Review by John Delia
Very ghastly and savage the horror flick The Dare is now available on VOD. The film reminded me of the first SAW movie especially the opening, but after that it’s a pretty good original plot. The indie team really used their main set well where most of the action takes place, but the horror scale raises the needle only about medium. If you are a fan of horror mystery, then you may want to check this one out.
Following an intro that I will not divulge as it would be a plot spoiler, we find four grownups, Kat (Alexandra Evans), Adam (Richard Short), Paul (Daniel Schutzmann) and Jay (Bart Edwards), chained to a wall in a small room a beast of a man (Robert Maaser). In flash backs throughout the film the audience is given clues and we begin to know why. It’s one of those films however, that cannot be explained in this review or it loses its effect. Director and co-writer Giles Alderson has a way of keeping the twists under wraps until 45 minutes into the movie where he flashbacks in time to tell all. From there on it’s all sadistic torture, revenge and realization that the days are numbered for the four adults.
The film has some excellent prosthetics, make-up and costuming to show the effects that their captor has on their bodies. He uses a lot of bloody looking liquid, grungy mud, torn body parts, stitched facial parts and much more to make it as disgusting as possible. The room is dimly lighted at times, but not to the point that you don’t know what is happening. The cinematographer takes some excellent shots within the dim room never demising the effects of the damage being done to the tortured adults.
The Dare received the right rating of R by the MPAA for sadistic violence throughout, bloody images, and for language. It is now available on Video on Demand from local Cable or other streaming services.
FINAL ANALYSIS: If you are a fan of this kind of horror, then seek this film out. (3 out of 5 Stars)Â
Additional Film Information:
Cast: Bart Edwards, Richard Brake, Richard Short, Alexandra Evans, Robert Maaser, Harry Jarvis, Devora Wilde
Directed and co-written by: Â Giles Alderson
Genre: Horror, Mystery, Thriller
MPAA Rating: R for sadistic violence throughout, bloody images, and for language
Running Time: 1 hr. 37 min.
Opening Date: March 3, 2019
Distributed by: Millennium Media
Released in: VOD