Do Not Reply Review: A Surprisingly Well Acted Horror Stepford Wives

Release date: October 2, 2020
Running time: 98 minutes
Starring: Jackson Rathbone, Amanda Arcuri, Kerri Medders, Elise Luthman

Chelsea (Arcuri), a teenager, is abducted through a social media app by Brad (Rathbone) and is held captive with other girls who are to become victims in his virtual reality filmed murders.  Chelsea must keep her wits about her as this situation is a tense, picture perfect esque situation where she must look out for herself, but also all the other girls around her.  And they all must deal with Brad's temperament and homicidal tendencies.

When I started this movie, I thought it would be a cookie cutter horror film about a psycho abducting girls.  And although it does have those elements, the film takes some interesting choices that raise it above the normal horror cliches.  The film does have some good messages and concerns about social media, and starts off normal enough.  Chelsea is kidnapped and taken to a basement away from everyone.  The film has some hints of the Toybox killer at the start, but quickly changes.  After the initial arc, the film moves into more of a stepford wives type of scenario, as Chelsea meets the other occupants of the house and learns the strange way that they stay alive.  And this is where the film really becomes interesting.  The house itself is nicely created, with bright colors and meticulous organization to give it a perfect, unsettling look.  And the girls who are staying there all have to look and act perfectly, despite what they are feeling inside.

And this is all helped along by some good acting from all involved.  Arcuri's portrayal of Chelsea effectively balances her feelings of revulsion and terror with the need to survive and conform to the strange lifestyle she has been forced into.  The other girls (Medders and Luthman) are also convincing and add more dimensions to this film.  Medders is great in her role as queen bee of this house and Luthman is very convincing as the girl that takes Arcuri under her wing.  Luthman's balance of caring and the harsh reality of her situation is a nice addition to the cast.  And Rathbone is creepy and effective as Brad, with his need for order and also strange tendencies.  Together the acting in this film was much better than expected and really elevated the film.

And the movie tries to act as a cautionary tale for young people and for the most part succeeds.  Although the scenario is extreme, the lessons are relatively universal.  It shows how someone can easily pretend to be someone they are not online, and an extreme set of consequences.  But the film also uses technology effectively, specifically VR.  The VR sequences were a nice touch, as was the crazy camera contraption that Brad occasionally used.  And on top of all this, the film also has some solid horror moments, including some brutal scenes and equally tense scenarios.  If you want a well done horror movie with an unusual scenario, good acting, and brutal scenes, then this might be for you.

The unsettlingly perfect sets, convincing acting, and brutal and tense scenarios make Do Not Reply one movie you should swipe right on.

Watch it.

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Death of Me will be available in theaters, digitally, and on demand on October 2, 2020.  For additional information about the film and to rent / buy it, check it out at the links below.

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