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Rating: 2.5 out of 5
Doing an escape room is on my bucket list of things to do. A game where a group of people would have to solve a series of puzzles and riddles using clues to get out of a room during a set time limit. Just knowing about an escape room intrigued me to go see this movie.
During the 75 minutes as I sat and watched this movie, one thing came to mind………. I was watching Saw all over again. Not the bad Saws that had no point to them but literally the first Saw movie, yet not as good and intense as that movie. More like the kids’ version of Saw. Even the freakin’ ending of the film is like Saw. Great job with the original content. Is Escape Room a great movie??? Nope, not even close. Is it a lousy movie??? It’s halfway decent. Overall, it’s a meh movie. Intense in some areas and blah in others.
So, what is this movie about? Well, we being our epic tale with a young man falling through the room of a room. He looks panicked as he limps around, trying to find clues. He notices one a panel on the wall and moves one of the knobs. As he does, this activates the trap. The room slowly starts to close to him. Think of Stars Wars on the Death Star when Luke, Leia, and Han fall into the garbage disposal and are being crushed. I think you got the idea. I think you are starting to see where this movie is headed. Well, the young man desperately searches and until he is almost crushed entirely and then a black screen with the words, “three days before.” Cliffhanger?? I think not! We are then introduced to several characters.
First, we meet the shy, genius, physics student Zoey (Taylor Russell), who will be alone on campus during Thanksgiving. Yet, there is something up with Zoey as she has a nightmare and panic attack. Her professor mails her a little black box stating to do something she is terrified of doing. After figuring out the puzzle box, Zoey is invited to play an escape room where she could win $10,000 and bragging rights. Upon arrival, we meet our five other contestants: Jason (Jay Ellis), a very cocky stockbroker. Ben (Logan Miller), an alcoholic stock room clerk. Amanda (Deborah Ann Woll), an army vet suffering from PTSD. Mike (Tyler Labine), a talkative and friendly truck driver. Finally, Danny (Nik Dodani), a gamer who is annoying beyond belief. After a few chit-chats, the contestants soon learn that they are playing the game, and death is a genuine possibility. The only way out is to finish the game or die trying.
Now let’s get the good about this movie out of the way first. The idea of using what is fashionable and trendy worked pretty well. Watching the character trying to figure out the puzzles, actually moved the film along pretty quickly. Each room added a layer of tension to the film. I was leaning forward on most of the puzzles, wondering if the group was going to figure it out and survive. The idea of using five different rooms was pretty interesting. Each one is entirely different than the last. I mean, the upside-down room was pretty crazy. The whole psychedelic was pretty intense and made you feel like you’re on drugs.
As stated before, this movie is just like Saw. It is so close to Saw that you might as well watch Saw. Six strangers in a room, and they must find a way out of the game to survive. Just like Saw, the characters aren’t really worth getting to know or need to know. The character development is so minimal that if they died, you’re like, “oh well.” It isn’t until over halfway through the film that you actually learn about the backstories of the characters, and you really don’t care. Actually, I started rooting for some of the characters to be killed because either they were highly annoying or just needed to go. Danny, the gamer boy, got on my last nerve. Actually, the stupidity amongst the characters is so high that it is hard to understand or even root for them. I guess the worst part of everything is the character performances. They seem so overdone or a significant reach. Russell’s performance was a real head-scratcher. She is this quiet, shy, meek college student, and then all of a sudden, she is this badass gun-wielding girl who isn’t afraid of anything. Really??
Then the ending, where the “Gamemaster” says his final sentence…… “Let the games begin.” If that isn’t like Saw, I don’t know what is. Saw had, “I want to play a game.” Great original thought right there. If you wanted to make a remake of Saw, then do it.
Escape Room is an okay movie to watch. Nothing grand or exciting but nothing where you go blah. The film has its moments when it comes to the rooms and puzzles. No character development would make you feel anything for them. This is a movie that you can wait for to be released on Netflix or Hulu.
