Common Sense Media Review
By Jeffrey M. Anderson
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Disappointing, sluggish political satire/slasher movie.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 16+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Founders Day
What's the Story?
In FOUNDERS DAY, in the small town of Fairwood, it's just a few days before the local mayoral election. It's shaping up as a contentious contest between incumbent Blair Gladwell (Amy Hargreaves)—who promises consistency—and challenger Harold Faulkner (Jayce Bartok), a two-faced jerk who's gained fans with his promise to "get things done." Faulkner tries to keep his rebellious daughter Melissa (Olivia Nikkanen) in check, but she storms out for a date with her girlfriend, Allison (Naomi Grace). Out of nowhere, a masked killer adorned with a powdered wig and a judge's gavel attacks Melissa and hurls her over a bridge, while Allison escapes with her life. Things get tense in town, with arguments over whether to cancel the upcoming Tricentennial celebration. Then Gladwell's daughter, Lilly (Emilia McCarthy), is also murdered in cold blood. Who's behind the killings, and how will it affect the election?
Is It Any Good?
Lifting ideas from dozens of slasher movies that came before it, this uninspired, predictable horror satire is too tame to be really incendiary and too sluggish to be terribly surprising. Founders Day is set up much like Scream, with a masked, cloaked killer and the challenge to figure out who's in on the evil scheme. But since Scream has now inspired so many other movies, including its own sequels, this is all disappointingly familiar territory.
The best of these movies can keep viewers on their toes, throwing in sleight-of-hand and misdirection, to hold the mystery out of reach. This movie is so slow and plodding—we feel every second of its 107 minutes—that there's nothing but time to think about whodunit. Perhaps worse, its only new idea—a political angle—never gets past stage one. It takes the simplistic, fatalist attitude that all candidates are the same, crooked and awful, which only causes apathy rather than inspiring thoughtful debate or insight. Part of the movie even takes place in a movie theater, and yet Founders Day fails to make use of it in any kind of ironic or "meta" way. Overall, this is a letdown, less an actual vote for something and more like an abstention.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about Founders Day's violence. How did it make you feel? Was it exciting? Shocking? What did the movie show or not show to achieve this effect? Why is that important?
Is the movie scary? What draws people to horror movies? Why do people sometimes enjoy being scared?
How does the movie portray U.S. politics? Is it optimistic? Pessimistic? How? Why do politics tend to inspire such passionate arguing?
How does the movie portray drinking and smoking? Are they glamorized? Are there consequences? Why does that matter?
Did you notice any examples of positive diverse representation? What about stereotypes?
Movie Details
- In theaters : January 19, 2024
- On DVD or streaming : May 7, 2024
- Cast : Naomi Grace , Devin Druid , William Russ
- Director : Erik Bloomquist
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : Dark Sky Films
- Genre : Horror
- Run time : 106 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- MPAA explanation : strong bloody violence, language and some sexual references
- Last updated : May 1, 2024
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