Choose or Die – An Interesting Premise Squandered

Horror is a crowded genre despite having legions of fans. In order to stand out above the rest, it needs a strong premise above all else if only to dress up the same scares in an interesting enough way. More often than not, films fail to do so in spite of some successful aspects. When it comes to Choose or Die, it is no different. Featuring an interesting premise worthy of a horror film, it fails to do anything remotely interesting over the course of its relatively short running time, clocking in at under 90 minutes. Starting off strong enough, the film falls off the rails and loses sight of itself while making it into a compelling enough narrative to justify that running time. Boosting a cool vibe and some decent lead performances from Iola Evans and Asa Butterfield, at least it’s not an absolute train wreck that does just enough to get by. That being said, the film is still sure to leave countless viewers wanting more by the time the credits roll.

Choose or Die follows a young coder named Kayla (Evans) who stumbles upon an uncovered 1980’s choose-your-own-adventure style horror game whom little did she know was affected by some mysterious curse that forced her to make certain decisions or face the consequences as alluded to in the film’s title. The premise was interesting enough as Kayla merely attempted to survive the game while attempting to uncover its origins alongside her friend Isaac (Butterfield) who was now part of the game. With each passing level, the choices and stakes got increasingly dire for each of them as it left plenty of gruesome chaos in its wake. For the most part, these moments were ridiculous through the lens of the premise which is never developed with any kind of depth whatsoever. The origins of the game and the paranormal element to it, meanwhile, was even more ridiculous and made even less sense. As the two sides to the story inevitably converged, it seemed like the film was unsure of what it wanted to do to end the story.  

The best part of the film, as mentioned, were the performances from Evans and Butterfield as Kayla and Isaac. They and their chemistry carry it but in the end, this was Evans’ show. Though the characters, just like the story, were thin and underdeveloped, they made them work. Evans was likable therefore compelling enough to watch as a character with irrelevant unfortunate circumstances. Butterfield balanced out the dynamic as Isaac who was essentially a sidekick who chipped in with a few wisecracks and nothing more.

At the end of the day, Choose or Die is a quick, non-demanding watch that will satisfy most diehard horror fans. However, there are plenty of other options out there, including Netflix. 

still courtesy of Netflix

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.