"Dead Mary" is a thoroughly unimpressive supernatural thriller.
**SPOILERS**
Driving up for a weekend, Kim, (Dominique Swain) and Matt, (Jefferson Brown) meet up with friends Eve, (Marie-Jose'e Colburn) Baker, (Steven McCarthy) Lily, (Maggie Castle) Dash, (Michael Majeski) and Amber, (Reagan Pasternak) at a cabin in the woods for a get together. As they've all had time away, tensions among them immediately begin to break out and threaten the trip. Attempting to get over it, they try to get along and decide to play a game known as Dead Mary, which they believe is just an urban legend. When they all try it, nothing happens and they go about the rest of the trip. When they awake one morning to find that something is terribly wrong with the situation. Acting almost as though they are possessed, they find that by playing the game, they have indeed allowed the spirit of Dead Mary to possess them all, and they try to escape the cabin before they become victims.
The Good News: There wasn't a whole lot to like about it, but what was there was pretty good. One of the best features is it's really clever way of dealing with the possession. Rather than having the exorcism of the creature result in that possessed victim's death, this one decides to keep them alive. That allows for some fun from the fact that the recently-possessed still have coherence into the situation, and that can be really good if done in the right manner, which for the most part this one does. A few instances here and there don't mean much, and in the end it works. There is some reasonable suspense attempts spread throughout, including a great one after the game was first played where a series of unsettling off-screen noises play havoc on a victim. The not knowing of who's the possessed victim or not does work to some extinct. Due to the non-death factor, there's some really nice scenes here. It does feature one of the most brutal torture scenes ever, where one is strapped into a chair and repeatedly whacked with a hammer until they confess, which leaves a whole strain of impact marks all over the body. These here are all the film has for it.
The Bad News: This one here suffers from several really big problems. The first of which is the incredibly boring and nearly impossible-to-get-through beginning. The entire first act there's nothing to suggest that anything sinister is happening. There's no build-up, no sense of impending doom, just bored young adults and their problems. The guys and girls break off into their own separate groups and moan about their love lives, later gathering for a long evening of joyless banter. This is just way too dull for most of the film to take up with. There's even a whole slew of clichés in here, despite it trying to feel like it isn't one. We have the overused cabin-in-the-woods effect, occupied by a group of mopey, depressed couples who spend the weekend reconnecting with their old chums. As it turns out, the big game is the exact same game as an older game, just with a word switch. This is one of the oldest campfire tales in the book: repeat the name of a witch three times in a mirror and she appears. So one by one our bored characters enter and exit a bathroom having uttered the most cursed of all names into the mirror. This is just a small sampling of the kind of creativity on display here. There's also the really big flaw of the characters acting completely out of realistic touches that are so obvious it's hard to really feel for them. The biggest tell-tale one is during the first reanimation sequence. When your dead friend's bloodied corpse suddenly springs back to life and tells you your girlfriend is cheating on you, is your reaction to freak out at your girlfriend, or is it to freak out because your dead friend's bloodied corpse is talking to you?! That is simply an example, and really shows just how bad the film can be at times.
The Final Verdict: With some really bad flaws and a few moments of watchability, this one comes off as wholly underwhelming and quite bland. This is really only for those who enjoy the straight-to-DVD releases, while those who aren't that into those or who find the mentioned flaws deal-breakers would be advised to skip this one.
Rated R: Graphic Language, Graphic Violence and drug use
**SPOILERS**
Driving up for a weekend, Kim, (Dominique Swain) and Matt, (Jefferson Brown) meet up with friends Eve, (Marie-Jose'e Colburn) Baker, (Steven McCarthy) Lily, (Maggie Castle) Dash, (Michael Majeski) and Amber, (Reagan Pasternak) at a cabin in the woods for a get together. As they've all had time away, tensions among them immediately begin to break out and threaten the trip. Attempting to get over it, they try to get along and decide to play a game known as Dead Mary, which they believe is just an urban legend. When they all try it, nothing happens and they go about the rest of the trip. When they awake one morning to find that something is terribly wrong with the situation. Acting almost as though they are possessed, they find that by playing the game, they have indeed allowed the spirit of Dead Mary to possess them all, and they try to escape the cabin before they become victims.
The Good News: There wasn't a whole lot to like about it, but what was there was pretty good. One of the best features is it's really clever way of dealing with the possession. Rather than having the exorcism of the creature result in that possessed victim's death, this one decides to keep them alive. That allows for some fun from the fact that the recently-possessed still have coherence into the situation, and that can be really good if done in the right manner, which for the most part this one does. A few instances here and there don't mean much, and in the end it works. There is some reasonable suspense attempts spread throughout, including a great one after the game was first played where a series of unsettling off-screen noises play havoc on a victim. The not knowing of who's the possessed victim or not does work to some extinct. Due to the non-death factor, there's some really nice scenes here. It does feature one of the most brutal torture scenes ever, where one is strapped into a chair and repeatedly whacked with a hammer until they confess, which leaves a whole strain of impact marks all over the body. These here are all the film has for it.
The Bad News: This one here suffers from several really big problems. The first of which is the incredibly boring and nearly impossible-to-get-through beginning. The entire first act there's nothing to suggest that anything sinister is happening. There's no build-up, no sense of impending doom, just bored young adults and their problems. The guys and girls break off into their own separate groups and moan about their love lives, later gathering for a long evening of joyless banter. This is just way too dull for most of the film to take up with. There's even a whole slew of clichés in here, despite it trying to feel like it isn't one. We have the overused cabin-in-the-woods effect, occupied by a group of mopey, depressed couples who spend the weekend reconnecting with their old chums. As it turns out, the big game is the exact same game as an older game, just with a word switch. This is one of the oldest campfire tales in the book: repeat the name of a witch three times in a mirror and she appears. So one by one our bored characters enter and exit a bathroom having uttered the most cursed of all names into the mirror. This is just a small sampling of the kind of creativity on display here. There's also the really big flaw of the characters acting completely out of realistic touches that are so obvious it's hard to really feel for them. The biggest tell-tale one is during the first reanimation sequence. When your dead friend's bloodied corpse suddenly springs back to life and tells you your girlfriend is cheating on you, is your reaction to freak out at your girlfriend, or is it to freak out because your dead friend's bloodied corpse is talking to you?! That is simply an example, and really shows just how bad the film can be at times.
The Final Verdict: With some really bad flaws and a few moments of watchability, this one comes off as wholly underwhelming and quite bland. This is really only for those who enjoy the straight-to-DVD releases, while those who aren't that into those or who find the mentioned flaws deal-breakers would be advised to skip this one.
Rated R: Graphic Language, Graphic Violence and drug use