Film Review: Until Dawn

Welcome back to the blog readers. At this point, I do not think I need to tell you all about my love/hate relationship with horror films. There have been some good ones this year, like The Monkey and Sinners (both 2025) with some promising ones on the way for the remainder of the year. I have found myself interested in this film for a bit, especially since I have not played the game this film is based on. Would it be a worthy addition to the horror genre or would it be a major case of burnout? Stick around to find out.

Until Dawn was directed by David F. Sandberg from a script by Gary Dauberman and Blair Butler, based on the video game Until Dawn (2015) by PlayStation Studios. The film stars Ella Rubin, Michael Cimino, Odessa A'zion, Ji-young Yoo, Belmont Cameli, Maia Mitchell, and Peter Stormare. In the film, while attempting to find her missing sister, a young woman and her friends find themselves stuck in a time loop where each threat they encounter is more dangerous than the last.

Like I said, not having played the game really left me intrigued going into this film. A horror version of Groundhog Day (1992) where each threat is a throwback and a celebration of horror and horror genres? What could go wrong in a situation like this, especially when one of my favorite guys is in the film? A good amount, actually. Let me be clear, this has nothing to do with the cast because they were all great, especially Ju-young Yoo. The writing was pretty poor and the premise, while awesome in concept, was not really executed to its full potential.

I want to start by talking about the performance of Ji-young Yoo as Megan. I do understand that with most films that come out we have to suspend our disbelief. One of the main films in which we have to do that is horror because none of this shit is real. So getting a character in a horror film that is as grounded as Megan is definitely a treat for the eyes. Ji's performance is the one I was able to gravitate myself more towards, but I did find myself liking the entire cast, even though Abe is a little bitch and I was secretly hoping he would turn into a wendigo.

Unfortunately this is where the positives of this film end. The big thing I need to discuss is the writing in the film. What is the main trope of a horror film that I am sure pisses you off over everything they can possibly do? Any guesses? If you said the quote, "I'll go check it out," then you win the prize. What prize is that? No idea, but that line is said multiple times in this film and it really took me out of it. John Campea, who I love, pointed this out as an issue, and having seen very few horror films, I was not aware of this issue. Now that I am aware of it, it was really painful to watch. But that's not it. The film is lazily written, the plot is way too convenient, and it really does its brilliant premise a disservice.

Speaking of brilliant premise, come on. Tell me a time loop in which each night features a different horror trope or celebrates a different horror genre isn't a great premise for a horror film. It absolutely is but the poor writing and execution really muddy the plot, especially since I feel as if too much time was spent on some of the nights. I mean, we are told 13 nights had passed but we really only see 5 nights (and like 3-4 more in phone recordings in a 3-minute montage). I just wish the premise was treated with a little more reverence.

In conclusion, Until Dawn wastes a brilliant premise and great character performances with poor writing and execution that makes you not want to survive "until dawn." Thank you all for reading, and I will see you for the next post.