Netflix’s Choose or Die will force your hand into ‘choosing’ the off-switch, unfortunately. Here is our full movie review.
Netflix’s latest homage to the 80s is a shallow attempt at recreating the magic of its more popular franchises. Starring Sex Education’s Asa Butterfield, Choose or Die follows broke student Kayla (Iola Evans) and her friend, Isaac (Butterfield), facing dangerous consequences of an obscure computer game after her bid for an easy $100,000 goes wrong.
In the last few years, we’ve seen a number of horror films dedicate their premise to an otherwise mundane game or social platform – Truth or Dare (2018), Escape Room (2017), and Ready or Not (2018), are of the first three that pop into mind. Each take a simple, fun activity and turn it into an absolute nightmare; they’re pretty similar when you break it down to the fundamentals, but something’s clearly working with the trope because we’re still seeing innovative sequels and stand-alone features.
Now, some of you may remember the release of 2006 supernatural-horror, Stay Alive, about a video game that sees its players die the same way their avatar does. It’s no surprise if this isn’t ringing a bell, actually, it’s maybe for the best we don’t revisit this one. Stay Alive completely bombed. While this was 16 years ago, history appears to be repeating itself with Toby Meakins’ directorial debut Choose or Die, and it’s a rocky imitation of Stay Alive, Escape Room, and Truth or Dare combined – but with a lot less action.
There is a severe lack of depth represented by the film. Starting off somewhat promisingly, Choose or Die slams on the breaks almost immediately. The tension is there to begin with, and it’s not short of unnerving, semi-gory torture – one particular scene at the start is near stomach churning as Kayla realises this game is unlike any other. Then, we move into slight psychological horror; we – and Kayla – must watch helplessly while her choices serve crucial to her mother’s off-screen panic.
The momentum is quickly lost – not that there is very much to engage with initially. There seems to be a lot of confusion on where the film is actually going, and what it is hoping to achieve. A tonal shift from an anxiety-induced enigma to a lacklustre Black Mirror-type parody highlights Choose or Die’s flaws all too well. It loses its bearings straight away. Explanations are apparently a thing of the past too because nothing is offered to us about the game’s background and why or how it’s cursed.
Butterfield and Evans admirably power through with what they’ve been given, but they are ultimately let down by unusual pacing, mixed direction, and a plot that weakens by the second. Considering the success of 2021’s slasher trilogy Fear Street and hit series Stranger Things, the idea of another nostalgia piece on the streaming platform sounds thrilling – especially with the involvement of Butterfield, one face of the brand. However, it makes a complete U-turn and is easily forgettable amidst a mass of releases this week.
Choose or Die will force your hand into choosing the off-switch and scouring Netflix’s archives for an actual 80s fright-fest. A shallow imitation of its better known predecessors, the horror falls victim to unimaginative creativity, leaving it to sink into the murky abyss of the web.
Rating: 1.5 out of 5
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About Choose or Die
A broke student who plays an obscure 1980s survival computer game in pursuit of an unclaimed $100,000 prize. After a series of unexpectedly terrifying moments, she soon realizes she’s no longer playing for the money, but for her own life.
Choose or Die is streaming now on Netflix.
Jenna is a Film and Visual Culture graduate and freelance entertainment writer from Scotland. Her passion lies with TV and horror, where she will take any opportunity to geek out. Jenna spends her free time binging shows and looking to be spooked.