Ready or Not? Here We Go! (Movie Review)
I have been waiting to see this film since I caught the first few seconds of its trailer as a YouTube ad! I love the premise, I love the lead, and it just feels like a good ole fashioned shoot em’ up! Well does it deliver… of course! Ready or Not (2019) is a hilarious, fun, and suspenseful thriller that keeps you engaged from beginning to end! Okay okay I’ll calm down a bit so I can tell you guys about this one. So I’ll give ya’ll till the count of hundred to choose your weapon, find a hiding place, and get ready to here all about it!
Ready or Not is a horror/mystery/thriller directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, known for his acting and directing in (segment “10/31/98”) of the anthology film V/H/S (2012), and also in (segment “The Way In”, “The Way Out”) from another anthology film called Southbound (2015), and Tyler Gillett, who also had a credit in V/H/S (2012) as a cinematographer. The film is written by Guy Busick, who was a writer for the film Urge (2016), and Ryan Murphy, not the Ryan Murphy of the long running American Horror Story series on FX, but a newcomer who has writing credits for a couple of shorts and one other feature. The film stars Samara Weaving as the bride, Adam Brody as the brother-in-law, Mark O’Brien as the groom, Henry Czerny as the father-in-law , Andie McDowell as the mother-in-law, Melanie Scrofano as the sister-in-law, Kristian Bruun as another brother-in-law, Nicky Guadagni as the Aunt, Elyse Levesque as another sister-in-law, John Ralston as the butler and many more. The film is produced by Brad J. Fischer, William Sherak, James Vanderbilt, and Tripp Vinson. Ready or Not (2019) is definitely in some good hands when it comes to the directing, acting, and overall look of the film! Shhh… I think I heard someone coming. Let’s talk some more about the film.
As I mentioned before, I was very excited to see this film! Although, the placement of a red band trailer in theaters and a fair amount of exposure did somewhat prepare me for a little bit of what I was going to watch. Don’t get me wrong I did very much enjoy the film, but sometimes over exposure can wear on the viewing experience a bit. The film does its best to be surprising, but the advertising does spoil some good lines, depending on the amount of times you’ve seen the trailer. Aside from that slight gripe I loved every minute of it. I liken the film’s style to US (2019). Ready or Not (2019) hits you with a good mix of horror and comedy, but it tends to lean on the more comedic side for sure… and it works! Shhhhhh… come on let’s see what this ritual thing is all about.
The film opens with the wedding of Grace (Weaving) and Alex Le Domas (O’Brien). From the get go we get the sense that the Le Domas family is a little off. The Le Domas family comes from pretty old money, as we gather from the shots of the estate, glaring eyes, and, hushed whispers among the titular family members. When night falls… well… that’s when the fun begins. Grace and Alex join the rest of the family in the game room to begin a twisted game of hide and seek. A game that will ultimately decide Grace’s place in the family. Will she be in or will she be out? That is as much as I’ll say because this is one y’all will have to check out for yourselves. Alright looks like the game is over.
So at the end of the day Ready or Not definitely deserves a watch! I would say this is a theater going experience for sure! This is one to, definitely, watch in a theater full of people!
