Morality and Murder Collide in Two New Horror Movies – Film School Rejects

Dont HangUp

Its undeniably impressive just how well Dont Hang Up recovers from its irritatingly obnoxious and terribly-charactered first act to become a thrilling and suspenseful little morality tale that owes a minor debt to the likes of Saw and Scream. But good lord is it a rough beginning.

A woman is woken from a deep sleep by a ringing phone. A voice tells her its the police, that they have her house surrounded, and that multiple intruders are in her home. Shes understandably terrified, but its her fear for her young daughter that forces panic in her mind, especially as the voice says the daughter has been abducted and shotbefore its revealed that the callers are a group of pranksters making funny calls and uploading the clips to YouTube for lolz. They make people believe their loved ones are dead or cheating on them, and its hilarious.

These are not likable young men, and as the montage of calls over a period of months comes to an end we settle on the tightest and most dickish of the bros, Sam (Gregg Sulkin) and Brady (Garrett Clayton). The script (from Joe Johnson, The Skulls III) makes efforts to humanize the pair through their relationships to parents and a girlfriend, but they failthese are irredeemable pricks. So when a stranger calls them warning them not to hang up or face dire consequences, we cant help but root for the stranger.

And we keep doing so right through to the end.

Directors Damien Mac and Alexis Wajsbrot do serviceable work early on, but just as the script picks up during the second act so does the direction. Suspenseful beats are played well through close-ups, smart reveals, and an appreciation of genre expectations that still allows for a surprise or two. We have a vague suspicion of the killers motivations before theyre actually shared, but it doesnt hurt the films execution and momentum as it heads toward a solidly satisfying conclusion.

Both leads do good work despite the handicap of playing obnoxious characters deserving of almost everything heading their way, and the supporting players are equally fine. The killer is a curious one as once he finally appears Im still not entirely sure if hes wearing a mask or not. Its creepy regardless.

Dont Hang Up brings Saw-like judgement to a Scream-like scenario, but it succeeds in being its own creation by delivering some fun thrills, plenty of blood, and a smart turn or two. It touches on tech issues related to computer security too, and while its efforts pale beside the likes of The Den theyre enough to add some real-world scares to the proceedings. Ignore the cheesy title and give this one a shot next time youre home alone and looking for something to watch. Just trust me through the first twenty minutes or soit gets better.

Dont Hang Up opened Friday in limited theatrical release.

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Morality and Murder Collide in Two New Horror Movies - Film School Rejects