What a wild ride…
Game Night is a new action/comedy movie from directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein. It is full of notable actors such as Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams as well as Kylie Bunbury of How To Get Away with Murder and Michael C. Hall from cult television show Dexter.
The storyline sounds simple, a group of friends’ regular game night turns into a murder mystery rather than their usual charades and jenga.
The film is incredibly well written with many wonderful one liners that will have you cackling. Beyond that the dialogue and delivery from every single one of the actors is seamless and works to make this film incredibly enjoyable. There seem to be no bad or distasteful jokes and the dialogue flows with ease.
You are immersed in the relationship of the two protagonists within the first five minutes, firmly building and solidifying that connection that the audience has with the main characters. The story progresses quickly with little to no slow scenes in the entire film. You’re engaged from the beginning all the way through to the end.
While being a comedy and action hybrid, this film really delivers on the comedy factor. Most notable being the character of Gary, played by Jesse Plemons. The awkward dialogue of his character adds that extra depth to the film and in the first half an hour is what the film needed to lift it up from being a typical, cliche American comedy movie. Plemons gives an excellent portrayal of the recently divorced, slightly creepy suburban police officer. He used the small amount of screen time given to him and created a character that was one of the most notable and memorable in the whole film. A large portion of his role solely relied on his tone of voice and his facial expressions which were all spot on throughout the film. The end credits roll up and tie in some important details of his character and have you laughing through the credits.
The cinematography was done immensely well and the scene openings of the diorama that transitions into the full size versions of residential streets was a very smart tactic to keep the audience on their toes. The transitions and the juxtaposition of these clever cinematography techniques were seamlessly delivered in the film and added that extra dimension which made this film unique from other recently released comedy films.
While being incredibly funny, it still delivered with its action scenes and they never felt like they were too long or that they dragged on too much and made you lose interest. There was the right amount of drama mixed in with the action and the comedic relief which made this film an incredibly well-rounded and entertaining film.
Review by Hannah Taylor
