A bride's wedding night takes a sinister turn when her eccentric new in-laws force her to take part in a terrifying game.
A dark comedy horror being released nearly a month after Halloween? It's an interesting decision, but it certainly didn't detract from the film at all. Ready or Not is a fun and energetic game of cat-and-mouse.
The success of this film comes mostly from it's leading lady Samara Weaving (the niece of The Matrix' Hugo Weaving). With bright blue eyes that can see through your soul and a very Margot Robbie vibe, Weaving plays Grace, the bride-to-be that finds herself fighting for her life. She puts forward a great performance, overcoming physical obstacles, and making (for the most part, at least) smart decisions. This is no Mary Sue scenario. This is a sassy, foul-mouthed, grounded woman, that makes an engaging strong female character.
That being said, apart from a couple of lines of dialogue, Weaving's character receives no character development and is trapped in a cycle of rinse-and-repeat situations throughout the 94-minute runtime. There was an opportunity to lift her character even further and turn the situation on its head, but the option was not considered. This is because of how her character was written, making her a passive character rolling with the punches, rather than an active participant directing the narrative. With brilliant comedic timing, an impressive emotional range on display, and great chemistry with her co-stars, Weaving is an actress to look out for in the future.
The remainder of the cast are entertaining but one-dimensional. The obsessive, the junkie, the golddigger, the alcoholic, their personality traits are played off for laughs and for the most part they work, but it does lead to situations later in the script where the characters have nothing left to add to the story, and just mill around waiting, with only one character really being active at a time.
There is one other character that does get some sort of character development, and that is Daniel (portrayed by Adam Brody, a man I only remember from The OC). There is a trauma, a hidden heart of gold, and an outwardly apathetic nature that makes his character incredibly relatable.
From a visual perspective, the cinematography is quite well done. There are some handheld scenes that are incredibly distracting, but in general, the camera movement keeps the film moving, and the tight framing combined with the warm stylised orange/brown colour palette of the house really create a sense of claustrophobia (especially when compared to the wide shots and crisp, vibrant colours of the opening wedding scenes).
The humour works to the film's advantage. Of it had attempted to be straight-laced, this would not have worked at all, but the black comedy and gore are balanced wonderfully. Personally, I would have loved a bit more graphic gore, considering the weapons being utilised, especially with the R16 rating that the film ended up with. There are the odd comedic elements that are overplayed, but they are minimal.
Ready or Not has some intriguing supernatural lore that is not fully explored, even though much of the film focuses on the group of antagonists rather than our brilliant protagonist. The script does well with the premise it was given, but it does struggle to keep the tension alive, not quite being able to justify the presence of most of the cast, nor does it fully convince the audience that our protagonist can't find her way out. Much of it comes down to convenience, and that is the least satisfying way to drive a narrative.
Nevertheless, for a comedy horror, Ready or Not is a fun flick that manages to hold your interest right to the end, thanks to some great performances from Weaving and Brody.