Stay For the Wine (The Invitation 2015 Review)

This week, Kat picked one of her favourite thrillers, The Invitation (2015)! We strongly advise you to watch it before listening to this episode!!

REVIEW OVERVIEW: The reception of this movie is surprisingly split. Some people seem not to get it. We got it, though.
The dialogue when the characters are bantering is stilted.
The cinematography and score are beautiful. The choices of colour and lighting feel intentional and add to the film's overall feel.
If you haven't seen it and don't know how it ends, you should watch it. While some people found it slow-paced and boring up until the end, we loved the slow-burn nature of the film. This is definitely not your typical slow burn.
If you like thrillers and one-setting films, you should check it out.
Ryley: 8/10
Kat: 8/10

Both: [00:00:00] Hello

Kat: and welcome to

Both: Easy Bake Takes

Ryley: the podcast.

Kat: Where we read you the one star reviews of your favorite movies and more. My name is Kat.

Ryley: And I'm Ryley.

Kat: You might have heard us talk about the movie, the Invitation, and if you're somebody that knows me outside of this podcast, you know that this is one of my favorite movies and it is top five on my list of movies that I would want to watch again for the first time.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: That's not to say that it is by any means the best movie ever made or anything has its issues, but we'll get into that.

Ryley: Yes.

Kat: So the movie first premiered in 2015 in March at South by Southwest, and I believe in limited release in theaters later in 2016. Um, it's labeled as a horror thriller. Uh, I think it leans more towards Thriller personally.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: It's also only an hour and 40 minutes long.

Ryley: Perfect.

Kat: Go watch it first and come [00:01:00] back.

Ryley: Please.

Kat: Please.

Ryley: For this one esp- yes- this one especially, please.

Kat: For the rest of us who have watched the movie, the Plot goes like this. Will drives his girlfriend Kira to the Hollywood Hills home of his ex-wife Eden, who is hosting a dinner party with her new husband, David.

Ryley: Boo.

Kat: Boo. Will and Eden divorced after the accidental death of the young son, Ty. Eden met David at a grief support group in Mexico. Their other dinner guests are Tommy, Miguel, Ben, Claire, and Gina. It's the first time this group has been together in over two years. Gina mentions that her boyfriend Choi is running late. Eden introduces Sadie, a girl she and David met in Mexico, who is now staying with them. Throughout the evening, Will wanders through his former home and relives memories, including Eden's attempted suicide. In the kitchen, Will witnesses Eden slap Ben when he makes a joke about her ideas on expelling pain. Eden and David's friend Pruit arrives. David locks the front door explaining that there was a home invasion in the neighborhood. Will brings up the facts, like [00:02:00] what if there's a fire? Why don't you just leave the key in the door just in case there's a fire or something. So David puts the key back in the door.

Ryley: Passive aggressively.

Kat: Yes, very passive aggressively. Will goes outside for firewood, and through Eden's bedroom window, sees Eden hiding a pill bottle that he later learns, contains the barbiturate phenobarbital. David and Eden tell their guests about a cult-like group that they joined, along with Pruitt and Sadie called The Invitation, which helps people work through their grief. David shows everyone a video in which the group's leader, Dr. Joseph, comforts a dying woman as she takes her last breaths. The guests then play a game of I want in which Sadie kisses Gina, Eden kisses Ben, and Pruitt confesses to killing his wife and doing time in prison.

Ryley: Such a wild scene.

Kat: It takes such a jump.

Ryley: It does.

Kat: Um, David tries to convince an unsettled Claire not to leave, but Will challenges him. Claire leaves, accompanied by Pruitt, whose car is blocking in Claire's. Will watches Pruitt take Claire out of sight to talk to her and David confronts [00:03:00] Will about being too suspicious. After dinner, Will peers through a cracked door and sees Sadie making odd faces into a mirror. She makes eye contact with him, follows him outside and startles him with an indecent proposal which he rejects. Will talks with Tommy about the weird unsafe atmosphere he feels at this party, but tommy reassures him that it is natural to feel strange about visiting the house and that Will is brave for showing up. He returns to the party while Will stays outside. Will finally gets a cell phone signal and finds a voicemail from Choi indicating that he was at Eden and David door- David's doorstep before the other guests. Presuming that David and Eden must have done something to Choi, Will angrily confronts the couple about their strange behavior and links to the cult. Choi arrives unexpectedly, explaining that he was called away by work. Will is embarrassed, but the others assume his residual grief over Ty's death is causing him to behave irrationally. David lights a red lantern in the garden. Will finds a laptop with a foreboding message from Dr. Joseph. David and [00:04:00] Eden pour drinks for the guests to toast but Will smashes the glasses, fearing they are poisoned. Sadie attacks Will who inadvertently knocks her unconscious in the scuffle. Gina, who had sipped her drink before Will's intervention, collapses and dies. David, Pruitt, and a recovered Sadie attack the guests, killing Miguel, Choi, and Ben. Will, Kira, and Tommy flee and hide in the house. Will overhears David tell Eden that they have been chosen and that finishing what they started is the only way they can leave the Earth and be free of their pain. Tommy fatally wounds Sadie with a fireplace poker. Pruitt finds and attacks Will and Kira, who beats him to death with a wine bottle. Eden shoots Will, wounding him, then remorsefully shoots herself in the stomach. David stalks the survivors with a knife, but Tommy disarms and stabs him to death. Eden apologizes to Will and asks him to take her outside. Will, Kira, and Tommy carry the dying Eden into the garden where they hear sirens and screams in helicopters overhead. They see more than a dozen nearby homes with red lanterns and realize that Los Angeles is [00:05:00] erupting in chaos as other cult members carry out similar plans. The end. Cause you think that the twist in this movie is gonna be that it's a cult.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: But the twist is everybody's in it.

Ryley: It's well, and it hints towards like, everyone's heard of what they're talking about and Ben's like, yeah, my boss is part of that and.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: Cause like the whole thing is like, it's linked to trauma and everyone has that. So it's something relatable and oh my God. It's like, it's like something like crazy and like.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: It's awful.

Kat: It really is. I, and I can't explain how great it is to get to the end of this movie for the first time.

Ryley: It's nuts.

Kat: It is. But this movie was directed by Karyn Kusama and the writer of the movie Phil Hay, one of the writers is her husband, and she also directed a segment of this movie called xx. That's a bunch of horror anthologies or short films that are put together, and they're all directed by women. Then she also directed Jennifer's Body.

Ryley: Classic.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: That's why I love this movie so much. She, I mean, she's responsible for Jennifer's body and this movie.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: Both great movies.[00:06:00]

Kat: Definitely. But the writers, Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi, they seem to work together a lot. They wrote Clash of The Titans.

Ryley: Well, there you go.

Kat: If you remember that movie.

Ryley: Is that the football movie?

Kat: Uh, that's, Remember the Titans.

Ryley: Oh.

Kat: Clash of The Titans is a, the actual like mythology version of Percy Jackson.

Ryley: Mm. Okay.

Kat: But the cast of this movie, Logan Marshall Green plays Will and I think that he's like a discount Tom Hardy.

Ryley: Oh, Austin said the same thing. I'm not even kidding. We had an argument about it, I was like, no.

Kat: Discount.

Ryley: But he does. I get it.

Kat: Tom Hardy.

Ryley: I was wrong.

Kat: You were.

Ryley: I apologize.

Kat: And then Tammy Blanchard plays Eden and it's amazing that she did this because I all, I could think when I was looking at her was that she looks like young Judy Garland and she did actually play young Judy Garland in the Life with Judy Garland special.

Ryley: Oh wow.

Kat: Michael Husman plays David and he was in the Haunting of Hill House and he voiced a [00:07:00] Linguini in the Dutch version of Ratatouille.

Ryley: I love that. That is so funny.

Kat: It was at the very bottom of his IMDB page.

Ryley: How random.

Kat: I know.

Ryley: That's so funny.

Kat: Emayatzy Corinealdi plays Kira. Lindsay Burge plays Sadie and she's also in XX.

Ryley: Oh.

Kat: Jay Larson plays Ben. Michelle Krusiec plays Gina, Jordy Villa- Vilasuso plays Miguel. Mike Doyle plays Tommy, who he was also in XX.

Ryley: Oh wow. That's funny.

Kat: And then John Carroll Lynch plays Pruitt and he was in Fargo and a lot of other stuff. But most importantly, he was one of the main suspects for the Zodiac killer in David Fincher's Zodiac.

Ryley: Mm-hmm. And his character is more like, like they kind of pinned it down that his character was the zodiac.

Kat: Mm-hmm. The way he talks too.

Ryley: Yeah. He's great in Fargo. He's actually a really sweet character in Fargo. He's just her husband that's likes painting for duck stamps. It's like he's the sweetest, but he is absolutely terrifying in Zodiac and this movie.

Kat: He is.

Ryley: It's so funny.

Kat: And I wrote this in my [00:08:00] notes, he's portrayed John Wayne Gacey in American Horror Story.

Ryley: Oh my God.

Kat: He's played a clown twice in American Horror Story, I'm pretty sure too. So he's like really good at playing like a pitiful psychopath.

Ryley: Yeah, definitely. I think it's just because like he is just, I don't know how tall he is, but like he is a tall.

Kat: He's giant.

Ryley: Like he's a, a big dude like this dude.

Kat: Yes.

Ryley: Like he, I'm sure he's a very sweet man in real life.

Kat: Yeah. And he could play very sweet characters too.

Ryley: And he, and he has in Fargo, he's wonderful. He's a wonderful character. But I mean, everything else I've seen him in, he is playing a serial killer basically.

Kat: Yeah. Yeah. He seems just like a terrifying man from the Midwest.

Ryley: Yes. Cold.

Kat: Yes. But the other characters, Karl Yune plays Choi and Mariah Delfino plays Claire, and that is the cast.

Ryley: It's not a big cast like this is it. This is what it is.

Kat: I'm pretty sure the location that they filmed at was either their house or their friend's house.

Ryley: I'm in love with that location.

Kat: Me [00:09:00] too.

Ryley: I mean, I'll never be anywhere near it, but holy crap. The, as- the aesthetics of this film, just like, it's beautiful. I love it.

Kat: It's my fucking dream home. Truly.

Ryley: Honestly.

Kat: But the budget was a million dollars.

Ryley: Okay.

Kat: They only grossed 350,000 about worldwide, but that was because of it had such limited release that it couldn't possibly make all its money back.

Ryley: Oh dang. That's so disappointing.

Kat: Yeah, it had like very limited theater releases and I think it pretty quickly went to streaming services cuz this movie was on Netflix. I don't know if it still is.

Ryley: It's not on Netflix anymore. It was for years though.

Kat: I think I bought it the minute it got taken off of Netflix.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: It was on Netflix-

Ryley: For years.

Kat: Since we were in high school.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: Since I think about 2016, since the around when it came out, yeah. Cause I remember watching this in high school and absolutely loving it.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: But yeah, so it only made 350,000 worldwide, which is upsetting, but circumstance, it seems pretty well received otherwise.

Ryley: Yeah, like I don't think, like people generally like this [00:10:00] movie, so.

Kat: Well, we'll see.

Ryley: Yeah. I guess we have to see.

Kat: But in May of 2012, it was announced that Luke Wilson, Zachary Quinto, Topher Grace, and Johnny Galecki had initially been scheduled to star in this film.

Ryley: Wow.

Kat: Obviously they didn't end up being in the movie, but they had some big names initially.

Ryley: I would love to see Luke Wilson in this film that would've. Very interesting.

Kat: And Topher Grace.

Ryley: Topher Grace. That would've been actually really funny.

Kat: Eric.

Ryley: Eric, I'm very happy with who ended up being in the movie, though. I think he plays it very well.

Kat: Yeah, I, I think it benefited.

Ryley: I think so too.

Kat: Kusama was influenced by the slow reveal of Let The Right One in. I think we've talked about it before, the Nordic Vampire Horror movie.

Ryley: Mm-hmm. Yes.

Kat: And she was also inspired by the unraveling family reunion in Festin. She cited the film's theme as quote, "a metaphor for what the nightmare of Anxiety really is, which is this irrational sense that people are trying to hurt you somehow," end quote. She also said in an interview, the interviewer, Sarah [00:11:00] LaBrie, with the Verge, asked about how the movie was a commentary on politeness and how it dictates a lot of what we do.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: Kusama said quote, "I think part of what the film is doing is exploring the limits of instinct. When we screened it for our friends, some of them would say, 'well, I would leave the party. I would never stay at that party.' A lot of those people were people I know very well, and I know that they would never leave the party because it's very, very transgressive to get up and say, 'you know what? I'm really uncomfortable. I'm not really feeling what's going on at this party, and I can't be part of it. I have to go.' It takes a lot of certainty to do something like that, and I do think that's part of what the movie is playing with, is this notion of what our sense of tolerance is for just plain weirdness." End quote.

Ryley: It's really good that they said that. Cuz me, Claire's character is the only one that gets up and goes, I'm uncomfortable.

Kat: And then they call her weird after.

Ryley: And they call her weird. They call her a bunch of other things. They kind, they start talking bad about her at the party and they're, they're trying to fight her on it and Will like, she, and [00:12:00] Will's the only one that's like, just let her go.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: Cuz he also sees how weird it is and there's a part of wants to also do that. It- That's a very good point. Because the one person that does is given so much flack for it.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: And that's what we all, I think, we think will happen when, if that happens, like, like people are gonna be weirded out by me. People are gonna fight me on it. I'm gonna, I I have to fight that social grace of staying and enjoying the party.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: It's such a movie about what we do as standards, politeness, manners, what we put up with.

Kat: Yes.

Ryley: So we don't hurt other people's feelings.

Kat: Exactly. Yeah.

Ryley: And what we do, so we don't appear to be socially awkward person. The, you know, like everything we do to fight other people from judging us, you know?

Kat: Yeah. We don't wanna, we don't wanna be othered. It's the, the fear of judgment that you can't hear.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: And I think inherently part parts of us are like, well, what would I say about somebody if like, we were in this situation and they left. And 'I was like, I don't really understand why they would leave right now.' Even though you were just showing a video of somebody dying, but.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: We'll get to that [00:13:00] in a second.

Ryley: You're all making out with each other. That dude just said he killed his wife.

Kat: Yeah. I like how he was like, 'I should, I'm sorry that my story scared her away.' Yeah. You killed your wife.

Ryley: Yeah. You killed your wife and you're here sitting with us. Like.

Kat: You're killing the vibe at the very least.

Ryley: Exactly. And what's so funny is all that happened and Ev- like everyone was watching the movie like 'Yeah I would leave too.' And even the weirdest thing that happened, she's still given flack for wanting to leave after being really uncomfortable with this whole situation.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: And she's still given flack for it. It's one of those things that we're worried about that, and two, I'm sure it does happen and like we as society are very weird about people being uncomfortable with situation and wanting to leave.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: We've set up this really weird social. What is it called?

Kat: Uh-

Ryley: Social rules or?

Kat: Yeah, like a social guideline or like a-

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: like a social etiquette.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: Is just built into how we interact, but, we'll, we'll, we'll come back to that.

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: The, so, the next fact, the director and writers had complete creative control in this film as it was independently [00:14:00] produced without any involvement from any major studios, which, like, if you have the money to make a million dollar film.

Ryley: Well look at that house.

Kat: Nobody's telling you what you can and can't do.

Ryley: A million dollar budget's pretty cheap though. I mean for like a-

Kat: Considering they didn't have to pay for a location.

Ryley: To, yeah.

Kat: It seems like they probably, if that's just their friend's house, they might have had to compensate a little bit.

Ryley: But like, I mean that's pretty cheap. A million dollar budget. Like, I mean that sounds crazy to say.

Kat: You could tell a lot of it went into like cinematography.

Ryley: Yes it did. Absolutely.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: And whoever wrote the score.

Ryley: Yeah, that too.

Kat: But in the scene when Will recalls his son Ty's bedroom, a seemingly random assortment of toys scatter on the floor, including lettered blocks, an actor Logan Marshall Green, who plays Will, admits that he left an intentional Easter egg in them spelling out Kusama in honor of the director.

Ryley: Aw, cute.

Kat: So another fact, all of the wine at the party is poured directly from the bottle until the final round. When they do the toast, it's [00:15:00] poured out of a decanter. Provides a hint to the viewer and to Will that the party has become dangerous because you're not seeing them open a bottle, you're just getting wine from a decanter.

Ryley: Mm-hmm. And who else knows what's in there.

Kat: It could be inferred from the wine drinking that the cult is heavily based off of Heaven's Gate, in which 39 members of the cult committed ritualistic suicide. However, there seems to be potential influence from Charles Manson's cult, which originated in a time renowned for open and free love, which, which I thought they were hinting at with the home invasion that David's talking about.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: I thought that was like, cuz they're in the, they're in the Hollywood Hills.

Ryley: That's what I was about to say. It's also like, based in LA where all this.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: Where all that stuff happens.

Kat: Literally in the hills too. Like.

Ryley: Yeah. Literally in the hills.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: I, I always thought it was like linked to that as well.

Kat: Or at least a nod to it.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: But the last thing I have is that Kosama reveals in the commentary of this movie that Claire was indeed attacked, offscreen by Pruitt, and a scene of her in the Bushes dying from her wounds was eventually cut from the film for story reasons. [00:16:00] You can infer that from- but Kusama confirms that they were going to show that she did.

Ryley: I wish they did because in the final cut it's kind of dumb that anyone would go, she's trying to leave and Pruitts, like following her right after confessing, killing her.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: It's kind of dumb that no one went, oh, I'll walk you to your car. You know?

Kat: That's why Will was watching her. At least.

Ryley: He's watching. He should've walked her. I think in reality he would've walked her.

Kat: Yeah. Cuz it wouldn't be weird. This is your friend you haven't seen in two years. Like, you wanna say goodbye to them, you wanna give 'em a hug, like.

Ryley: And then the stranger's gonna walk out there with her.

Kat: Fucking giant over here.

Ryley: I think you're allowed to go, I wanna walk you out as well. I'm gonna make, I'm gonna say goodbye, you know?

Kat: Exactly. Exactly.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: Speaking of how you feel, what did you think or what, what thoughts did you have?

Ryley: Uh, so I love this movie, this movie's, I don't remember if I liked it at first. Was it one of those movies where we were like, what's going on?

Kat: I think you, you were iffy until the ending.

Ryley: Cause I, I missed a big portion cuz I had to go pick up my dad from work and come back.

Kat: Yes, yes, yes. That [00:17:00] did happen. Yeah.

Ryley: I got really probably really confused and was like, I don't know about this movie. But then I re-watched it all the way through. I was like, this movie's actually really, really good. I love the aesthetics. The cinematography is beautiful. I love how this movie looks.

Kat: Mm-hmm. Down to the framing.

Ryley: Yes, absolutely. It's warm, but like off too. So it's got this creepy tension, but you're in this warm home with really cool music playing. It's a dinner party amongst friends. It's, it's so polarizing. You know?

Kat: I think what it is, it's like, yeah, it's got that, this like warm, inviting tone to it.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: But they also play with like dark a lot.

Ryley: Yeah. Mm-hmm.

Kat: And there's a lot of like, yes, there's a scene, like there's people in like this warm lit room, but behind them there's like a dark hallway and there's upstairs that's not lit up right now. And there's like foreboding open rooms behind them that you can't really tell what's in there. Like.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: It's got that kind of thing going at dark outside. Like, it's just this contrast of like, this should be good. This should be a happy, warm moment. But [00:18:00] there's something dark, looming.

Ryley: Well, exactly. And we're, we're giving, as a viewer, we're seeing these flashbacks. We're, we're, we're given little information bit by bit.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: We know something happened. We know that they used to be married, we know there was a child. We don't know where that child is. We don't know what happened to that child.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: And we're just learning. New things, little by little.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: Adding and feeding into this like weird creepy tension where knowing they're over compassing for something.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: It's very lavish and we have a character who's very suspicious of all this and it's just like, why is he suspicious?

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: And we're just given all this new information, it's just so interesting, so much fun to watch. It's a dinner party amongst friends, so it's not like new people meeting each other. It's people talking like they would with old friends. I don't think it's perfect dialogue. There's definitely times where I'm like, that could have been, um, flushed out a little bit more.

Kat: Yeah. My issue with the dialogue is that the banter is off.

Ryley: Mm-hmm. It's a little [00:19:00] stilted.

Kat: It's stilted. I feel like there weren't beats, you know, written into it with the, just the, the jokey banter that they have. Cuz it feels like, I think I described it this way to you whenever I first watched it, it's kind of like if a student, like a college student were to write the dialogue for the movie, but like everything else about it is perfect. But like the dialogue is just like a little immature for the age of the people on screen.

Ryley: Yes, it is. Yes. I totally agree. Cause these people are in their thirties, you know.

Kat: Like mid thirties, 30.

Ryley: Yeah, mid thirties. Like yeah, I totally agree. The dialogue, it's a bit stilted, a little off it, it. It's not terrible.

Kat: No.

Ryley: But it, it is, it is not perfect.

Kat: It's weak.

Ryley: It's weak for this movie.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: And had it been a little bit stronger this movie, I mean, really would've been, I don't wanna say better, but like, you know?

Kat: It would've been better for it. It doesn't, it's not so weak that it-

Ryley: That it ruins it.

Kat: Ruins it. Yeah. It's just, compared to everything else, [00:20:00] it's very, very weak.

Ryley: I agree with that. But there's times in this movie where it's actually really, really good.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: Like that actor Pruitt, telling that story about his wife. It's very chilling.

Kat: He's just such a good actor.

Ryley: He is a very good actor. He's been in a lot of things and it shows.

Kat: So that was the thing with the other cast members, they weren't as well known. And that's not to say that they are bad, I just don't think that they could have turned the script the way that John Carroll Lynch was able to do with Pruitt.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: It might be, he's just better at doing a character like that, but it also could, could be like maybe he's just more a little more skilled in making the best out of a script.

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: Not to say that it's the delivery necessarily. The other actors weren't exactly set up for success with the dialogue.

Ryley: True, very true. Oh my God. Eden's dress in this movie, and I've been saying this since I've seen it, like, I love her dress. I love that dress so much. That's just something I wanna add.

Kat: And it's so perfect that it's white.

Ryley: Mm-hmm. Yes. Exactly.

Kat: For so many reasons. It's like she's [00:21:00] putting off this energy of like, rebirth.

Ryley: Rebirth.

Kat: And she's got this purity to her now like.

Ryley: It's got like a hippie thing going on.

Kat: Mm-hmm. But also Eden like biblical.

Ryley: Exactly. Mm-hmm. Heavenly Eden, you know?

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: Garden of Eden, like that kind of thing.

Kat: She's put in the garden at when she dies.

Ryley: Oh my god. Yes. It's very, it is very symbolic, you know?

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: It is very cool.

Kat: Yeah. She, and that, it just generally looks cool. Not, not cool, but like when she dies.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: It's just, Tarnishing this white dress.

Ryley: Yes, absolutely. Mm-hmm. It is so I love the symbolism with that too. And also I just, it looks really cool. It's a very nice looking dress.

Kat: Yes. Anything else?

Ryley: I wanted to go back to the Claire thing, cuz me, I was watching it and I was sitting there thinking that she didn't get killed because the timing is too short cuz she's backed out, she's ready to go, and he stops her and then they cut away. You can't see what's happening. To grab [00:22:00] her kill her put her somewhere and get rid of the car. But how does she end up in the garden?

Kat: It looks like her car, at least, maybe they cut that out because they didn't have enough story, reason, or timing to say that she ended up in the bushes.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: Maybe cuz her car did, her car pulled up a little.

Ryley: It did a little bit. But it's like.

Kat: And it was like you couldn't see it anymore when he turned around.

Ryley: But he walks in. Yeah. He, I mean, I'm not saying he couldn't have killed her in that short amount of time, but to.

Kat: I don't think he disposed of her body.

Ryley: Yeah. But he walks in like a minute later, like.

Kat: Yeah, no, the timing is pretty quick.

Ryley: And so like, and I think in the final cut without the evidence of Claire's body, You can say, and I know that's not what it's meant they, they meant to, to kill off Claire, but because they didn't put in that, you can say as a viewer, you don't think- you can think she got away.

Kat: Exactly. It's one of those things that like the writers intended but was not translated.

Ryley: It was not translated very well. And just practical wise, it doesn't seem like he did. I'm not saying, I mean, you could think [00:23:00] what you want and like, and it, it flows that he would kill her cuz like, you know, they're trying to kill everyone.

Kat: Yes.

Ryley: But it is what it is. I was just sitting there thinking that like, no, I don't think he did.

Kat: No, I, I, I understand that line of logic with it. And since they don't show that she was attacked by Pruit.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: You can, you can assume maybe she did get home. Maybe she did get out.

Ryley: Maybe she did. It's up to interpretation of it.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: I'm sure there's other things I wanna talk about, but right now that's it.

Kat: Okay. Got my legal pad of notes over here. Okay. So the first thing I wrote down is I respect Kira for being there with Will.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: And going with him and staying the whole time. It, it's kind of obvious symbolism, but the, you know, the mercy kill in the beginning.

Ryley: Oh yeah, definitely.

Kat: It's very obvious. But you know, that kind of sets the scene for how the movie ends with like.

Ryley: And like the tone of the movie, you know?

Kat: Yeah. Because they think they're mercy killing everybody, but Will ends up having to mercy kill Sadie and Eden and like, does he? No, he doesn't kill Eden. He just puts her in the garden.

Ryley: She shoots herself. She takes out herself.

Kat: In the [00:24:00] stupidest way where you're gonna bleed out for hours in the garden.

Ryley: Like it's the worst way to, I mean, I don't know. She's in total grief and probably feels guilt. I don't know. Maybe she wanted that as, I don't know.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: I did wanna say though, them hitting the coyote and him having to mercy kill the coyote. I think any, and I know we said this before, like, oh, you know, you don't, you don't wanna disturb. They're not even there at the dinner party. They're gonna go home. If I, if I had a witness my boyfriend mercy killing a coyote. I'm like, I'm not in the mood tonight to be social. I just saw that.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: I feel like it's good just to go home .

Kat: Yeah, that's fair. That is fair.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: And I guess I respect her for continuing after that as well.

Ryley: Exactly. But I feel like that's the mo, I feel like that's a little obscure.

Kat: That's your line.

Ryley: Am I wrong? I don't think I'm wrong for that. I feel like that's a very intense thing to see and not wanting to talk to people after that for the night.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: Or meet people.

Kat: That is fair. That is a fair reaction to that.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: But I love the score in this movie. I think it's just a great score.

Ryley: I like the soundtrack music.

Kat: Oh, like the, the songs [00:25:00] they're playing at the party and stuff too.

Ryley: Exactly.

Kat: That's good too. I think musically, this movie sets really sets up really good tension. And as we were talking about visually, I think this movie sets up the scene very well. It's a very simple movie in its concept. And like the setting and the opening premise of it, it's so simple. It's just a dinner party. I like how it unfolds, the deeper layers of it.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: I think this movie does a really good job at portraying, like being mentally checked out in a social setting.

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: It does feel like that. It feels like everybody's talking is muffled and like, you're not really hearing anybody, but you're physically there.

Ryley: And he's constantly separating himself from the party. He's constantly going to another room. He's constantly going outside. He's constantly just being away from the party and reentering when he's ready. And it's, that's also, I feel like very interesting of.

Kat: Yeah. And that's like, I guess, um, what Kosama was saying about like, the nightmare of anxiety and like.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: It is. Like if you're, I'm not saying that I ever think that in a party setting that someone's gonna hurt me, [00:26:00] but like sometimes it's just so overwhelming. You just need, you need to separate yourself so you don't let that out.

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: And kill the vibe, you know?

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: So I think I, I think that was a very accurate portrayal of that feeling in general, outside of this specific situation. I wrote down the part that like Eden's fam, he said, Eden's family is rich. It was never my money and.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: I feel like that tells you a little bit more about how their relationship was too. It's easy for her to just go escape and find some.

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: Experimental way to deal with her grief. And for him, he's had to do it on his own and like with some support system. But like he has, he has to do it from here. He has to do it from where he lives. Like he can't just run away from his problems.

Ryley: Exactly. And he's bitter. It's so bitter.

Kat: He's so bitter and rightfully so.

Ryley: I get it. And also she met David in the grief group.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: And that's something in the storyline I saw they met in the grief group with Will.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: While they were still married.

Kat: Yep.

Ryley: And that's something [00:27:00] very important. I think there's also a bitterness with that as well.

Kat: Oh yeah.

Ryley: And right- again, rightfully so.

Kat: And I, yeah. Yeah. I would definitely 100% feel fine bringing Kira.

Ryley: Yeah. I do wish they explained a little bit more about David's backstory cuz like it explained he was a DJ and he was a cokehead and all that. But I don't know why he was in the grief group and I would like to have known that.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: I feel like that's a little bit important situation. Like somebody will could have like jabbed at him about by like what about, you know, cuz he's in a grief group for some reason.

Kat: Yeah. And I think maybe they did that on purpose cuz it's like he's kind of like a shady character. Maybe he didn't even have somebody he was grieving over, you know?

Ryley: Yeah. He's a recruiter.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: Oh, that's interesting.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: That's, I never thought about that. That's actually very interesting cuz he's such a fake persona all the way through. He's such a cheese ball. I hate him.

Kat: Mm-hmm. I, I wrote down the quote, I should have wrote down who said this, but it was Tommy or Miguel is like, I'm glad you shed that [00:28:00] dirty dish rag look. And oh, he like walks away. He's like, Will's like, what? And then I just hear like, Miguel turned and go he did look like a dirt- he did look like a dish rag.

Ryley: They're so mean.

Kat: They are. But like simultaneously they seem like really, it seems like everybody is rallying around Will a lot more.

Ryley: They're very supportive.

Kat: Cause it's weirder for him to come into Eden's house.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: You know, than it is for Eden to see Will.

Ryley: They are supportive in a way, but they are also dismissive of what he's thinking. They are- it's a little too, don't worry about it. Stop worrying about it.

Kat: I wouldn't.

Ryley: You know.

Kat: Okay. I do. I could see how that is dismissive.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: As the person who is feeling those things.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: But like, as a friend, like, you don't want your friend to have a bad time. You just want them to like, just come back, just come back in here and like, just focus on having a good time right now. Like, so I kind of get it, I do see how it could be dismissive when you're the person feeling it, but I feel like I, I don't know. I see them as like, it seems like they, they all just want him to [00:29:00] have a good time and.

Ryley: Yes. And I.

Kat: And want the best for him.

Ryley: Exactly. I think at the end of the day that's what they want.

Kat: In their minds he's acting this way because, of the grief and anger he has.

Ryley: Mm-hmm. And the weirdness.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: Well the, just the situation itself too is very odd and awkward.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: And tense. Like, it's very weird. It's such a weird context, but it's believable still.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: Which I still, still like.

Kat: I agree. And I said I feel like there's a start to like a possible depth in the, into the friends, but it really, the only real depth we get in any of the characters is Will.

Ryley: Mm-hmm. That's true.

Kat: And Pruitt, but.

Ryley: Pruitt a little bit, and I think a little bit of Eden as well.

Kat: Yeah. Yeah. It makes sense because he's the main character, but there's like a level of depth that I feel like the other characters should have gotten outside of the amount that a main character should get.

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: I think mostly just cuz I want to know more about them too.

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: You get a taste of who they are, but I guess because Will is [00:30:00] so like involved, self-involved.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: I guess not, not in like a shitty way, like, you know, like he's really focused on how he's feeling in the moment right now. So I guess we as an audience are seeing it through his lens. So we wouldn't get that depth. I would've like to little.

Ryley: A little more.

Kat: Mm-hmm. Because I think everything's a cult and I've read so many cult books. Id sniff these bitches out in a minute.

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: I would, I don't know if I'd leave, but.

Ryley: That wine would maybe stay honestly. And that dinner.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: That.

Kat: It looks delicious.

Ryley: It looked so good. I wouldn't probably have not made it cuz I would've been drinking and eating.

Kat: I would probably stay, just out of curiosity, I would have so many questions for them about this like organization or whatever.

Ryley: Mm-hmm. I would pick a fight with Sadie though I do not like Sadie.

Kat: Yeah. I would've been like.

Ryley: It's annoying.

Kat: Can you shut up for five?

Ryley: Can you stop?

Kat: Yeah. Calm down dude. I would probably leave after the video.

Ryley: Like Claire?

Kat: Yeah. I don't trust anybody who's trying to convince me just to embrace that I'm going to die [00:31:00] one day. Like I don't trust that.

Ryley: At dinner party.

Kat: I don't trust that at any setting.

Ryley: Yeah. No, that's fair.

Kat: I'm allowed to fear death a little bit. Okay. It keeps me, it keeps me safe.

Ryley: And it's so like, they're so in denial about their feelings. 'Oh, it's all chemical, all our, this grief is chemical. This sadness is all just chemical. We can totally change that.' That's denial. Go see a therapist. You know? That's where I'd be like, this is just not okay. They're not okay. That's what I would be thinking.

Kat: It kind of reminds me of like Scientology a little bit too, where it's like, 'don't go to therapy cuz therapy's a sham. Just hold these cans until you don't set off the little beepy boop.'

Ryley: Til your feet go numb.

Kat: I said, I've read too many cult books, but I can't guarantee that my lady from Barbarian brain wouldn't try to rationalize the situation.

Ryley: I love that sentence. That's a great sentence.

Kat: Cause honestly.

Ryley: I know exactly what you're talk about.

Kat: You know, like we've talked about it with Barbarian and it's like the idea that as women we're taught to be very polite and [00:32:00] like just to go with the flow and like.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: 'Do what's best for other people's happiness and not upset anybody ever.'

Ryley: And it's the same thing of like, just like the guy in Barbarian, how pushy he's being with her and how pushy everyone else is in this movie about, especially about Claire leaving like.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: How pushy people are and like, 'please don't leave. Please don't go. Please do this, please.' You know, it's like, it's, it's that social grace. It's that thing that we're always taught, like same things going on here in both movies of that. 'Okay, I'll comply. Okay. That's.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: 'Okay. If you insist kind of thing.'

Kat: I'd rather die than be rude kind of mentality.

Ryley: Well.

Kat: Literally.

Ryley: That's what kind of what it is.

Kat: But I also wrote that Will is absolutely in the right for not wanting his son to be brought into the conversation. Like when David tries to be like, well your son, first of all you don't need to talk.

Ryley: It is very ballsy of him to do.

Kat: Extremely. I think it was nice that Gina specifically says to Will, that they, they were all there for him. Like they wanted to be there for him. [00:33:00] Um, and that tells me enough about how they feel about Eden.

Ryley: Exactly. And the fact that Eden has disappeared for two years without a word.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: To anyone. That's also like, yeah, I mean, sorry. Will's been around as much as he can be. That is very telling.

Kat: And then when David says, 'I doubt they'd be, they're as happy as we are' talking about people who are like judging the invitation.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: That's the most cult thing you could ever say. I doubt they're as happy as we are.

Ryley: The constant proving of how happy you are. 'We're so happy. We're so happy.'

Kat: 'We love it here.'

Ryley: 'We're not, we're not sad, we're not grieving. We're, it's all chemical. We're all so happy. We're so happy.' The constant proving. Just tells you exactly what you need to know.

Kat: 'I watched a lady die and now all my grief is gone.'

Ryley: Jesus.

Kat: Let's see and then David says something about like, we need to like, you know, just like get rid of like all the embarrassment and like shame that's put on us. I think we all need a little bit of embarrassment in the back of our heads to keep us from doing something stupid. Especially.

Ryley: Yes, exactly. It humbles you.

Kat: Yes. Especially cuz it was right before the I [00:34:00] Want game and it's like, maybe we don't all need to say our deepest desires. Maybe we should be a little embarrassed of ourselves.

Ryley: There should be a little. Yes. Absolutely. Um, it's just, they're so cringy, you know?

Kat: They are.

Ryley: They're all so incredibly.

Kat: 'I want some of that coke you used to do.'

Ryley: And he has it, he has it in a drawer right behind him. He's like, hold on.

Kat: And then Pruitt. This is how my brain explains Pruitt telling the story about his wife.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: 'She was wonderful and then I rage killed her one day.'

Ryley: It's weird how he explains the story cuz it sounds like he just did this once and this was the one time thing where he just hit her as hard as he could and just ended up killing her. It's like, I feel like that's more of the story that you're not talking about.

Kat: Why'd you hit your wife ever?

Ryley: Yeah, exactly. Like, it's like one of those things where like, 'oh, so just the first time you ever like hit her, it was the one time that killed her,' that doesn't sound right. That kind of sounds like he had practice, you know?

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: As awful as that sounds, you know, like it's just one of those things where like, I wonder how reliable his story is, like from him.

Kat: Exactly. Exactly. He's.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: He's not.

Ryley: He's not, [00:35:00] we know that. We know from the end of the movie he isn't. So I just wonder how reli, like, how true his story is. How-

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: Accurate his depiction of his like, of his relationship with his wife was.

Kat: Exactly.

Ryley: You know?

Kat: No, I get, I get what you, I get what you mean. Cause these people don't really know him and he is been in a cult where they tell him that like, 'everything can be forgiven and pain is temporar-' like, you know.

Ryley: He's like, 'I don't feel guilty anymore.' and like I'm sitting there going, 'there should be some things you still feel guilty over and that should be one of them.'

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: You should not be walking around carefree after doing that.

Kat: No. Um, I wrote David's a bitch.

Ryley: David is a bitch.

Kat: And then after he, he shoots Miguel, he lets out this little whimper after he shoots him.

Ryley: He does. He's like a little, he's a wimp. He really is.

Kat: Like, he wasn't just planning on killing everybody.

Ryley: Yeah. I think it's one of those things though, like they thought about it, but it's like until they actually do it, that they're realizing.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: How shocking it is. And like, and they're always trying to hide behind their emotions, you know, like saying like, 'oh, it's all chemical. I don't have to feel it.' And then they're actually killing someone and they're like, this is a little too much.

Kat: Yeah. And plus poison is a very hands off way to do [00:36:00] that too.

Ryley: Mm-hmm. I think they were, that's the whole thing, they were planning to poison everyone, but they had backup plans as well in case someone didn't.

Kat: They sure did.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: I like when Will is like, 'why is everyone acting so fucking polite?'

Ryley: Yeah. You know, he says what everyone's thinking. It's like, this is weird.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: And why is everyone, why are we hiding behind the social grace? You know?

Kat: And then Pruitt tries to like intervene and he is like, 'Hey, who are you? who are you?'

Ryley: Fair question. Fair question. Why are you here?

Kat: Who are you?

Ryley: Why is sadie here?

Kat: Exactly. And the last note that I had is, So Kira and Will at one point are hiding in a theater, and they showed them that video on a laptop.

Ryley: I know. We didn't go to the home theater. Hey everyone.

Kat: You don't have an HDMI cord.

Ryley: I don't know, maybe they were just comfortable down there.

Kat: I don't know. I mean, it would be weirder if they showed them that video on-

Ryley: A big screen.

Kat: Yeah, that's everything that I had about this movie. Do you have anything else you wanna add or do you wanna move on?

Ryley: Uh, we can go ahead and move on.

Kat: So the first review I have is from Jordy reviews it by Jordy Serkin from 2021, and they said, quote, "the first hour of the film is very slow paced for a reason. [00:37:00] There is a wonderful build of subtle tension, which is one of its best qualities. As an audience member, you empathize with Will's paranoia because you sense the same unease he does. It keeps you questioning everything with enigmatic performances even so much as where the camera lingers, everything is so intentional. With pieces to discover throughout, you'll have to wait to see what actually is transpiring," end quote.

Ryley: Perfect review.

Kat: Right on the money.

Ryley: That's exactly how I would say.

Kat: Now time for a negative review.

Ryley: Okay.

Kat: This one's from Women in Revolt by Lindsay Pugh in 2017. She described the film as chilling and uncomfortable and said that the first 75 minutes reminded her of the film Coherence from 2014. And the final 20 minutes are a straightforward, jumpy slasher, and the climax made them go meh. They said that the best time to watch this movie is when you want something spooky slash chilling, but you don't care about quality.

Ryley: Oh, that is so- that is so wrong.

Kat: They said that the script is clunky and that they wished it was edited down or revised a few more times. They said it was visually [00:38:00] flat.

Ryley: How do you say this is visually flat? I love the visuals of this movie.

Kat: Stunning.

Ryley: I agree with the, I feel like the script, I'm not gonna say they're wrong on that one.

Kat: No.

Ryley: It's a little clunky.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: Yeah. Maybe it could have been revised a few more times. I don't, I don't wish how they changed how the movie went. Just the dialogue. Yeah. Could have been tweaked.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: I agree with that.

Kat: And then they said quote, "actually, no, fuck it. I'm done trying to be nice. I did not like this movie and would not recommend it to anyone," end quote.

Ryley: Oh.

Kat: They also didn't like xx.

Ryley: Oh.

Kat: It's not the best made, but it's interesting and it's all by women.

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: For women in revolt you really seem to hate women.

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: Then they say quote-

Ryley: No kidding.

Kat: They say quote, "the movie wants to create tension by calling Will's mental state into question, but it quickly tells any discerning viewer that Eden is the one who's fucked up. We have no reason to distrust Will and every reason to distrust Eden. If the movie wanted to keep us guessing, this scene in the kitchen should have been less obvious." End quote.

I'm kind

Ryley: of confused by that cuz like why would we want to distrust will.

Kat: I think [00:39:00] that the way they were watching it, I think the movie kind of tries to do that without the friends react to him. Like, is what he's thinking is happening actually happening?

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: But I don't think it wants us to go as far as to distrust Will because it's giving us the same hints that it's giving Will.

Ryley: Well his character is the relatable one in it.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: I'm just confused on what they wanted to see because like, yeah eden's supposed to, we're supposed to pick up that we shouldn't be trusting Eden cuz Will is picking up on that.-

Mm-hmm.

as well. And it's just like we're following will's character because he seems to be the most rational one. And yes, his friends are doubting him and that, and that makes Will doubt himself, but it's like, I think that's perfect.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: I don't understand what they're complaining about. I guess.

Kat: I, I, I don't see the issue with what they're complaining about personally.

Ryley: I don't either. I'm really confused by it actually. So.

Kat: But they also say, they mention that Will, doesn't seem nearly as damaged as Eden. It's clear he's in pain and the film wants the audience to believe he has potential to be unstable and [00:40:00] paranoid, but quote, "fails to put together a compelling case." End quote. I think that they are damaged in different ways. And they're damaged and handling that damage in different ways and have handled it in different ways.

Yes.

And I think the movie portrays that fine.

Ryley: I think it portrays it fine too. And I am not saying that Will is less damaged than Eden cuz they're both parents that lost a child like you just said, they handled it differently. Will's been in the same area, I'm assuming, has gone to grief groups, and I would hope therapy, while Eden ran off to Mexico to join this cult.

Kat: And didn't really assess.

Ryley: No and is in delusion about her emotions and her feelings and death and life and is in delusion.

Kat: Yeah. Because what the movie shows us is that the times that Eden was faced with the situation,

Ryley: mm-hmm.

Kat: ended in her, in one scene trying to take her own life.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: She was so overcome by this grief that it, it led her that way and she was running away from it and never [00:41:00] really addressed it fully clearly.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: is what the movie's saying, it seems like Will has at least addressed the pain of the loss.

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: And acknowledged that he carries it with him. That's the difference here. It doesn't mean that he's healed, it just means like he has at least looked it in the fucking face, you know?

Ryley: Exactly.

Kat: But they also say that the actors aren't evenly matched ability-wise, and I can't exactly disagree.

Ryley: I can't say they're wrong. I.

Kat: Yeah, and this was the point that I, I had some thoughts on the most. They said that there was a weak motivation for mass murder. They said that it makes sense to include Will and maybe Kira, but not as much the others. I don't think they realize that in the, the mind of these people, what they're doing is saving their friends by killing them.

Ryley: It's mercy.

Kat: They want to take them to the same place they think they're going, you know?

Ryley: They think they're doing them a favor.

Kat: Yeah, it's a cult.

Ryley: Exactly. You don't know what people will end up believing.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: in cults. So it's very, the whole like mass murder thing is not a [00:42:00] far stretch.

Kat: No.

Ryley: To me. Just knowing what people will believe in cults.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: And like, yeah, it's that mentality. They think they're doing a service, a good service for everyone.

Kat: They think, yeah. They think they're saving their friends.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: So I don't really think that's a strong point to make against this movie personally.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: Like why would you question the motives of clearly unstable people. Yeah.

Ryley: Yeah, exactly.

Kat: But they also say that the movie reveals too much upfront, especially with the creepy video, and they believe that we shouldn't have been shown it. It is halfway through. We get shown that video about halfway through the movie, and I could kind of see that. But like I was saying, the twist isn't necessarily that they are in a cult. The twist is that it's a lot more far stretching of a cult than they initially realized per- that's what I thought the twist was. But they also said that the flashbacks should be more vague and they needed less plot detail and more mood creation if the goal was to create suspense by making Eden suspicious and will paranoid. I think the David covers a lot of like the suspicious behavior.

Ryley: Yeah. Not so much Eden like she's part [00:43:00] of it, but David's the, and because by association.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: Eden. Yeah. Uh, I, I just like, they were like, oh, they shouldn't have showed that up front in the movie, like you said, it was halfway through the movie when they showed that video. I'm sorry. Do you not want anything to be told to you in the movie or, or hinted at all? Like, I feel like that's a silly point to make cuz it's not in the beginning. It's not up front it's like in the middle of the movie.

Kat: Yeah, no, I, I, I was watching it thinking that, like, thinking of this exact point and I really didn't, it didn't throw me off when I watched it the first time. I was like, suspicious.

Ryley: No.

Kat: But you don't know until it's confirmed. Really. Like this is a weird group that they're in. It's clearly like culty.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: But they end this review with quote, "I love the concept of this movie and general structure, thriller, slasher, horror, but none of the elements worked well and I believe it suffered most because of the terrible script and weird casting. It's hard for me to assess how much of its failure is due to Kusama's direction, but her involvement in this project and general critical praise makes me think she's probably just not my cup of tea." End quote.

Ryley: Yeah. Honestly. They made some [00:44:00] points, like.

Kat: A few.

Ryley: Yeah. The script.

Kat: The acting.

Ryley: The acting all could have been amped up a little, I think.

Kat: But the plot set up, no, I don't think I agree with that.

Ryley: Well, the way they, they're sounding is like whatever changes it would've made, it would've made a completely different movie. In my opinion, and I don't think for the better. I feel like this movie is way stronger than they're giving a credit for, like, plot wise.

Kat: And I, I don't think that they were reading the characters the same way.

Ryley: Well. Yeah.

Kat: Well. Or you could, you could argue, well, I maybe we could just say in the same way that we were, and I think the way that we read them was the way that they were intended to be picked up on.

Ryley: Exactly. That's just me.

Kat: Yeah. But the next review I have is a two and a half out of five from, We Got This Covered written by Matt Donato in 2015, and I believe they saw it at South by Southwest. So they say that it's a slow burner that drags until hitting its stride in the final 30 seconds or so of storytelling.

Ryley: 30? The last 30 seconds.

Kat: I guess the last shot of all the other red lamps maybe is to them that was like the most exciting part of the [00:45:00] movie.

Ryley: Really? Not the last 30 minutes cuz that's one thing, but okay.

Kat: They also say that Kosama is talented, but the film drags along obviously for far too long. Then they say will, catching on so quickly breaks any subtle suspense that could have been. So they kind of agree with the last person they felt like Will was catching on too fast. And you know, maybe he, he kind of, I think got to the correct page a lot faster than maybe he should have. But that's, I think that's just the point of his character is that he is so suspicious that of course he would get to the conclusion that he was at.

Ryley: Like he's already, like on the way there, they're talking about the invitation card, he goes, 'maybe they're overcompensating.' So he's already in his head, thinking why are they doing this now? Why two years later?

Kat: Something's weird. Yeah.

Ryley: Something's- he's already in that thought process of Something's off.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: Something's weird. This is weird. He's already in that mindset, so I don't think it's incredibly,

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: What's the word, I guess. I don't think it's, I don't think, [00:46:00] it doesn't stand out to me too badly.

Kat: It doesn't break the movie for you.

Ryley: Not for me. I can see how that could. I'll give him credit, like maybe, but for me.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: I think it's, it's valid. And he's standoffish, definitely.

Kat: Mm-hmm. But it, the situation surrounding the dinner, kind of, I guess what the other person was trying to get at the last reviewer.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: Like, you know, the, the friends are like, we get it. It's like a, it's difficult for you even to be in this house, be in this place, whatever, whatever. So you can kind of excuse the first few, like maybe he's just being paranoid because he's in this house, like he.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: Yeah. There's just a lot of circumstance that I think excuses him, catching on, quote unquote.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: But they also mentioned that pacing is an issue with this movie and that there's a lack of tension leading up to the end, which I don't agree. I think that the fact that there's a few times where like there's a time or two before the final big ending where Will thinks he has it, but it's.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: But it isn't exactly right.

Ryley: And then Choi [00:47:00] walks in, it's that huge awkward and horrible scene where he's so wrong. Everyone hates him and is against him.

Kat: Crying and.

Ryley: Yeah. It's actually a really rough scene to watch.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: Just seeing him accuse everyone of something awful.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: And then all of a sudden the evidence he had walked through the door.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: It's a really awful scene actually.

Kat: It is.

Ryley: And I agree this movie is a slow burn and I usually don't like slow burns, but I think this movie does it so well.

Kat: I think it works. It works for what it is.

Ryley: It still works.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: I think it needs to be a slow burn personally.

Ryley: Me too.

Kat: But they say that the movie's perversely dark and quote, "which would work on emotional levels if the story benefited from dead children and broken marriages. But some of the weightier material deems itself unnecessary." End quote. Once we get to the climax of the story, it seems to no longer matter that Will and Eden lost their son. I think that it could have been any loss, but.

Mm-hmm.

I think that they, it son dying and their marriage being [00:48:00] broken apart because of that grief and loss. Makes sense. And it makes sense for where Eden went for those two years and what Will's been up to for the two years and how he feels coming back in here. I don't, I don't agree.

Ryley: Yeah. I do not understand.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: Again, it's one of those points where I'm like, I don't understand.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: I don't get your point.

Kat: Eden literally acknowledges that she has been in pain.

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: And that she's still in pain at the end of the movie.

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: How do, this is another one of those where I'm like, how do you watch movies?

Ryley: It is, it just confuses me, like the things people will complain about. I'm like, I would've not, never thought that hard about not liking, you know?

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: It's one of those things where like, you had to think hard about that, didn't you?

Kat: Yeah. I'm trying to make a word count or?

Yeah, I guess so.

But they also said that there's a humanistic quality to the friend characters. They seem like normal people, and the actors display uncertainty very well. I, I agree.

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: I agree.

Ryley: I don't think the acting is atrocious. I know we were talking about that earlier.

Kat: I think it's, they seem too much of normal people is what it is.

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: [00:49:00] It just a, just stilted, you know, just a little.

Kat: Just a some guy.

Ryley: Just a dude back there.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: Just Ben.

Kat: But they end their review with quote, "the invitation is a competently made thriller, but it's just not my speed. There's a wonderful holy shit moment at the end when the film's dreary underbelly is slashed before our eyes, but getting there is more of a chore than I would've expected. If morose invasive, slow burn dramatics are your thing, then give Kusama's latest a shot. Just because one person didn't find enjoyment doesn't mean you won't too. This is an extremely temperamental film that's going to divide audiences and while I'm on one side, I can recognize that others might be waiting on edge for the film's mile long fuse to run out. Different strokes for different folks, as they say." End quote. I appreciate that greatly.

Ryley: Yes. That is very nice. I understand. I like how they are like, I might not like this, but someone I can see how someone could.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: There you go.

Kat: Um, I found a lot of very short reviews of this film, but the next one is from Larsen on film written by John Larson in 2016, who gave it a 1.5 [00:50:00] out of four. And they say, quote, "the cleverly creepy final shot of the invitation can't make up for what is otherwise a frustrating thriller, in which elements such as pacing, tone, and performance are poorly modulated. The movie has an intriguing scenario. Unfortunately, in both its narrative structure and direction, the invitation never really allows us to simmer," intention- "in the tension between Will's reality and his paranoia. One minute Will is screaming that something is very wrong, then the next he is calmly whispering his suspicions to other guests. Early on, the hosts deliver an outlandishly wacky presentation, yet later, everyone sits down for dinner as if they were at a normal reunion. There's something off with the host, yes, but also with the whole movie, if the best thrillers escalate with expert precision, the invitation clumsily stumbles to its bloody end." End quote. I kind of understand what they're saying. There is pretty quick shifts in mood with will especially.

Ryley: Mm-hmm. I think it's what you were saying earlier though, of people saying, 'oh, if that happened, I would leave or I would have, it's still that social thing of [00:51:00] like social manners,' cuz Claire's the only one that gets up and does it.

Kat: You think you'd leave, but.

Ryley: You think you leave. But you're giving good wine, you're giving food. You're amongst friends.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: Yeah. It's weird. But that's gonna be a good story for tomorrow at work. There's so many reasons why people would stay.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: There's so many reasons why you would stay. Yes. It's weird. Yes. You should probably leave.

Kat: You'd talk about it on the car ride home.

Ryley: Exactly.

Kat: Well, that was really weird, wasn't it?

Ryley: What the fuck?

Kat: Yeah, exactly. This person just seems to have similar issues that the last two reviewers had with pacing and.

Ryley: Yeah.

Like, I'm not saying it isn't valid, I just don't agree and I think it, that-

Kat: It doesn't bug me.

Ryley: It doesn't bug me. I, all these things that these critics are complaining about, I just didn't see.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: It doesn't bother me. I don't agree that it's a problem, you know?

Kat: Yeah. But the last review I have is from Nerd Report from Fred Topple in 2015, and they believe that this is Kusama's best movie, saying quote, "the invitation is a scathing attack on alternative morals." end quote.

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: Quote. "Will is a man of conviction with every [00:52:00] presumptuous suggestion, David, Eden, Sadie, or Pruitt offers, it gets to a point where he has to insist, no, this is me. And the more you try to change me, the more suspicious I am of you. Will has his own demons, but he is our anchor for owning them unwaveringly," end quote.

Ryley: Very true. That is a great way to describe his character.

Kat: He doesn't accept his pain. He owns his pain.

Ryley: Absolutely. This is a very good way to put it.

Kat: And then quote, "the script by Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi nails all the nuance of this debate, and Kusama's staging of the performances ensures that the audience feels uncomfortable, but could still be an innocent misunderstanding. The geography of the house is very important too. Kosama establishes what you can see from which room, and the windows play a huge role." End quote.

Ryley: The windows are barred and very aesthetically too. Like you, cuz I think when I first watched it, I didn't know that there were bars on the window.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: I thought it was just this kind of cool aesthetic over the window until you realize, no, those are bars on the window. You can't get, they have a door that locks from the inside through a key.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: It's all [00:53:00] these little hints and yes, the windows are a constant reminder. You can't get out through them.

Kat: Mm-hmm. But they end with quote, "maybe I didn't make the invitation sound like a horror movie, but really this is the scariest part of human interaction. It would be great if everyone could just read when they've crossed the line, but that is what self-preservation is for. And even self-preservation can go too far the other way. What a fascinating subject for a movie." End quote. I think that's a good point. Not everyone's gonna be aware that they're being weird.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: Sometimes self-preservation has to be sacrificed for being polite.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: And if you self preserve too far, you could be seen as a dick or you could be like rude.

Ryley: Mm-hmm. It's that weird line.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: It doesn't have to sound like a horror movie that I don't, I don't really view this movie as a horror necessarily. I think it's a great commentary.

Kat: Yeah. It's a thriller more than it is a horror.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: But I guess you could say the human interaction is horrific maybe. But, And it ends like in a slasher way.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: Mm-hmm. I get that.

Kat: All right. Do you have anything else to say about the critic reviews or are you ready to move [00:54:00] on?

Ryley: Nope. I think this last person wrapped it up pretty well too.

Kat: Okay. So on to the audience reviews. This first one is a 10 out of 10 from IMDb titled 'A Hidden Gem' from 2018. "Sadly, this movie never received the publicity it deserved. It even struggles to have a cult status, no pun intended. I had only heard of this movie because of a review on YouTube, otherwise I would've never seen it. When I watched it, it was on Netflix, but that was over a year ago, and I don't have Netflix anymore, so it may not still be available. But if it is, put it on your list. Without spoilers or repeating the synopsis. It's a simple movie with a simple premise executed very, very well. Definitely give it a watch, you'll never forget it, and surely will recommend it to others." That's exactly how I felt after watching it. I was like, everyone, everyone needs to watch this movie. Everybody needs to watch this freaking movie.

Ryley: I just love, you know, it struggles to have a cult status pun intended, like that's honestly perfect.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: Very funny. And it is, it's, it's unfortunately a movie that isn't [00:55:00] well renowned.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: And I wish it because it's a good movie.

Kat: Yeah. I, I wish it, it got the recognition that it deserved. There's another movie called The Invitation that came out this year that's not good.

Ryley: I know. And that's gon, when I typed it in, that's the first one that came up.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: And it's really unfortunate cuz now it's gonna get buried beneath that one. And yeah.

Kat: Make sure you watch the 2015 invitation, not the 2022 one.

Ryley: Yeah. That's about like vampires or something. I don't know.

Kat: But the next review I have is from Letterboxd. It's a two star review from 2016. "Boy, these people seem suspicious. Oh, turns out those suspicions were valid. The end. What do you expect when you invite the Zodiac killer to your dinner party?"

Ryley: That's so true. I feel like, I feel like if you're watching that movie for the first time and you've seen Zodiac and you see that guy walk in, you're like, 'mm, okay.'

Kat: 'What's John Carroll Lynch doing here?'

Ryley: 'Oh no.'

Kat: The next one's one outta 10. Imdb titled 'Wow' from 2020. "The film actually shocked me as from the first 20 minutes or so, I knew that it was headed nowhere and will be utterly a waste of [00:56:00] time, but I did not expect it to be this bad. Acting was just horrible, none of these actors had a character, a story, except the kid dying part, which built up to the entire film and ended up not meaning anything at all in the end, or any sort of originality. But to be honest, what could have they done with that script? Plot was trying too hard to be deep and touching, but it was just meaningless. Every five minutes there was a plot twist, and I don't mean that in a positive way. Save yourself from the trouble and don't watch it." Those aren't called plot twists. Those are called clues.

Ryley: Context clues.

Kat: Context. Context, surprise.

Ryley: This is one of those things. And they always let you know in these reviews, they already had a bad attitude before even turning the movie on.

Kat: Well, 20 minutes they said 20 minutes in.

Ryley: Okay. Still, you know, you had a bad attitude. You didn't give it the chance. I don't, it also, I just like everything that they wrote, I'm like, it's like that thing you said, how do you watch movies? Cause I don't think we watch movies the same way at all.

Kat: No. And I guess they're just in the half of the people that did not get [00:57:00] it and watch it correctly. I just, the thing that's baffling me is that this is the second person to say that the kid dying didn't seem like it meant anything. The whole movie is about handling grief and pain.

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: And the different ways that you can do that and what it, what happens when you don't face it and you fill in the gaps with other things. And what happens when you do face it, but you don't heal.

Ryley: Yeah, exactly. Their child dying in the movie is the whole reason why we're here. This is why the movie's happening. This is why what happens in the movie happens is because it all leads back to that. So it's like, how can you say that? It's the main reason why we're wa like it's the start of it, you know?

Kat: Yeah. This next one is a star and a half from 2016 on letterboxd. They start with, "so here's the thing. Foreshadowing is a powerful storytelling tool if used correctly. It can give you a feeling of unease and a story that conveys a sense of normalcy. Without being able to put your finger on it, you get the sensation something is off, making you feel tense without knowing why. The invitation gets this. For about 10 [00:58:00] minutes. What remains is 60 minutes of foreshadowing with bits of story and character development in between. It lacks any and all subtlety. The main character literally keeps telling everyone something is wrong for two-thirds of the film. We get it. You're leading up to something. I love slow burn thrillers. I love films that start out normal and slowly unravel and turn into something horrific. When treated correctly and with subtlety films like this can be extremely unsettling and tense. The invitation is for all its good intentions, a drawn out mess. It tries far too hard with a script that just isn't smart enough to reach it's potential. It is never tense, never unnerving, we are never involved due to spending time with a group of friends that are annoying twats and when we finally reach the climax it turns out even that is drawn out to such a degree I just don't give a crap anymore. These, there are a handful of scenes that are effective and," give a, "give us glimpses of what could have been making it all the more frustrating. Until the actual ending. Which will only leave you sighing and rolling your eyes."

Ryley: I think for me, I said this earlier, I don't usually like slow burns, but I [00:59:00] think why I like this slow burn is because when I think of a slow burn and they're like, oh, it's so subtle when it happens. So you mean nothing happens? I literally have to make up stuff as I'm watching it.

Kat: Mm-hmm. Hereditary. It's okay. You can say it.

Ryley: Yes. Yes. That's literally what it, I'm literally.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: You may say like, okay, maybe you need something obvious to tell you what's happening. I don't know. Maybe just because I think there was more happening in this movie.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: As a slow burn, and that's probably why I liked it.

Kat: Yes.

Ryley: What's that one? The, the cabin, or what was it called? The cottage?

Kat: The one where it's the, the dad's new girlfriend and the kids.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: I think it's like the, the cabin or something. I don't know.

Ryley: Something like that. That's a slow. Burn psychological one. And to me, I could hardly, first off that movie's way too long.

Kat: Yeah. Oh, the lodge. The lodge. That's what it is.

Ryley: The lodge. It's so, it takes too long, you know, like, yeah, we're getting hints, but it's like, it takes too long. This movie is short enough where it can be, I'm, I'm trying to make my point, but it's like.

Kat: [01:00:00] It, it's slow, but it's not, it's not-

Ryley: Painfully.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: Painful.

Kat: It's not, I know people kept saying it was dragged out, but I just don't think that it fits as well in slow burn, as as many people are saying it is.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: I think, yeah, there's parts of it where it's like the information's slowly being revealed, but I don't think in the same way that most slow burn thrillers do.

Ryley: Mm-hmm. And that's why I like it.

Kat: Exactly. And like you said, like it's a lot more obvious, but I think that's why I enjoy it too, cuz it's not like, well could you infer from her doing this this way?

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: And him saying this like that and him saying that specific word, no.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: Like, I en enjoy that. You can tell from the minute you get there, something's weird.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: The energy's off and slowly you stop using excuses to like get rid of that feeling of unease and you start seeing that something actually is wrong.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: Instead of being 'fine, fine, fine. What is that?' Like. It's literally like, [01:01:00] 'okay, weird, weird, weird, weird. Oh yes. It actually was weird. Okay guys.'

Ryley: Yep.

Kat: Like, you know, I think it's that feeling for me not to get too into it, but I think I know what it is. It's like the, for me, it's the feeling of like you, your gut was correct.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: Your gut was right. And that's why I like this movie. Just that feeling of like, 'I felt like something was wrong. Something was weird. No one was listening, but look bitch, I was right the entire time.'

Ryley: Exactly. And he gets to live so. But at what cost?

Kat: The G in Gemini stands for Gloating.

Ryley: But yeah, I think overall with this review, it just makes me go, yeah, maybe you're right but that's why I like it.

Kat: Yeah. Everything you hate I love.

Ryley: That's the thing I still call a slow burn. I mean, I think it technically is.

Kat: Yeah. Next one, three stars. 2017. "Someone invites me to a dinner party. Me, 'why do you wanna kill me?"

Ryley: After seeing this like, I'll be like, 'why?'

Kat: 'Why?'

Ryley: 'What do we have planned for the evening?'

Kat: 'I wanna watch you open every bottle of wine.' [01:02:00]

Ryley: 'I'll open the bottles of wine. Thank you.'

Kat: Two out of 10 IMDb. 'Take reviewer advice' from 2022. So take reviewer advice "and fast forward to the last 10 minutes. I did. And then I decided to write my first ever IMDB review. That's how bad it is. I started out trying to be patient and open-minded as some reviewers who gave this movie high praise warned of a slow pace. However, I quickly got bored to tears as none of the characters are relatable, believable, or likable. How did the movie manage to have a big party cast with not one single character the audience cares about? It's just uncomfortable to watch and not in a good way at all."

Ryley: So you didn't watch the full movie?

Kat: Yeah. They literally fast forwarded.

Ryley: So your review is absolutely invalid cuz you did not see the whole movie. So your review means nothing.

Kat: How do you expect to like any of the characters or get come to a point where you care about one of them-

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: Without watching the whole thing? That's weird.

Ryley: Kind of sounds like, you know, you didn't give it a chance, you kind of just assumed it was bad and just fast forward to just to say you did it.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: Sounds like it's a bad [01:03:00] review.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: Sounds like you don't know what you're talking about.

Kat: Sounds like you shouldn't have written a review.

Ryley: Makes me so angry when people do that. I hate when they do that.

Kat: So I skipped the whole thing.

Ryley: Skipped the whole thing. Didn't watch it, so I hate it.

Kat: Yep. Next one, two stars. 2020. Uh, letterboxd. "I really like the premise and I think it was a really unique take on dealing with grief. Unfortunately it didn't fully come together for me, I think largely due to what I felt was a lack of character development. A lot of the tension hinges on you caring about what happens to the characters, but I found them all pretty underdeveloped and kind of annoying to watch. So the buildup felt like it took way too long, and I just wasn't surprised or impressed by the climax. I do commend it for trying to tackle these kinds of themes in a different way than I've seen though."

Ryley: Okay. It's one of those reviews, they're on the other side.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: of the coin. They just didn't get it.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: They just didn't like it.

Kat: I will be on my side of the fence throwing tomatoes at them though.

Ryley: Yes. like I respect it. Like they're still like, they're like, oh, I do like how they try to talk about gr- like they give it a little credit.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: Which I respect.

Kat: Mm-hmm. But this [01:04:00] next one um two stars, letterboxd 2019. "LA is crazy, man."

Ryley: That should have been the tagline for the movie. I, it should have been the tagline that, uh, what's his name? Uh, Michael said he's all like, 'they're from LA. They're harmless.' I feel like that is absolutely the polar opposite.

Kat: Yes, yes.

Ryley: I'm like, no.

Kat: The next, the next review, three stars, 2016 letterboxd. "Oversensitive, polite behavior as a form of social entrapment. Well observed, and with good space control. It probably deflates the tension one time too many before the inevitable violent final act. But Kusama has a good feel for dread and regret filled paranoia."

Ryley: I don't think the, the tensions deflated. I didn't see a problem with it.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: And I thought it was effective in its own way.

Kat: Mm-hmm. I like that they described it as oversensitive, polite behavior as a form of social entrapment. Like that is a very effective sentence.

Ryley: Perfect way to describe it. Mm-hmm.

Kat: Cause that's, that's [01:05:00] literally exactly what the movie talks about. And I think it's more about that than it is about the grief.

Ryley: The grief. I think it's way more commentary about that then probably the grief. Grief is definitely a, a big part of it, but.

Kat: Yeah, it's, it's the motivator for the whole movie.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: Three stars 2020. "Might have to rethink having a huge party with my friends after Covid ends, in case any of them have joined a cult and or want to kill me."

Ryley: My god.

Kat: Fair.

Ryley: I wanted to throw a party like they threw, but not in the killing way, just. You know, wine and.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: A big lavish dinner like that looked so good. I really wanna just make all that food.

Kat: But don't do it if people haven't seen you for two years.

Ryley: Yeah. Cuz then it'll be suspicious. And then they'll actually ruin a party.

Kat: Yeah. I'll, I'll come in breaking all your wine glasses.

Ryley: 'Don't drink it.'

Kat: 'Joined any organizations lately?'

Ryley: 'What are you affiliated with now?'

Kat: If I show up and you're wearing a white dress, I'm leaving.

Ryley: That'd be so funny. If I threw a dinner party and I had like a big, oh my gosh, that'd be so funny. [01:06:00] I might do that one day.

Kat: Okay, 2020 no stars.

Ryley: God, I love no stars cause you never know where they're gonna go.

Kat: Mm-hmm. "This is not how you do subtle. You have one character screaming for the whole runtime that something is wrong." You have something- "you know something is going to happen at some point, but there's no buildup if someone keeps reminding you over and over again. When it finally happens, you'll be too bored to care. Frustrating more than anything else."

Ryley: Wrong. Like the whole time I'm like, I'm like, what's the thing? What is it? And you get to see it. It's pretty cool. It's horrible and horrifying and.

Kat: What do you want?

Ryley: Yeah, exactly.

Kat: Two stars 2020. "Only good thing about this film was Logan Marshall Green. Just not a fan of the long hair and beard on him. I felt his paranoia, cuz that's kind of how I am. Not a big fan of the whole cult scenario. These type of films can be a hit or miss for me. This was definitely creepy. Along with the creepy score that I had to turn the volume down cause to me it sounded like a screatching cat. Even my roommate was like freaking out. Ha ha ha. Even the [01:07:00] group vibe was weird. Then it finally got interesting what the last 20 minutes of the film. Very slow paced film. Now I did kind of crack up when John Carol Lynch "Pruitt" is telling "Will" Logan to let it go while he's beating the crap out of him and trying to kill him."

Ryley: Yeah. It is actually insane scene where he is he's just like, just let it happen.

Kat: Yes.

Ryley: And it's just him like I I think he's strangling him. Yeah, exactly. It's just like, you can't say that to someone while you're murdering them. Like, oh my God.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: I just love how they were like, my roommate got scared. Ha ha. That is actually kind of funny.

Kat: Four stars 2022. "Nothing scarier than a dinner party."

Ryley: That is the, that's the funny thing about this movie. It's like the anxiety that we, the social anxieties we get, you know? So, yeah, that is a, that's actually a very valid critique.

Kat: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Two and a half stars 2016. "If I get one takeaway from the invitation, it's that director Karen Kusama uses the confined space and dim lighting throughout the house very, very well."

Ryley: Yes.

Kat: "Once the [01:08:00] characters enter its threshold, the viewer is never visually comfortable for the rest of the film."

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: "Kusama from there guides the evening to its bloody conclusion, admirably with many unexpected turns and moments of genuine suspense, but the whole experience leaves a lot to be desired once the film becomes exactly what you didn't want it to be. Great final shot too."

Ryley: Okay. So they just didn't like, they felt like there was too much left out.

Kat: Yeah. Felt, I guess what the end turned into, what they didn't want it to be, which I guess it turns into a slasher, maybe they didn't want it to be like that. Maybe it kind of undercut the, the air that was created by the other parts of the film.

Ryley: Okay. That's not unfair to say.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: Cause it sounds like they really did enjoy and they really enjoyed the cinematography and the feeling of it. So that's, I mean, I'm not gonna say they're wrong.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: I mean, I can understand if they wanted, if they wanted more. There's like, it's always disappointing when you like a movie, but you didn't get enough of it.

Kat: Yes.

Ryley: That is always a very disappointing, and I, I feel for that. Um, not for this movie, but I [01:09:00] can understand that, you know?

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: But I could feel a little bit like that for this movie.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: A- more, more with the script.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: More with the dialogue, more with the connections.

Kat: Yeah. With the other friends and.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: Like, I understand he was checked out, but like if we could have gotten a little bit of a glimpse into how close this friend group was before too, and like, What was broken apart with them by this all happening too. I think that would've been good.

Ryley: It was a good review.

Kat: Yeah, I agree. A star and a half from 2020. "Yeah, sorry. Between the less than half baked themes and the way too slow burn script, pretty much none of this worked for me. The characters were annoying and most of them unsympathetic. Any semblance of a deeper meaning was quickly squa." Where was my voice going? It was being stolen. "Any semblance of a deeper meaning was quickly squashed by an annoying character doing some pointless action that was, for whatever reason, deemed more important to the story. Half the plot devices lead up to nowhere, or never even mentioned again. Even the last 20 minutes, which I agree with the majority are by far the best [01:10:00] part of the film, still kept me largely uninvested and felt bland. Everything in this film could have been done way better. This end product just seems unsatisfying."

Ryley: I really have nothing more to say other than like.

Kat: Tomato.

Ryley: Tomato.

Kat: Didn't realize that people were so divisive on this movie, but.

Ryley: It it's like you either love it or you hate it, you know?

Kat: Yeah. Which is why it deserves cult status.

Ryley: Yeah. No kidding.

Kat: A two star review from 2016. "I don't know. I mean, this film is okay. The first hour and a bit runs like a play, and then the last hour or so just gives you exactly what you've been expecting from the minute the film starts. I mean, honestly, if it starts with the merciful killing of an animal on the road, the tone is pretty much set? I don't think it's that original or surprising and nothing about it really shocked or scared me. Builds good tension and ambiance but is that because it genuinely has the power or because you've seen enough movies like this to know how you're meant to feel?"

Ryley: Pretension.

Kat: It is. Pretension. It is.

Ryley: I've seen enough movies to know what they're doing.

Kat: I feel like [01:11:00] I've seen enough movies at this point to where like the newer movies, I know what's gonna happen, but that's because they're superficial, not just because I've seen a bunch of movies. It's because they're superficial. This one, maybe you've seen enough thrillers to know. You learned the hero's journey one time and you know how every movie's gonna go for the rest of your life. Like.

Ryley: Yeah, exactly.

Kat: Yeah. But- sorry.

Ryley: No, no, no. I, I totally agree with everything you were saying and.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: Yeah. This movie is definitely, you know what, I'm gonna leave it there.

Kat: Yeah. I will just say it's like, it's not groundbreaking or anything amazingly new for when it came out either, but I like what it did and how it did it.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: And I enjoyed the ride that it took me on personally.

Ryley: Exactly. And that's, you know, what if a movie does that for you, there you go.

Kat: And it did blow my mind when I watched it the first time.

Ryley: Yeah, exactly. I really enjoyed it the first time.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: Still enjoy it.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: But you know, the first time you watch it is always, you know, the best.

Kat: Mm-hmm. But this next one's a six outta 10 from 2022 on IMDB titled 'Something Missing.' "The movie had strong dialogue and direction I thought. A lot of it felt [01:12:00] natural and realistic. Something about the payoff just felt like it was missing, though. Also, the main character kept just wandering off on his own. If you like Indie thrillers, though, I would still recommend it. Lots of people seemed to like it. It just didn't quite connect with me."

Ryley: That's fair. That's a decent review.

Kat: Yeah. A lot of the reviews on here weren't just straight up shitting on this movie. Like I tried to find negative ones that were negative, you know? But most of the people were just like, 'guess it just wasn't for me.'

Ryley: Yeah, which is fair to say.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: But like I do like that they still had like good things to say about it.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: They just had issues.

Kat: Yeah. But the last review I have is a 10 outta 10 from 2018 titled 'This took a while to get going, but it got good.' "This title took a while to get going. It finally arrived. I enjoyed where this ended up. I like how it slowly creeps into the darkness where it was all along. I sat with my mouth open when I saw the ending. I'll give you this one because of where it ended. I will say an overall good watch. This is worth the watch. If you like to be [01:13:00] surprised, you will not see this coming."

Ryley: That's a very. Yeah.

Kat: That's how I pitch this movie to people usually.

Ryley: Yeah, exactly.

Kat: Like just finish it. Just finish it.

Ryley: Yeah. Just honestly, honestly, and like, I love, I love the, like my mouth was open at the ending and it is that last final shot is like everyone gasped at the last few minutes.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: You know, or the last second.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: When we see the LA Hills, you're like, oh no. You know, it's a very unsettling ending.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: They live, but, oh my god. Like.

Kat: How are they gonna get out of there now?

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: I would've just, uh, hid and waited till morning.

Ryley: Well, yeah, the doors are already locked. I mean. Yeah, just go find a closet, lock yourself in it.

Kat: Mm-hmm. But if you had to rate the invitation, what would you give it?

Ryley: Eight outta 10.

Kat: Eight outta 10. Okay.

Ryley: It's not, Not perfect dialogue. Script could have been revised. I think someone made a point about that, and I think it could have, I didn't want anything to change within the movie or how it flowed.

Kat: Mm-hmm.

Ryley: I just think the dialogue overall could have been, you know.

Kat: Tighter?

Ryley: Yep.

Kat: Yeah.

Ryley: Uh, just dialogue overall too, [01:14:00] and like, I wish the actors, I think everyone, the actors were fine at the least.

Kat: Yeah. No one was bad.

Ryley: No, I feel like with a little bit more bonding and maybe a little more improv, cuz it felt like they followed the script. It sounded like they were falling along with the script very well.

Kat: I agree.

Ryley: There was points where I'm like, someone could have improv that align, someone could have done just a little bit more, you know, like it felt like there were some lines just being delivered just cuz that was in the script.

Kat: Maybe the dialogue was too tight and it needed to loosen a little bit.

Ryley: Mm-hmm. I wish that happened.

Kat: Yeah. When they're talking about something serious, it feels a lot less stilted than.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: When they're bantering.

Ryley: Yes. When they're trying to be like back, like they're, they're old friends. That's when it gets a little stilted.

Kat: And I agree. I think that it would've, like what you said with the bonding, they definitely could have used like just, and maybe they did, I don't know, but like.

Ryley: Maybe they and it just didn't come across.

Kat: Yeah, maybe they all, maybe they all already are friends. Like, I don't know.

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: So I think I would honestly, I know I say that this is one of my [01:15:00] favorite movies and it still is.

Ryley: Mm-hmm.

Kat: And I still believe that, and I will recommend it to just about anybody with ears, but I think I would also say an eight out of 10.

Ryley: Yeah.

Kat: But at the end of the day, once you get to the end of this movie, and like this last reviewer said, if you like to be surprised that this movie really will pay off for you.

Ryley: Yeah. Definitely.

Kat: But do you have anything else you wanna say before we wrap it up?

Ryley: No, I think I've said everything.

Kat: All right. If you wanna give us any feedback, movie suggestions, send us a meme, you can reach us on our Instagram at Easy Bake Takes. We also have a TikTok at Easy Bake Takes. We have a letterboxd account, which is Easy Bake Takes. We post the overview of all the reviews we've done on there, and those same overviews are posted on our website, Easy Bake Takes podcast.com, along with transcripts for each episode. Don't forget to rate and review wherever you get your podcasts and give us a follow if you feel like it. And thank you so much for listening. My name's Kat.

Ryley: And I'm Ryley.

Kat: This has been Easy Bake Takes. Easy watching out there. [01:16:00]

Ryley: Bye.

Kat: Bye.