Greetings again from the darkness. Actress Lulu Wilson is not yet 15 years old (13 when filming this one), and yet her resume is already quite impressive, featuring roles in such high profile projects as “The Haunting of Hill House” (2018), “Sharp Objects” (2018), and ANNABELLE: CREATION (2017). She’s clearly on the path to stardom, so seizing the lead role in a low budget ultra-violent home invasion flick provides her some fun and shows off her range.
If you are going to have a young teenage girl go full ‘Rambo’, you might as well have her facing off against some neo-Nazi escaped convicts. You might question the casting of Kevin James as the gang leader – a dead-eyed hulk with shaved head, long beard, and swastika tattoos (on his scalp). James typically plays a funny schlub like Paul Blart or a loveable simpleton like his character on “The King of Queens.” Not this time. His Dominick is relentless and lacking all compassion in his quest for the key – a key that we never really learn the purpose of or the reason it’s hidden where it is.
Co-directors and Design School buddies Jonathan Milott and Cary Murnion bookend the story with scenes of Becky being interrogated by the Sheriff after all the audacious events. So we know going in that Becky will survive – we just don’t know about the others. Some fancy editing trickery has us bouncing between Becky at school and Dominick in the prison yard. The escape of he and his three buddies is chronicled alongside Becky’s dad (Joel McHale, “Community”) taking her and their two dogs to the family lake house. She’s happy until Kayla (Amanda Brugel, “The Handmaid’s Tale) and her young son Ty (Isiah Rockcliffe) pull up.
Becky is still grieving her beloved mother who died of cancer. We see flashbacks of their final days together. Becky is not ready for her dad to re-marry, and when she envisions the merged family, she bolts from the dinner table into the woods. Soon after Dominick and his boys knock on the door and take everyone else hostage. Becky dons what appears to be a knitted chipmunk cap (it’s her nickname), and arms herself for battle. It doesn’t take long for us to see that this is a rare, ultra-violent gore-fest featuring a rampaging teenage girl. One might compare to Kevin in HOME ALONE, but it’s more similar in tone to READY OR NOT (2019) and THE HUNT (2020).
The script was written by Nick Morris and the husband and wife team of Ruckus Skye and Lane Skye. While there are some memorable moments, we do find ourselves wishing that the film veered a bit more in one direction – either more ominous or more tongue-in-cheek/outlandish. Perhaps a bit of background on Dominick, or some prep work on how Becky turns so quickly from angry teenager to murderous psychotic with an instinct for violence and mayhem. Dominick admits “Becky is a little more than we bargained for”, and she’s probably a bit more than we can accept.
Still, the scenes between Kevin James and Lulu Wilson are enough to keep us watching, and the cinematography from Greta Zozula (the excellent LIGHT FROM LIGHT, 2019) delivers the visuals to keep us cringing. For those who enjoy violence and gore served in bulk, you’ll likely be satisfied.
Now available on RedBox OnDemand
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Movie Reviews from the Dark 