The Stay (2021) User Reviews

Good things here and there

[ville_kotiranta · 4/10 · 22 April 2021]

Greetings from Finland!

I really enjoy movies with a "small group stuck in an isolated place" setting. With few characters you get to know them better when there's more time for each one individually. 'The Stay' does take advantage of this. There is a lot of dialogue between the four main characters and you do get to understand their motives.

But. The actual dialogue is not very interesting and the more you get to know these main characters, the more annoying each one of them become. It didn't take too long until I began to wish they would all face a gruesome death.

Unfortunately despite the setting The Stay is no slasher and you are forced to spend a long time with these characters before the terror begins. And when it does begin, the killings are not imaginative or brutal enough.

The acting was not super good, but I think the bigger problem was the uninteresting and excessive dialogue between the couples. Bo-Lee's actor did a fine job.

I did enjoy the scenery and the camera work was very good. Points for that.

All in all I give a lot of respect for this independent production and have no doubt that mr. Hamm will make a more kickass film in the future. This time though I can't give more than a 4/10.

Have the Director purchased the reviews?

[lozard · 3/10 · 5 July 2021]

The movie is a joke. Worst cinematic lighting ever seen.

Hard core B-movie.

A waste of time

[IdUser2021 · 3/10 · 11 April 2021]

Another "producer/actor" producing movie for himself. Even if the story could've work, you can note the poor interpretation, sound problems (the horse must have hit the microphone while eating), So many mistakes during the struggle scene, so fake!

I'm giving 3 stars only because with a good director and good actors, the story could've been interesting.

Continues the cycle

[takato0524 · 2/10 · 17 July 2021]

As I've said in other reviews, when the director and writer and actor is all the same person, it makes for a terrible movie. And this was no exception. Scott Hamm is horrible on screen. Over acting and 1 dimensional. The plot kind of made sense, but then it didn't. My mind kept wondering off as the movie continued. The caretaker was just an annoying add on that wasn't utilized properly. 2 stars because I thought the black chick was the only sensible one, but then he dumbed her down too. Stick to your soaps man.

Horrible

[INeedAGreatMoviePlease · 1/10 · 21 August 2021]

Yikes. The acting is mediocre at best. I can't get past the opening scene with the first terrible actor talking on the phone and then weirdly walking around his friends house with the obvious "I already did this 300 times" look on his face. Nah. Cringe. Hard pass.

Prop knife

[miskaniemela · 25 November 2021]

Okay idea, bad writing/dialogue, bad actor performace but worst of all; the prop knife. It made it impossible to take this seriously, the prop knife was like 1/2 inches thick, looked to be like cardboard or styrofoam or plastic. It looked so much like a kids toy, that this movie turned into a bad parody.

Isn't my baby just the cutest thing you've ever seen......

[sahlgoode · 2/10 · 16 March 2021]

Story by: Scott Hamm Written by: Scott Hamm Directed by: Scott Hamm Produced by: Scott Hamm Acted in by: Scott Hamm ....and yes...reviewed by: Scott Hamm

Here's a definition of the word Ham: "An actor who is overly theatrical - in other words, 'overacts' - is usually referred to as 'ham'. ... The word is frequently used in everyday contexts to refer to someone who likes to draw attention to himself by being overly dramatic."

Now the movie review: (by someone not involved in any way to the movie, other than watching it)

I love independent films when they're done right. The acting in this is sub par. The difference between a good actor, and a bad one is that a good actor will never let you know there is a camera in the room. A bad actor struggles to keep from looking at it, and it shows in this film.Kipp Tribble was great, as was Nija Okoro.

Atmosphere is flat here. It relies too much on the dialogue, like soap operas do.

The plot is nothing new, but I can't fault the writers for that. There are only so many times you can place a group of people in a isolated area, and make it unique. This is situation is not unique.

The story line is right out of a soap opera. It's listed as a thriller, but it's more of a drama. Where are the thrills? If you stop, and make a sandwich while the movie is playing, you won't miss anything crucial. Short Cuts by Robert Altman is 3 hours long, and I pressed the pause button for bathroom breaks, and refreshment refills. That is drama.

The camera work was spot on. Too bad there wasn't anything special happening in front of it, and that pretty much sums up the entire film. If you don't watch, you won't be missing anything. If you do.....hey, write a review. It would be nice to hear from someone who didn't have anything to do with the birthing of this baby.

6.1... is this a joke?

[niunoniotro · 1/10 · 5 March 2022]

As of March 5, 2022, 1,235 people have given it 10 stars, 1,199 have given it a 9 and 1011 have given it an 8 and that makes me shock. A movie with no script, no plot, no technical means? I refuse to believe that I'm one of those arrogant critics, so I don't want to crush the movie, but I was going to give it between 2 and 3 stars but I'd better give it a 1 to even it out and get it to its fair score.

Really bad actors

[nickpedersen · 3/10 · 3 June 2021]

The movie could have been good.

The story is interesting, but the direction, storytelling, and especially the actors ruined it completely.

Enjoyable and Interesting

[tvcarsd · 6/10 · 16 March 2021]

The story is meant to be horrific, it reminded me a lot of the kinds of stories we might get with 70's and 80's slashers. You can easily follow where its going and it does pick up at a pace you would expect for a traditional slasher. The ending felt a little weak though and it really could have used some better music to capture the horror element. Either way I thought it was a surprisingly good horror.

its a slow burning...

[ops-52535 · 5/10 · 17 March 2021]

Love quartet, two couples running the adultery train to a secluded hut out in nowhere deserthills southwest usa. and its all being complicated by the squareheaded curious catfish supervisor of the property. its lots of secrets, and invisible icefronts that well over half into the movie spins of in a raging purgatorial revenge operation that i didnt see coming, because its food for the tvsofaslave the first 60 minutes and like a geordie fight in the latter minutes. i guess ive spoiled it all but a good feel of revenge its not and youre squandered for the aftermath, but its interesting what it turned into on a low budget, corona lockdown influenzed filmaking.

so it gives some vibes of homemade production at times, the acting aint stiff, and the storyline doesnt bid fir a dance of intelligence, but the havoc in the end rescues some of the deeds of an actor. there are strings in the story that lays there waiting on the call to make the story even better but they didnt use the supervisors crazy brother in the plot, a mistake ask me. so im old and grumpy,even though i dont like cheesy lovely babebodybonanza i cant prohibit myself to give this a little recommend. its a little dr.jekyll and mr hyde'ish in the end makes the recommend.

Good for what it is

[danielmartinx · 9/10 · 4 July 2022]

I'm actually enjoying this. From negative reviews I thought all kinds of horrible things would be here, but the actors are doing the best with this script. For some reason, this film dives deep into a sick and toxic marriage and drags the audience through all kinds of unpleasant emotions associated with breakups and dead marriages. It's strangely unpleasant, but a lot of horror depends upon broken relationships, dead parents, illness and infection, etc.

I liked it

[Itsmenityou · 6/10 · 17 March 2021]

I've never been a fan of independent movies. I was very much talked into giving this movie a chance by my significant other. Normally I would have scrolled past this. But it ended up being a good watch. Not a super thriller but definitely had some drama and twists I wasn't really expecting. Enough suspense to keep you wondering and wanting to finish all the way to see what the hell is really going on. Overall I was pleasantly surprised

One flaw (lmao)...

[barnaclejayne-76794 · 2/10 · 12 October 2021]

Ok let's pretend this C movie is worth discussing. Who was Bo-Lee slicing up under the blood-sprinkled sheet in the barn? He ended up the unexpected, chew-soaked "hero" in the end... so why was that scene never explained? I guess Scott Hamm figured hey, why bother? Nobody's going to actually sit through this whole video anyway lol. Even though this seemed to be filmed entirely on a (flip?) phone, stuff like that still bothers me.

+1 star for no gratuitous nudity.

A horror joke!

[computermusen · 1/10 · 20 September 2021]

What can I say. 2.5 minutes and I was gone! The acting is do bad.

Just bad. Im out of words guys!

Waste of time

[bren-87576 · 1/10 · 1 November 2021]

Terrible acting. Very unrealistic. The story line was just so off. Even the effects were unrealistic. I just feel like I wasted an hour and a half of my life. There are a lot of low budget movies out there that are really good, but this wasn't one of them. The only believable actor was Noja Okoro.

WORST MOVIE EVER!!!

[jawadbakr · 1/10 · 5 July 2021]

The worst movie in my life, complete waste of time.

The acting is horrible, the plot is awful.

As a result, DO NOT WATCH THIS MOVIE.

Garbage

[NYC_Will · 1/10 · 8 October 2021]

Glad i was not in the movie,complete utter trash. Could not finish watching it, my time is more valuable than this. Writer. Director, Actor Hamm should ho back to playing "frat guy with water gun" as he did in First Daughter.

Wow it was bad..

[jaasydan · 1/10 · 20 May 2021]

One of the worst movies I have ever seen. Acting is absolutely awful. Filming even worse. Plot is OK.

Built to a Surprisingly Entertaining Movie

[coolhandcapital · 7/10 · 24 March 2021]

When I started The Stay, I felt it began with a slow pace that kind of concerned me. As the movie continued though, the pace increased as did the tension. The film does a nice job of pointing viewers in one direction, while leaving room for surprises. As an Independent movie, the filmmakers found interesting ways to tell their tale, without the big bucks of a Hollywood blockbuster. While nothing is perfect, I feel that some of the negative reviews totally miss the mark. This is not meant to be Citizen Kane. Rather it is a fun, entertaining terror film, sort of in the tradition of the horror/terror movies we all experienced in the 80's. There is some of the same camp, and that is part of its charm. The tension builds with the telling, and there are solid performances from Scott Hamm, Nija Okoro, and Kipp Tribble. It's a fun way to spend an hour and a half.

My brain is hurting!

[cirisortiz · 2/10 · 22 August 2021]

I guess some people will like this mess. Has it all, when it comes to brainless people: two stupid guys who married women, who probably thought "he's so stupid, I better grab him while I can". Lets start with the obvious. When meeting a guy, who seems to be the perfect psycho, NEVER make fun of him to his face. After that scene, you don't have to watch anymore, you know what is coming.

Not bad!

[coltjessica · 8/10 · 30 June 2022]

In a world of overly criticizing folks, I'm looking at this for face value. We got a movie that could be "better" if the budget was there, this is obvious. Props and bravo to the actors, they did their best. The lighting was a problem, some of the audio was a problem, some acting was not good but again I'm guessing this is all budget constraints. If its not, then spend the money and get those major flaws fixed. Again, this movie is not too shabby overall. Not sure of the background of this guy Hamm but hey good on you! You got a movie made and put on Amazon that is no small feat. At times, i like seeing these more "amateur" movies. I've always been a fan of "B" movies. I'm capable of using my imagination and appreciate all film work... well almost all of it. Good luck to all of you who worked on the film.

Not that bad

[johnbamber-543-390505 · 6/10 · 9 November 2022]

It's definitely not Oscar-worthy, but also not a complete stinker. I can't tell which is ranked lower, the acting or the dialogue. Sometimes the dialogue begets bad acting, or the other way around.

There were a few plot twists I predicted, but a few actually surprised me. I liked that Bo-Lee turned out to be a good guy. He was portrayed as a typical weird hillbilly type, but in the end he came to Nora's rescue.

I didn't pick up much chemistry amongst the actors, but then again that was the point of the storyline. The couples were both having rocky marriages and tried to patch this up by going on a retreat together. Good idea? I wouldn't say so.

I'd give it a watch, it's at the very least entertaining.

Horrible!!

[cujorocky · 1/10 · 3 September 2021]

At the 30 minute mark I was ready to Scream!!!! 2couples arguing and laughing non stop..

Smoking, belly aching. Inane dialogue is MADDENNING!!! OMG THIS IS AWFUL.

The Rental. Ripoff

[johnhdavison · 3/10 · 20 March 2021]

This has a similar plot to " the Rental". 5 actors, plot similar. Can't believe people can't think of anything new for scripts