"Death Cast" is one of those "actors discover the film they are making is really happening" movie. The film begins with the auditions of six young actors who are cast in a horror film that will be filmed by hidden cameras and drones. They drive out to a isolated house where they are told to start acting and never break character and it will all be filmed. However, when they get there they discover that it is all too real and need to fight for their lives...
Lots of issues. Despite the drones and hidden cameras, what we get to see and how really strains credulity. Characters make totally irrational choices and a lot of the dialog is stilted and unnatural. The kills are pretty tame, and one of them occurs completely off camera which is inexcusable and unforgivable especially as we spent time in the room where it happened so we know there is a camera in there.
And yet... after a while, something about "Death Cast" grabbed me. In a clever touch, the movie is not presented as "found footage" but as the finished product of the filmmaker, with nice touches like the face of everyone except the victims being pixelated. I like the way that it subtly plays with horror movie tropes without pushing it in our faces -- for example, the "find your friend who you thought was dead but isn't" trope and the idea that the girl who's supposed to be the final girl doesn't really know how to act like a "final girl."
And at the end, I was rooting for the good guys and against the bad guys... always a bit of a challenge in these films. And I really liked that the movie committed to its plan and didn't wimp out at the end. Mild recommendation, and I definitely suspect you will like it more as the movie goes on, so give it a chance.
Lots of issues. Despite the drones and hidden cameras, what we get to see and how really strains credulity. Characters make totally irrational choices and a lot of the dialog is stilted and unnatural. The kills are pretty tame, and one of them occurs completely off camera which is inexcusable and unforgivable especially as we spent time in the room where it happened so we know there is a camera in there.
And yet... after a while, something about "Death Cast" grabbed me. In a clever touch, the movie is not presented as "found footage" but as the finished product of the filmmaker, with nice touches like the face of everyone except the victims being pixelated. I like the way that it subtly plays with horror movie tropes without pushing it in our faces -- for example, the "find your friend who you thought was dead but isn't" trope and the idea that the girl who's supposed to be the final girl doesn't really know how to act like a "final girl."
And at the end, I was rooting for the good guys and against the bad guys... always a bit of a challenge in these films. And I really liked that the movie committed to its plan and didn't wimp out at the end. Mild recommendation, and I definitely suspect you will like it more as the movie goes on, so give it a chance.