Escape Room (2019)

Director: Adam Robitel
Stars: Taylor Russell, Logan Miller, Jay Ellis
Runtime: 99 minutes

Synopsis: Six strangers find themselves in a maze of deadly mystery rooms, and must use their wits to survive.

Performances: 4/10
Screenplay: 2/10
Special Effects: 3/10
Costumes/Makeup: 5/10
Editing: 6/10
Cinematography: 4/10
Score/Soundtrack: 4/10

Verdict: Is "Escape Room" a good movie? Far from it. From bad acting to lazy cinematography, it checks all the boxes of yet another disposable horror film with no depth whatsoever. And yet, I can't help but recommend it.

Adam Robitel's movie which follows a group of strangers trying to survive a series of lethally trapped escape rooms is undeniably a lot of fun. It recycles a concept we've seen time and time again, and adds an indescribable charm to it that had me invested since scene one. I had a blast nitpicking all the screenplay inconsistencies and errors and couldn't help but smile every time I found one, which happened quite a lot.

My biggest issue with it was really the characters more than anything else. Their chemistry was non-existent and I had a really hard time caring or even sympathizing with any of them. The film's PG-13 rating also restrained it to be a lot more fun, as it limited the extremeness of the traps set up. 

In the end, if you go watch "Escape Room" expecting a cinematic masterpiece, you're going to be massively disappointed. It's a perfectly fine mix of a "Saw" movie and 1997's "Cube" that didn't bore me for a second. Bring on a hopefully R-rated sequel with more likable characters!

FINAL GRADE: 5/10