“Blumhouse’s Truth or Dare” is one of those teenager based horror movies that tries to be memorable but in reality is nothing shy of a typical and unoriginal cash grab.
It stars Lucy Hale of “Pretty Little Liars” fame. Hale is a rising player in film, albeit in less than Oscar nominated parts. Here, she plays Olivia Barron, a goodie-two-shoes over achieving college senior. Olivia and a group of friends take a trip to Mexico where they stumble across a sinister game of (you guessed it) truth or dare – a game with dire consequences. “Tell the truth, or you die. Do the dare, or you die. Refuse to play or you die.” As one character so forensically explains.
I immediately took note of how “Truth or Dare” takes its initial scenes; someone trying to shake a curse by passing it on to someone else, from the great 2014 piece “It Follows.” As the character explains. “I’m okay with strangers dying if I get to live.” That’s where the similarities between the two films ends.
Lucy hale is a capable actress and let’s be honest, a pretty face. As Olivia Barron, she’s a go-getter type who strives to help others but has a little more darkness beneath the surface. The rest of the cast is typical stupid college kids said to be on their last spring break ever (Because adults obviously can’t take vacations). One quick round of the game truth or dare reveals all the background for each of Olivia’s friends. Most are reprehensible, and as one would expect, those are the ones that die first.
The movie opens in a brutal fashion, but the rest of the film is quite tame, maintaining the okay for teenage audience target. There are actually some cool effects. A lot of people have criticized the contorted demonic faces that are present when the game is being played, but I found it an intriguing bit of horror – though overplayed by the end.
“Truth or Dare” is a pretty forgettable movie. Truth or dare, Matt…Um…Truth? It sucks.
