Parents' Guide to Ready or Not

Coming off like a mashup of The Purge and Clue, this stalk-and-slash thriller swings and misses at pointed social commentary, but it's bloody good fun anyway. There's a lot to love in Ready or Not, starting with the visual look: The camera stalks polished wood hallways and finds the creepy shadows and hollows in every face except Grace's. She's lit with a golden glow that's no doubt meant to point up how good she is—how very, very good, particularly when compared with her evil new in-laws. The cast is the movie's other five-star aspect, from Weaving's easy charm and relatable bad-assery to Andie MacDowell's sweet-and-sour matriarch to, most particularly, Nicky Guadagni's breakout performance as Aunt Helene, who glowers like no glowerer has ever glowered on film.

Kristian Bruun (we'll save you the search—you might recognize him from Orphan Black and The Handmaid's Tale) is good, too, as Grace's bumbling new brother-in-law; two of the film's most inspired gags are his, as he casually plays with his phone during the family's long night. (Where else would one turn to other than YouTube to learn how to operate an antique crossbow?) But ultimately, the movie's messages about "the one percent" don't land. About the most biting barb it can muster is "F--king rich people!" And it's probably supposed to be funny that the house's domestic help, including a trio of identically dressed maids in five-inch heels, suffer along with the Le Domases. But having working people bite the dust along with the idle rich muddles the point, and it's disconcerting that the movie seems to save most of its goriest violence for female characters. In short, as a better-than-average thriller, Ready or Not deserves a look. But though it clearly longs for the same relevance, it's no Get Out. It's a snack, not a meal, so don't go in too hungry.