DVD Review: It’s Just A Game

November 29, 2020

Written by Kelli Marchman McNeely

Kelli Marchman McNeely is the owner of HorrorFuel.com. She is an Executive Producer of "13 Slays Till Christmas" which is out on Digital and DVD and now streaming on Tubi. She has several other films in the works. Kelli is an animal lover and a true horror addict since the age of 9 when she saw Friday the 13th. Email: horrorfuelinfo@gmail.com

 

 

Writer-director Daniel Emery Taylor’s It’s Just a Game is headed to Blu-ray and DVD. I got a chance to review it and well, these are my thoughts.

 

Brianna (Hannah Cohen-Lawlor) is a shy, bashful teen who is constantly getting humiliated by the other girls in her social circle. Her circumstances change when she is kidnapped by a bizarre incestual cult intent on summoning an ancient witch.

 

Hannah Cohen-Lawlor, Sarah Kopkin, Leah Hudspeth, Rachel Marshall, Alicia Clark, and G Larry Butler star in It’s Just A Game, from Wild Eye Releasing.

 

There are times that I hate doing reviews. I don’t enjoy picking apart a movie that a lot of people put their hard work into. But I think our readers deserve the truth, even if it is a bit harsh. This is one of those times.

 

This low-budget flick has a host of issues, for example, 90% film is too bright, giving it a washed-out look. The strong “tracer effect” used in several scenes with the witch (aka Mother) was a strange choice and turned out more irritating and ugly than anything. I will say this, the use of red and blue light in some scenes was a nice touch.

 

The young cast comes across as being as excited about their roles as they are about their history exams.  The acting well, it comes across as forced and frequently ridiculous (not in a good way) from pretty much every single actor. It was bad.

 

And what’s with the needless nudity and sex? Incestuous sex, check, lesbian sex, check. Neither scene furthers the story in any way. As for the shock value, meh.

 

Most of the effects are kept simple which was a good idea, especially for its low budget. Don’t worry, there is blood and some action but the film relies mostly on its strange story.

 

I think this movie tries to be serious but it isn’t and it doesn’t go far enough to be campy. It just comes out odd.

 

The best part of the movie is its soundtrack, but that’s not enough to save it. There’s just so much wrong with this movie. It’s just bad, and not in a good way. It may be just a game, but the viewer is the one who loses.

 

 

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