It would seem that 'The Ritual' is not only the movie with the most unfortunate tag line this century but it is also the movie with the most unfortunate plot development.
Such a shame!
I was really really rooting for this film, it appears to have all the elements necessary to be a good solid horror movie - it just gets RIDICULOUS towards the end.
'The Ritual' is a 2017 British horror film directed by David Bruckner and starring Rafe Spall.
Following the violent death of one of their number, the 4 remaining university friends embark on the lads holiday their dearly departed would have chosen - hiking in Sweden. That right there, is mistake number 1.
We see the unfortunate death of their friend, in quite shocking detail and we also see that Rafe Spall's character could have prevented it but didn't - this plays a huge part in the weirdness but you know, I get it, I get symbolism but I don't really think such a massive amount was needed.
What starts off as a combo of 'The Blair Witch' and 'Cloverfield' quickly takes a 'Wrong Turn' (see what I did there?) into 'The Hills Have Eyes' territory, with a smattering of Norse mythology for good measure (or bad measure?)
I have to say I was really enjoying the tension and the mystery of the unknown during the first act - the movie was following the formula; they get lost in the creepy woods, they start to turn against each other, they are being hunted by some unseen scary thing, they start to get picked off one by one, you know the usual, which is OK, not everything has to be a masterpiece, sometimes you want to see the tried and tested, purely to be entertained, rather than leaving the cinema feeling like you've been run over but this just lost it and actually really disappointed me. Movies that change tone are annoying - be one thing or another.
If this movie was marketed as a dark comedy then I'd be singing its praises to anyone who would listen right now. In fact, it was very funny, the main four really bounced off each other well with that typical English lads humour that I love so much and it did continue right until the end really but by that point it was just cringey because the tone had changed so much.
I won't go any further into the story because I don't do major spoilers but apart from the silliness of the plot, the movie is definitely not without merit. The location was beautiful, the framing of some of the shots was very pleasing to the eye, the Swedish countryside is gorgeous, sfx and set design were solid and the acting was of a high standard - it is an average movie that entertained me but also made me give it the eye roll, so don't waste your money or childcare on seeing this movie in the cinema but maybe catch it on TV if you can, just for the laughs.
Essentially this was trying to be a movie about guilt and redemption but it seriously missed the mark. Like I said - such a shame.
Such a shame!
I was really really rooting for this film, it appears to have all the elements necessary to be a good solid horror movie - it just gets RIDICULOUS towards the end.
'The Ritual' is a 2017 British horror film directed by David Bruckner and starring Rafe Spall.
Following the violent death of one of their number, the 4 remaining university friends embark on the lads holiday their dearly departed would have chosen - hiking in Sweden. That right there, is mistake number 1.
We see the unfortunate death of their friend, in quite shocking detail and we also see that Rafe Spall's character could have prevented it but didn't - this plays a huge part in the weirdness but you know, I get it, I get symbolism but I don't really think such a massive amount was needed.
What starts off as a combo of 'The Blair Witch' and 'Cloverfield' quickly takes a 'Wrong Turn' (see what I did there?) into 'The Hills Have Eyes' territory, with a smattering of Norse mythology for good measure (or bad measure?)
I have to say I was really enjoying the tension and the mystery of the unknown during the first act - the movie was following the formula; they get lost in the creepy woods, they start to turn against each other, they are being hunted by some unseen scary thing, they start to get picked off one by one, you know the usual, which is OK, not everything has to be a masterpiece, sometimes you want to see the tried and tested, purely to be entertained, rather than leaving the cinema feeling like you've been run over but this just lost it and actually really disappointed me. Movies that change tone are annoying - be one thing or another.
If this movie was marketed as a dark comedy then I'd be singing its praises to anyone who would listen right now. In fact, it was very funny, the main four really bounced off each other well with that typical English lads humour that I love so much and it did continue right until the end really but by that point it was just cringey because the tone had changed so much.
I won't go any further into the story because I don't do major spoilers but apart from the silliness of the plot, the movie is definitely not without merit. The location was beautiful, the framing of some of the shots was very pleasing to the eye, the Swedish countryside is gorgeous, sfx and set design were solid and the acting was of a high standard - it is an average movie that entertained me but also made me give it the eye roll, so don't waste your money or childcare on seeing this movie in the cinema but maybe catch it on TV if you can, just for the laughs.
Essentially this was trying to be a movie about guilt and redemption but it seriously missed the mark. Like I said - such a shame.