Common Sense Media Review
By Alistair Lawrence
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Extremely violent and gory horror is a torturous watch.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 17+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
DarkGame
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
DARKGAME pits police detective Ben Jacobs (Ed Westwick) against The Presenter (Andrew P. Stephen), the psychotic host of a deadly online game show.
Is It Any Good?
This tedious knock-off of popular horror flick Saw and its many sequels is delivered on a micro-budget with no new ideas. Somehow it took DarkGame three writers to fail to channel any of the inventiveness and shock value that gained those movies commercial success and a loyal following. The film proves to be little more than a collection of cliches and jarring casting choices, partly down to the makers' attempt to pass off what appears to be the United Kingdom as Portland. Everything comes dimly lit and shot in shallow focus, but the script's lack of momentum makes its killer-takes-all gameshow about as tense as being trapped in a stuck elevator. Not content with pilfering one famous horror movie's ideas, there's also an imprisoned criminal advising on how to profile a psychopath, which might count as a neat twist if you haven't gotten around to watching Silence of the Lambs yet. With grim predictability, the ending sets the stage for some potential sequels, which, with the bar set as low as this, are difficult to get excited about.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the violence in DarkGame. Did you think it felt over the top, or do you expect lots of gore in films like this? Did you find the violence scary? What's the impact of media violence on kids?
Discuss the strong language used in the movie. What did it contribute to the movie? Is a certain kind of language expected in a movie like this?
Did this film remind you of any others you might have seen? What do you think is the appeal of these types of movies?
Movie Details
- In theaters : February 20, 2024
- On DVD or streaming : February 20, 2024
- Cast : Ed Westwick , Andrew P. Stephen , Natalya Tsvetkova
- Director : Howard J. Ford
- Studio : Gravitas Ventures
- Genre : Horror
- Run time : 100 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- Last updated : October 7, 2024
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