Movie Review: Go/Don’t Go

January 13, 2021

Written by Joseph Perry

Joseph Perry is the Film Festival Editor for Horror Fuel; all film festival related queries and announcements should be sent to him at josephperry@gmail.com. He is a contributing writer for the "Phantom of the Movies VideoScope" and “Drive-In Asylum” print magazines and the websites Gruesome Magazine, Diabolique Magazine, The Scariest Things, B&S About Movies, and When It Was Cool. He is a co-host of the "Uphill Both Ways" pop culture nostalgia podcast and also writes for its website. Joseph occasionally proudly co-writes articles with his son Cohen Perry, who is a film critic in his own right. A former northern Californian and Oregonian, Joseph has been teaching, writing, and living in South Korea since 2008.

Alex Knapp writes, directs, and stars in his first feature at the helm, Go/Don’t Go. The film is a quiet meditation and character study of possibly the lone survivor in a postapocalyptic world. 

Go/Don’t Go plays more like a poetic drama about loneliness and the loss of love than typical postapocalyptic horror movies, thrillers, and science fiction films, so viewers expecting zombie hordes, mutants roaming the desert on souped-up vehicles, or agonizing deaths by virus should seek out other fare for that. Knapp’s film is difficult to describe as even a slow-burn because it doesn’t build to a thrilling or terrifying climax, though its ending is quite satisfying given viewer investment in the main character.

Knapp portrays Adam, a socially awkward, painfully shy young man who is introduced by a friend at a social gathering to K (Olivia Luccardi in a moving supporting role), a woman who does her best to coax Adam out of his shell. The two fall in love, and when an enigmatic event occurs that threatens mankind’s existence, Adam finds himself alone in the world.

Go/Don’t Go deals with Adam’s attempt to stay sane and alive by performing daily routines and chores, including working as a mechanic and exploring areas within walking or short driving distance. Sometimes during these routines or occasional setbacks, Adam hears or sees something that presses his panic button, and at other times, he flashes back to fond memories with K. 

Knapp has crafted a contemplative slice of cinema that doesn’t so much mash up genres as it does tread uncharted pathways between them. Quite honestly, there were times where Go/Don’t Go felt like something of an endurance test, and others where it felt more rewarding. There are several long stretches without dialogue, and some elements are left unexplained. Knapp is on screen for pretty much every scene, and he gives a solid performance, with he and Luccardi providing believable chemistry between their characters. His direction is well done and fully committed to the film’s deliberate pace. Sharp cinematography from Frankie Turiano and a brooding soundtrack round out the proceedings well. 

Viewers willing to give themselves over to the horrors of loneliness, isolation, and lost love rather than gory or sinister elements should find Go/Don’t Go to be a stirring alternative to louder, more aggressive genre fare. A Gravitas Ventures release, the film is available On Demand and Digital from January 12, 2021.

 

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