Ghost Game (2024) Review: Portland Horror Film Festival
Oh, the things we do to avoid getting bored. Some people just need aggressive stimuli to make them feel alive and get them out of their ordinary, humdrum lives. Many people have turned to becoming extreme content creators online to get their kicks. Such is the case for Laura and Aidan, who have become ghost gamers. This community of pranksters hides in other people’s homes to make the homeowners think their homes might be haunted.
The irony of Ghost Game is that the hauntings might be real in this case. Laura and Adrian botched their previous attempt when they got physically aggressive with one of their marks. The police arrested them, exposing the ghost game community. So, Laura looks to make a comeback. Through the ghost game community, they learn of a chance at redemption when a legendary house with a new family moving in becomes a target.
As you might suspect, the haunters are primed to become the haunted.
THE CAST OF GHOST GAME:Before Laura and Adrian head out to the old manor, Laura’s boyfriend Vinny becomes aware of the ghost game. The masks, the elaborate ruses, and the tormenting mischief are all recorded on Laura’s laptop. Vinny is at first horrified at what Laura has been up to, but when he meets Adrian, he reconsiders his opposition to the ghost game and volunteers to be part of the ghost team. As a result, Laura breaks off her partnership with Adrian, replacing him with the very green Vinny. Adrian fumes about the situation, claiming that he was the one who got the intelligence, and storms off.
Laura and Vinny arrive at the creepy mansion before the new family arrives, to set up their plans. Laura shows Vinny the ropes. Don’t let anyone in the house see you. Ensure the camera traps are at good angles for the best YouTube viewing. Do not become invested in the family. And, above all else, do not interact with the family. Things get off to a rocky start when Adrian also shows up. He will be doing his own haunts, upping the chances that the family will discover them.
Pete, Meg, and Sam soon arrive. They got a screaming deal on the house because legend has it that a woman went mad in the house, poisoning and drowning her family in one of the several bathtubs in the house. Of course, Pete never told Meg about the legacy. The home is from Haunted House Central Casting. It’s a big 18th-century Gothic manor full of staircases, cobwebs, dust… and bathtubs. The house is so big that the new family doesn’t bother exploring the whole house. The ghost gamers hide in the voluminous attic, and go into immediate stealth mode.
Pete and Meg are recently married, and the honeymoon is clearly over. The couple bicker and argue, while young Sam starts to explore her new environs. Pete, apparently, had used Sam as a fraudulent example of a UFO abduction. Since he was revealed as a hoax, he has taken to drinking while trying to recover his reputation with a new book.
As the pranking begins, it unnerves the family. Pete lashes out at Sam, who mentally shuts down, clutching her beloved stuffed elephant Kiki. It all seems like the ghost gamers are going to get some epic footage when strange happenings interrupt the pranker’s best-laid plans. The family is going crazy, and the little tweaks that the gamers are playing don’t hem are exacerbating the family meltdown. However, Somebody… or something… is messing with the gamers. Initially, Laura and Adrian accuse each other of messing up each other’s schemes, but soon, a more violent presence makes itself known, and everyone in the house, including the gamers, is in big trouble.
EVALUATION OF GHOST GAME:Jill Gevardgizian’s second feature film is clever on multiple levels. Who is pranking whom? Is there really a ghost in play? The film is very much shot like a traditional haunted house movie. The focus pulled shots down a multi-story staircase. Hidden doors lead to mysterious passageways. It also employs a bit of Paranormal Activity, with stationary cameras revealing strange goings-on and a way for the ghost gamers to track where the family is and avoid them.
The film reminds me of Don’t Breathe (2016) , with the protagonists as minor criminals, and also The Rental (2020) which features similar video shenanigans. The difficulty with the reverse home invasion concept is that it asks you to sympathize with the criminals. Ghost Game is filled with numerous unlikable characters, but eventually, with some difficulty, you attach to Laura, Vinny, and Sam.
If Kia Doresy wants to stay in Horror, she is going to have a long and successful career. She carries the film from front to back. Laura is a hugely flawed protagonist, but Dorsey imbues her with a noble code despite her actions. She is magnetic. This is Zaen Haidar’s first major film role, and he does well in what amounts to being the audience’s point of view. The whole ghost game is as new to him as it is to us. Vinny is also the social conscience of the group as well. As well drawn as all the characters are, there isn’t a natural chemistry between established. Everybody is in conflict.
The most conflicted character is Pete, portrayed by Mike Williams of The Blair Witch Project. Not surprisingly, Eduard Sanchez, one of the directors of The Blair Witch Project, is also one of the film’s producers. It’s great to see both of them still actively working in the genre. Things don’t go well for Pete in this movie.
The opening and closing acts are riveting and get your blood racing. The second act, however, sometimes felt like a big slog. The second act introduced the family into the mixture, and it just took a while to get through what felt like a lot of exposition. I also would have liked a better resolution to the establishing legend of the house. I’m not sure how much that would have mattered, though, given the conclusion. I did appreciate the slight ambiguity of the film. Kiki, for the win!
CONCLUSIONThis is a fine follow-up to the Stylist for Gevargizian. With the Stylist, she was working with material she was intimately familiar with, and as a hired-on director for Ghost Game, she has proven that she can successfully adapt someone else’s story well. Adam Cesare delivered a great concept and some captivating characters. As they are on the upward curve of their film careers, I expect bigger and better things for both of them. I appreciate horror movies based on side-gig adventures, for being a small press horror journalist is what I do to rev up my internal motor.
I had a very enjoyable discussion with Jill, and you can catch that interview right here. She had an easy demeanor and proved to be a humble and thoughtful interviewee. Unfortunately, I didn’t get this review out soon enough for the Chattanooga Film Festival and the Hysteria Film Festival in St. Louis, where it was due to show up on the circuit. So, the film remains on the circuit for the time being, but it will be streaming later this fall.
The MPAA has not given a rating to Ghost Game. It would certainly receive an R-rating for violence, language, and some gore. It is not an overly gory film, though, and I think this movie would play well with a mature teen audience.
Review by Eric Li The Jill Gevargizian Interview for Ghost Game: Eric and Jill Gevardgizian at the Clinton Street Coffee House for the 2024 Portland Horror Film Festival.
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