Ready or Not is exactly the type of movie I have been championing in my reviews for quite a while now: a non-adaption, non-sequel, original concept movie, written and directed by relative unknowns, and given the chance at a wide theatrical release by a major studio. This does not happen often enough. And Ready or Not is a pretty good example why it doesn’t.
The film takes its name from the first phrase yelled into the silence following the countdown in the innocent but intense children’s game “hide and seek” (title already taken). As Grace (Weaving) prepares to marry Alex (Mark O’Brien) at his family’s opulent estate, she is bombarded with double-meaning questions about whether or not she is ready to become a part of this family. If you’ve seen only one trailer for this movie, then the foreshadowing and obvious double expressions will feel laid on painfully thick as Grace smiles and assures each bizarre or domineering family member that yes, she loves Alex, while you patiently wait for them to get to the point.
The point is what drew you here after all, that simple and schlocky grindhouse plot: a mega-rich family hunts down the son’s bride inside their creepy mansion. This kind of large, confined, single-location horror can lead to the great (Alien, The Shining), the intriguing (The People Under the Stairs), or the underwhelming (The Bilko Experiment). Like the last example, while delivering on the gruesome front, the simple premise of Ready or Not raises too many questions that aren’t satisfyingly answered, and the script and performances don’t offer enough entertaining, non-expository moments to make up for it.
Amidst the almost-inspired story and almost-interesting family members, Samara Weaving stands out as Grace, proving her potential shown in The Babysitter and Three Billboards . . . (not to mention a small role in Monster Trucks—seriously, it’s a fun movie). Given no more to work with than the other actors, Weaving charms as the game bride, and later, evokes true terror as she screams and fights for her life. Unfortunately though, the poster of Grace in a wedding dress and bandolier, wielding a shotgun, is making a promise that the movie doesn’t keep. This isn’t a revenge fantasy so much as a 90-minute final girl.
The co-directors of this film come from the independent horror scene, and have had some success directing segments in anthology films. One of those films was the long-overdue burster of the found-footage bubble V/H/S. Whereas other directors from that film have gone on to make—or had already made—some truly excellent horror features (David Bruckner’s The Ritual is on Netflix), the duo of Matt and Tyler seem stuck in shaky-cam mode for a setting that demands Kubrickian wide shots with Halloween-inspired hiding places in every corner of the frame. This misstep is emblematic of the missed potential that proves Ready or Not, well, wasn’t.
