It’s one thing to experience horror through film, it’s another to experience it in a video game. Finding new ways to scare audiences in film has been a challenge any horror filmmaker has been facing for decades now, especially as audiences become more and more immune to generic jump scares and brutal violence.
But with video games, you are in control of your actions. And if your actions lead to a frightening encounter, then you only have yourself to blame for being at the demise of your own fear. And in 2015, the PlayStation Studios survival horror game Until Dawn gave control to the gamers, with its option-based gameplay which adapted the ways it would scare based on the player’s choices.
“The kills are brutal and bloody “
Now 10 years later, at the helm of David F. Sandberg (Lights Out, Annabelle
Creation), who is returning to the horror genre after a stint in the DCEU, the essence of the video game has been adapted into a feature film that is a standalone story set in the same mythology filled universe of the game. And by adapting the “essence” of the video game, Until Dawn serves up an entertaining horror-filled take on a butterfly effect style premise that starts stronger than it ends but is far more impressive than the “video game to film” history would have you expecting.
Travelling to a remote valley notorious for people going missing, Clover (Ella Rubin)
is on the hunt for answers surrounding the disappearance of her sister a year earlier. After arriving at their accommodation, and as day turns to night, Clover and her friends are brutally murdered, only to reawaken back at the beginning of their encounter. Together they must figure out how to survive the endless nights, before the effects of the countless deaths they experience at the hands (or claws) of various monsters, kills them for good.
Where the video game Until Dawn is a far more character driven, dramatic horror
experience, the film version, penned by Gary Dauberman and Blair Butler, leans
into a more darkly comedic take that ultimately plays out like a ‘Greatest Horror Hits’ montage featuring an array of creatures and killers, hacking and slashing in a multitude of wickedly entertaining ways. Masked killers, old witches, and the fabled Wendigo’s (a staple creature of the game) are utilised incredibly well in the ever-changing structure of this premise. Even water is a killer at one point, leading to a gut-bustingly hilarious moment. The kills are brutal and bloody, delivering on the
horror in spades for the sickos out there. There is an unpredictability that comes with the various threats, which does feel fresh and unique for the genre, and is one of the films strengths.
Another strength is the young cast, featuring Rubin, Michael Cimino, Odessa
A’Zion, Ji-Young Yoo, and Belmont Cameli, who all lean into the insanity with a
self-awareness that makes every character likeable. Watching their slow discovery of the time loop, or the reactions to whatever horror force they’re going to encounter next, is thoroughly enjoyable. Adding in Peter Stormare, who is a highlight performance in the game, isn’t just a great salute for the original fans, but his eccentricities also heighten the entertainment levels, while never losing the menacing intensity his character requires.
Where Until Dawn falters is in the investigative elements of Clover’s sisters’
disappearance, and where that ultimately lands the story in it’s final act. The investigative element of the game doesn’t convey as excitingly to the screen, often leading to long, expositional dialogue scenes that feel constructed only to link together the awesome kill montages. While the reveals and revelations of the investigation lead to the driving emotional force of the final 15 minutes of Until Dawn, it’s also here where the film feels it’s most generic, losing a bit of the unpredictable fun that filled the first hour or so.
Until Dawn is a wickedly fun twist on traditional investigative horror films, utilising the unpredictability of multiple creatures and threats and over-the-top gore, plus a bunch of likeable self-aware character, to create a thoroughly enjoyable experience.
Unfortunately, the story falls into more generic trappings as it goes on, losing its fresh feeling atmosphere before a lacklustre finale.
Until Dawn is in cinemas now.
