Would You Rather (2012)
“People,
we’re playing a game”
Directed by David Guy Levy, Would You Rather stars Brittany Snow, Sasha Grey and Jeffrey Combs with a nice appearance from John Heard.
Brittany Snow plays Iris, a woman who is looking after her poorly brother who desperately needs a bone marrow transplant but being in America this means money.
Money she doesn’t have, a fact compounded by the debts her parents have left her with.
So she accepts an invitation to Shepard Lambrick’s (Jeffrey Combs) house for a dinner party and parlour game where if she wins, he will not only pay off her debts but circumvent the donor waiting list to get her brother the transplant immediately.
What she doesn’t know is that this is a last man standing sort of game. Well this is a modern horror so that should be last woman standing.
And if for some reason you hadn’t already figured that out the film at one point has Lambricks colleague repeat that he doesn’t think she is suitable and can’t handle it.
All the confirmation on who will make it to the final two that you need.
Once we get the build up out of the way and the film has given us the lead characters background and motivation for accepting the invite, the boring stuff, we follow Iris to the party.
Here we meet the other ‘guest’ (contestants) and the fun begins.
So Lambrick informs them that they will be playing a game of ‘Would You Rather’ where two people are pitched against each other in a challenge where they have to make a ‘choice’ to do something horrific or something else horrific.
I.e. would you rather though everytime that is said my mind wondered to Atlas and his “Would You Kindly”.
The games are nicely twisted enough and the effects when used are fine. When the director chooses to not show anything gruesome he tries to make the cut-away fit the scene so bonus points for trying to be original.
Sasha Grey plays a really nasty bitch and plays her well.
I’m not a fan of her acting but here it has improved greatly and Jeffrey Combs gives one of his more restrained performances but it is Jeffrey Combs.
He could be in Sex in the City and he would be worth watching.
He would also be the only thing worth watching.
Story wise it mostly holds itself together but when the group attempts an escape they make such a glaring, obvious mistake that probably would have guaranteed their safety. Then again if they had succeeded this film would only be 40 minutes long so gaps in logic like this are needed to keep the story moving along.
I put it down to a lapse in judgement in the heat of the moment not that I should be making up ways to explain the story.
For the most part this group does its best to keep working together which is refreshing and Iris is a final girl that is someone you can root for which is also refreshing.
Until she turns into the typical modern final girl but the obvious twist at the end makes up for that.
Overall I liked this. Decent performances, enough time taken for each game yet more importantly enough tension.
Not the best, more of a throwaway film that will offer a distraction for 90 minutes, which these days is something that can be considered a victory for the filmmakers.
