Review of Green Room (2016) by Elias S — 26 Apr 2017

I was absolutely shocked to see that this movie was on netflix, which usually doesn't pick up the best horror films. People that are on the negative end of the spectrum seem to think that Blue Ruin was a better film than this one, and perhaps those are the more squeamish of people, the ones who didn't try and understand the deeper layers of this film. While wonderfully artistically composed, with green popping everywhere (much like the blue in Blue Ruin, go figure) it is a buffet for the eyes, and it is just amazing how real Saulnier can make a film feel. Everyone is complaining about a lack of character development, which is fair, but this isn't a European film heavily relying on them either. The situation they are put in is one no one is equipped to face, and he displays this really well as they are frantic to get out, and make several mistakes along the way (we are only human). The reality of it all is that they do not care who dies, and instead of keeping the pretty band girl alive, he decides to make an unexpected character the protagonist, a beautiful flip in structure and one that kept me wondering "what the fuck is happening.

There are surprises lurking in every corner and half the stuff that happened had me sick to my stomach in the best way. I don't remember the last time I was on the edge of my seat the entire movie and am quite shocked that only 75% like it because of the ~100 horror films i've seen in the past 2 years, this is at the very top of my list. Intelligent, Truthful, Gritty. Green Room delivers on aesthetics, thrills, and scares, and is a must watch for anyone looking to get their jaw dropped and keep it dropped til the movie is over.