For the entire month of October I’ve been trying to watch a new horror movie every night that’s available on Netflix. I’ve been able to have a pretty good streak of great cinema like Funny Games, Hellraiser and The Stuff amongst others. Now that I got a lot of classics out of the way I’ve started delving into indie horror and taking more risks.
I’ve had my eye Plus One for a while now, but for some reason or another I’ve put it off…
Fear that I’d be wasting my time.
Fear that I’d be ending a streak of great film viewing.
Fear that I’d be writing like some self-centered box office attendant.
I wasn’t sure to expect from the cover art or the reviews… but something about the Netflix bio won me over while I was feeling up for anything.
PLUS ONE: At the biggest bash of the year, three college buddies find themselves pitted against their doubles as the night takes a supernatural turn.
While that bio really gives NOTHING away, it does wet the lips with intrigue. I understand that lying is the only way you can really get eyes on anything anymore. I still have that I’m 200 lbs. on my online dating profile. Plus One is a mind bending thriller that is hidden in the style of Project X where the party never stops, the boobs don’t have tops, and you’re constantly checking your phone from boredom. Three friends go to a wild party when a freak energy surge sends them into the past while the present is still going on, but unlike Back to the Future, if you see yourself you don’t explode and end the world… you just cry or try to kill the other one.
The cast is pretty much unknown and if they continue to act as flat and lethargic as they did in Plus One I don’t see that changing. The only excitement we get to see out of people are the extras who didn’t realize they’d be seeing girls naked all night.
If you can get past the fact that the blonde kid from The Purge isn’t the same character, you might actually find that the movie, though slow, wasn’t awful. (Granted, if I paid money I’d be disappointed)
I constantly felt like if I looked away I’d miss something important and even though I never looked away that sensation stuck with me. The films structure was spotty to the point the director wouldn’t even be able to play it off as intentional.
One of the redeeming factors for this movie was a scene toward the end where all the doubles find themselves in the same room… the past self looking at their present self… what would you do in that situation? Immediately beat the shit out of your double? Perfect, because that’s what they do! During this melee of multiples, your mind is slightly blown only because you’ve gotten used to a movie without pace, you’re mind knew not what else to do!
Another aspect that was worth seeing were the wildly simple special effects that were used to convey the supernatural aspect, it reminded me of old roto-scoping from back in the early 90s, they were well done.
When you have an hour and a half to kill or just want to try something new, Plus One might be for you.. Just know that you’re going to be in more of a sci-fi thriller with very little pay off. Overall it has some aspects that are so well done you can’t help but applaud the filmmaker, unfortunately they’re widely spread out and coated in a hard shell of forced relationships and awkward performances. On the plus side, this won’t be the worst thing I watch all month, Screamtime is coming up soon.
