Review of The Final Girls (2015) by Lane Z — 30 Oct 2015

Sometimes when you're perusing films that fly under the radar, you find a gem. That is exactly what "The Final Girls" is when you consider all the variables that came together to make this movie.

Anchored with some well-known actors like Malin Akerman, Nina Dobrev, Thomas Middleditch, Alia Shawkat, Alexander Ludwig and Adam Devin, all the pressure is taken off the main star of the show and newbie Taissa Farmiga. With so much talent on the field outside Farmiga, she gets a chance to relax and really shine by letting loose. Aside from the fact she looks exactly like her sister (yes Vera is her SISTER), it appears she has all the chops needed to be an actor.

The movie takes a stabby, comic look at horror slasher films in quite an entertaining way by transporting our characters from real life into the movie when things go awry during an anniversary showing at a theater. You get all the general happenstances like certain characters dying in expected ways because of their stereotypes or musical ques that hit when certain things are expected to happen. But what really sets this movie above a typical satire or meta look at the slasher style is the surprising emotional angle from its main characters.

If you go into this movie expecting only a horror flick, you're bound to be disappointed due to the great comedy, both dialogue and physical. If you're expecting only a spoof, again, you'll be surprised with a few scares.

While you get great comedic performances from its star studded cast and a great breakthrough for Farmiga, I'll be honest when I say the movie felt rushed. It breezes by in a cool 90 minutes, but I could really watch much more. While the writers copped out just a tad with some of the characters, it still had a satisfying result to conclude everything.