If I had to describe Escape Room in two words, I would say it’s Saw light. Granted, there’ve been many similar movies, using the same premise of a group of strangers trapped in a room with more or less success. I have to admit that they’ve done a pretty decent job developing the characters here. They feel authentic and not in your face diverse, which is a great thing. Back to this subgenre, Exam and Circle belong to the same mediocre category as the Escape Room. The greats are El Hoyo, Cabin in the Woods, and Cube. So, if you like these sorts of movies, be sure to check them out.
Escape Room is one of those mindless entertainment movies with just enough meat on the bones to keep you occupied for ninety minutes. The production values are great along with appealing visuals. All the rooms are designed with great attention to detail and they look simply stunning. Like if this game was real, this is how they would actually look like. The action was mediocre and so was the script opting for safety instead of risk. Everything feels kind of sanitized and ordinary. Mostly because this is a PG-13 movie casting a wide net to scoop up all the profits it can.
As their looking around the room they find themselves in, six strangers start realizing that they’re playing a very dangerous game. A game where they are locked up in a room that’s about to kill them all unless they figure a way out.
I should also tell you that an atrocious sequel has been recently released. So, I recommend you just skip it and focus on the above-mentioned movies. And in case you had any doubt, of course, the third part is already in the works. The math is simple, this one cost $7 million and made $150 and the sequel cost $15 and made $50. I guess they’ll keep churning them out until the interest fade. The same thing happened with The Rise and Fall of Shark Movies.
Well-crafted but ultimately forgettable, Escape Room is a fun distraction. It also reminded me of all those commercial movies from the beginning of the century like Final Destination, Urban Legends, or Gothika. There’s something so relaxing about these movies. You just play them, relax and let the story take you wherever it’s going. After the obligatory fifteen-minute exposition the real action kicks off and doesn’t stop ’till the movie is over. And the predictability of the plot is actually a plus, including all the unexpected little twists along the way.
Director: Adam Robitel
Writers: Bragi F. Schut, Maria Melnik
Cast: Taylor Russell, Logan Miller, Jay Ellis, Tyler Labine, Deborah Ann Woll, Nik Dodani, Yorick van Wageningen
Fun Facts: The 4th film relating to escape rooms released within 2 years, after Escape Room (2017), Escape Room (2017) and No Escape Room (2018).
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IMDb Link: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5886046/
