Ticketworthy! - Drop

It can be very difficult for a filmmaker to strike a balance between excitement and lightheartedness in their film. Push too far in either direction and you risk making the whole thing feel disconnected and incoherent. Christopher Landon, director of the fantastic Happy Death Day movies, clearly has a real knack for finding that balance, as evidenced by his latest outing, Drop.

The story follows Violet (Meghann Fahy), a single mother and abuse survivor who is finally ready to get back into the dating scene. Her first date with photographer Henry (Brandon Sklenar) goes horribly wrong when someone starts sending her messages on her phone and reveals that they have someone in her house, ready to kill her son, if she doesn’t kill her date. What follows is a tense search for a way out as Violet tries to keep Henry from learning what’s going on while she figures out which of the other diners is her tormentor.

Fahy was the one real highlight of The Unbreakable Boy earlier this year, and she’s in equally fine form here. She plays Violet with a perfect mix of fear, humor, desperation, and determination, often all at the same time. The skill required to play a character that is basically playing a character of her own for most of the movie is impressive. Sklenar deserves some praise too, he’s extraordinarily likeable and conveys so much in just a look. The writing for his character isn’t quite as strong as Fahy’s, but he does quite well with what he’s given.

The real star here, though, is Landon. Bad directing can sink a movie, but good directing is often easy to miss. Not so with Drop. Most of the movie takes place in a single, packed dining room and, because of the premise requiring the villain to be within a certain distance of our heroine, the locations of the various characters are all very important. Landon conducts the actors masterfully, using the layout of the restaurant and clever blocking to keep both Violet and the audience guessing the entire time. I was also really impressed with the visual effects and stylistic choices. At times the use of lighting and effects bordered on campy, but never quite crossed the line.  

It’s a good thing that Landon is able to use his skills to keep the audience engaged, because, sadly, the script probably wouldn’t have managed it on its own. Even with the performances and directing, there are still several parts of the movie that drag a bit. Not every twist works, some are a bit predictable, so it’s easy to get drawn out of the story from time to time. I also found myself scratching my head at the choice to make the finale a drawn-out fight sequence, despite not being a terribly violent film up to that point. It’s a weird shift and feels like it belongs in a different movie.

Script weakness and tonal issues aside, the acting and directing are so solid that I found myself having a great time anyway. It’s a perfect combination of cast and crew all knowing exactly what they need to do to make the best movie they can and then executing that. Everything may not be perfect, but it’s fun and left me wanting more. That’s pretty good for a first date.