Film Review: Drop

Welcome back to the blog readers. The thriller genre has been one for me that has been hit-and-miss as of late, especially looking at films like Trap, Speak No Evil (both 2024), and M3GAN (2023). I was mixed on Trap, liked Speak No Evil, and loved M3GAN (cannot wait for the sequel coming in June). But I have had a lot of hope for this film right here. Ever since I saw footage of it, I was definitely intrigued. With all this being said, would this be another win for Universal or would the momentum of Wicked (2024) be ended here? Stick around to find out.

Drop was directed by Christopher Landon from a screenplay by Jillian Jacobs and Chris Roach. The film stars Meghann Fahy, Brandon Sklenar, Violett Beane, Jacob Robinson, Reed Diamond, Jeffery Self, and Ed Weeks. In the film, a widowed mother goes on a date with a man she met on a dating app, but things go awry when she gets airdropped instructions that force her to kill him to save her son.

I have heard positive buzz about this film and that made me hopeful, especially because this weekend has been circled on my calendar for some time because of three big films that I am looking forward to. My reviews for The Amateur and Warfare (both 2025) are coming and I am looking forward to bringing those to you this weekend as well. But back to this film, I honestly loved it. The performances from Meghann Fahy and Brandon Sklenar are star-making, the tension is palpable, and it was just a really good time overall.

I want to start by talking about Meghann Fahy and her performance as Violet. I may not have known who she was before this film, even though she has been in shows like the second season (2022) of The White Lotus (2021-) and The Perfect Couple (2024) (shows that spoiler alert, I have not watched). So going in to this film I did not really know what to make of her in this film. Coming out I wanted to see more of her because she was brilliant in this role. She is able to expertly craft this character that is so full of guilt and regret, but also so full of fear and anger and brew it all together in one of the most compelling performances I have seen all year so far.

Now we go into the performance of her costar Brandon Sklenar, who has really been making a name for himself as of late. He has been appearing in projects like 1923 (2022-25), an episode of The Offer (2022), and It Ends With Us (2024). So it is pretty safe to say that he is starting to make it into the mainstream more and more with each passing role. I think this will be the film that makes him a star, because there is a certain vulnerability that comes with this role of Henry. Getting to unpack all of the baggage of this character is a treat for the audience to see, which makes it all the better when he is able to pour it all out for the world to see. He will be a star in the coming years, and I cannot wait to see where the winds take him.

I next want to speak on the tone that the film sets. From the get-go, we are transported into a flashback in which Violet has to deal with her abusive husband, so we get to see a darker tone right away. And seeing this woman get tormented by an unknown person makes it even darker. There is uncomfortable humor, fear and panic in the heart of Violet and the audience, vulnerability between both her and Henry when their pasts get revealed, and a dark conclusion where secrets are revealed, people are caught in the crossfire, and the audience is left satisfied at the outcome.

And before I let you guys go, I want to talk about how modern themes are used in the film. Obviously, the first theme that we see is with the modern technology and how literally anybody could be a suspect in the restaurant. The idea of anybody being the suspect with AirDropping is a genius idea, and we really need more films that take modern issues and make them MacGuffins. The second theme is that of abuse and domestic violence. I know the trope of abuse has been around for as long as abuse has been, but getting to see people come out of it on the other side is satisfying to watch, even if the context in which it happens make it uncomfortable to watch.

In conclusion, Drop is a heart-pounding good time that takes a modern premise and turns it on its head, leading to oh-so satisfying chaos and a star-making performance for the leads. Thank you all for reading, and I will see you for the next post.