Ready Or Not Review- You're Next meets Cabin in the Woods

I literally forgot this movie was even coming out until I happened to see it listed when I was checking showtimes. What a weird timing to release it on a Tuesday/Wednesday but maybe that will allow it a bigger box office weekend yield.

Story- Just to start off with, funny enough this movie was also written by a pair of guys. This is a team effort movie! Like Tag and Truth or Dare, simple premises are fleshed out, although in this one it's actually excellent (I did enjoy Tag though, stupid funny movie). A girl and her husband are freshly married, but to be accepted into his family she has to play a parlor game to garner some respect. Unluckily for her, she chooses what we assume to be the worst card- Hide and seek. This hide and seek is slightly more dangerous in the fact that the worst outcome isnt a kid being cramped in a cupboard for 5 hours but the fact that if they find you, you dead! So our heroine has to survive the night in order to win the game. The opening scene in particular was really cheesy, but it set the stage for the premise and slight backstory of the family. This movie had relatively realistic dialogue, but holy crap be prepared for some super dark humor. I have a feeling some people would be stand offish about it, but it worked well. I also like the subverted expectations at multiple points throughout the movie. 

Cinematography/Props/Editing- the camerawork was actually really nicely done. Though the movie takes place almost entirely in the one location, they used the space in unique ways, and did a relatively good job of establishing locations in relation to the rest of the house. The props were used in the vein of the dark humor as well given that the weapons were medieval in nature. There were no glaring editing mistakes or weird gloss overs that I noticed so that's good. 

Acting- the comparison between this and You're Next is warranted because Adam Brody definitely looks like one of the characters in that movie. He was really funny in a critical way and I dug it. The rest of the cast for the most part did a solid enough job too. What I would talk about regardless of her part in it is Samara Weaving. In one of my new favorite movies, Mayhem, she's the main character and she always continues to impress me with her lovability. She's just got such a vibrant and bubbly air about her in the characters she plays and is a joy to watch on screen. 

Directing- Tyler Gillet and Matt Bettineli-Olpin have both basically only directed one movie, and even then it was a short. They each had a part in the first V/H/S movie, and while I much prefer the second, the first was a solid horror anthology. The fact that this is effectively their first big(ger) budget movie is very impressive. It was directed really well, and they understand how the genre works. Massive respect to the pair.  

Soundtrack/Audio- this movie utilized their sound effect cues really well. I was very appreciative of the soundtrack because I had some talkers in the near empty auditorium when I saw it so it was nice to have it loud enough to distract from them. 

Final Verdict- Solid A. A few of the horror conveniences rear their heads into this movie, however since I feel it was intended as a self aware nature, I'll let it go. This was an impulse viewing and I'm glad I chose to see it sooner rather than later, because it was a refreshing watch.