going to go online and look up some of Samara Weaving’s other works because I enjoyed her performance here. I also do like how it’s a horror film but the humorous elements do make it feel lighthearted enough for someone like me can watch it. If you’re a scaredy cat such as myself, I say you can go watch Ready or Not and still come out liking it like I did. Now, where are the showtimes for Abigail?

Byee!

Have you seen Ready or Not? What did you think of it? Oh, if you’ve seen both Ready or Not and Abigail, are they comparable in tone? I’m really curious about that last question! Let me know in the comments section below!