David F Sandberg’s new film, Until Dawn, Based On The 2015 Game, Feels Like Something Pulled From 2004, In All The Best Ways.
Video Game films are the new hot ticket. The continued success of Mario, Sonic, and now Minecraft have given us a glimpse into what will be the new hottest IPs moving forward. Looking to jump on that bandwagon, Sony has thrown their own IP into the ring with Until Dawn. Based on the 2015 branching narrative survival horror game (read; interactive digital movie) of the same name, Until Dawn is one of the few modern video game adaptations aimed at adult viewers.
So, the question is; is it any good? Lucky for you, Until Dawn beats the video game curse* and is a damn good time at the movies!
Now, to get this out of the way up top; Until Dawn is really related to the 2015 game in name only. The plot is a completely new one; 5 friends travel the backroads in search of the missing sister of Clover (Ella Rubin). In their search, they are caught in a bad storm, and hunker down in an old, abandoned bed & breakfast. Once the sun sets, though, they quickly find themselves fighting off all kinds of evil nastiness, usually dying within a few minutes of their encounter. Then, the clock winds back, and they restart the night, a new foe searching for them, their only means of escape being surviving until dawn.
It’s a familiar setup, for sure; part Cabin in The Woods part Groundhogs Day (even though, strangely, the film dead stops to make sure to explain that, no, it’s not like Groundhogs Day). But, constantly changing elements in the nights and in the friends’ relationship keep the encounters feeling fresh, even as we continuously re-live the same night, over and over.
Those constant nightly changes are where Until Dawn and director David F. Sandberg (Lights Out, Annabelle Creations) really shines. Each night, a new type of horror attacks the friends, always keeping them, and us, on our toes. There ends up being a lot of space for possibilities, such as masked killers (the closest this comes to being like the game), demonic possession, kaiju creatures, and even explosive worm larvae (a genuinely great, and unexpected, kill scene).
What really works best for Until Dawn, for me, is its overall aesthetic and tone. From start to finish, this feels like something pulled directly from the early ‘00 era, specifically the Platinum Dunes/Dark Castle style. Everything is dark and brooding, the world looking sinister night or day. If I had to pinpoint it even further (being an expert on that era of horror), I’d say this specifically has the vibe of the House of Wax remake. As someone who grew up on those films, it is both pretty awesome seeing horror look like that again, but also a bit existentially terrifying realizing this film is emulating a film from 20 years ago.
Where the film wavers a bit in quality, though, is in some of the relationship politics. There’s a whole bit in the 2nd act where there is this focus on “never leave a friend behind”. Perfectly fine, sure, but it leads into this real weird out of character moment, where one of them is essentially sacrificed due to proposing a different plan of escape? It really comes out of nowhere, and is never really brought up again, even though the whole group survives like another 10 nights together. It also has a real abrupt ending; when the credits started to roll, I was genuinely caught off guard.
If the above seems nitpicky, it’s because that’s really all I have that’s critical about Until Dawn. It feels like a horror film built out of my memories of childhood horror favorites, so this just checked off all my boxes pretty easily. Sure, it is in no way like the game, but, the game is also just a 10-hour interactive movie; I’ve already seen that, I’m excited to have seen something new.
Either catch it in theaters now, or make sure to make time for it next Halloween; it’s a perfect addition to the season’s festivities!
*The quality curse isn’t lifted until the genre gets its The Dark Knight.
