Ready or Not

Do you remember the early 90s when we played with other people by means of physical contact games or board games and not video games, these people were behind that gaming empire. This was recommended by my nephew actually, I thought it was a cheesy Gen Z type of horror film but it was actually a fun watch, not going to lie. Directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, together they directed Scream, so yeah, they know what they’re doing.

The story of Ready or Not revolves around this filthy rich family with a business focusing on games, much like Hasbro. Now, the one that’s supposed to inherit everything is about to get married, and tradition dictates that they have to play a game on the midnight of their wedding night. The catch is, they have to play whichever game she pulls out of that contraption of a card shuffler. There is one card, however, that makes you play for your life. Which is Hide and Seek, she’ll hide and they’ll find and kill her before dawn, or else bad things will happen to the family—or so they said.

I’m pretty sure you’ve heard about the company “Hasbro” at least once, they’re a billion dollar company that specializes in games and toys, with tons of giant names under their belt, such as Marvel, Star Wars, Transformers, Monopoly, Peppa Pig, and many others. The family mentioned here is loosely based on the now-defunct game manufacturers Milton Bradley Company and Parker Brothers and are now owned by Hasbro.

Characters

Love the casting on this one, though I’m not familiar with any of them, their chemistry looked natural. Its what it would look like during family gatherings with awkward conversations and in-laws not getting along but they have to sort of vibe. Their conversations/dialogues flowed well, a result of good script writing. The female lead, Samara Weaving—yes, Weaving, as in Hugo Weaving. She’s his niece. Stellar performance from her all throughout the movie.

Cool information

Within LaVeyan Satanism, the term “shemhameforash” is used in rituals as described in The Satanic Bible. It functions similarly to “hallelujah,” being interpreted as “Hail Satan” in this context. This aligns with LaVeyan Satanism’s goal of satirizing conventional religious practices.
The two family names mentioned, Le Domas and Le Bail are anagrams of Asmodel and Belial of the Ars Goetia, respectively.

Music was on-point, as per usual from Brian Tyler, who also did the score for Transformers ONE.

Conclusion

This is a legit horror mixed with dark comedy. Imagine you see someone’s head getting blown off but you can’t resist but laugh at the circumstance. A kid getting punched in the face by an adult. Numerous times where shit hits the fan and I can’t help but laugh at their situation. The head of the family, at times, doesn’t even know what to do, he’s like “okay, well shit, now what?” And that was supposed to be their ritual.

Ready or Not is a highly recommended watch for the family, but I think it’s R-13, nonetheless, just cover their eyes. Its a great family fun flick to watch.