Truth or Dare (2018)

Directed by: Jeff Wadlow | 100 minutes | horror, thriller | Actors: Lucy Hale, Tyler Posey, Violett Beane, Sophie Ali, Nolan Gerard Funk, Landon Liboiron, Sam Lerner, Brady Smith, Hayden Szeto, Morgan Lindholm, Aurora Perrineau, Leslie Stratton, Tom Choi, Carlo Sciortino, Ezmie Garcia

Horror has been gaining popularity in recent years. Thanks to films such as ‘Insidious’ and ‘Escape Room’, the audience is flocking to the halls again. The genre fan will have noticed the difference in quality between the two titles mentioned. Is the recently released ‘Truth or Dare’ an exciting nail-biter in the style of ‘Insidious’ or an uninspired slasher à la ‘Escape Room’?

In ‘Truth or Dare’, a group of students decide to play a game of ‘Do, dare or truth’ during spring break. Stupid move, because this ends in a life-threatening session. Supernatural powers turn a game of ‘Truth or Dare’ into a bloodbath. To survive, the youngsters must carry out dangerous assignments or tell the truth. It soon becomes apparent that each participant has some shocking secrets to hide.

To directly answer the question from the first paragraph: ‘Truth or Dare’ is an anemic slasher and not a blood-curdling thriller. It’s clear that director Jeff Wadlow and the cast didn’t feel like it, because the lack of interest just explodes. The acting is bad, the characters lack substance, the special effects are lousy and the murders are portrayed very safely (read: boring).

Horror is a genre not known for originality, new angles, or in-depth messages. Doesn’t matter, because the public is relatively easily satisfied as long as their expectations are met. Gore massacres, cleverly timed scares, interesting twists or cool villains: that’s all you need to make a great slasher or horror thriller. However, ‘Truth or Dare’ has nothing to offer in the aforementioned areas.

The lack of a monster kills the film. Just before a murder, the participants of ‘Truth or Dare’ get a macabre grimace on their faces and shout the name of the game in a distorted voice. The cheap computer effects make these changes look very cheap and laughable. What should be ugly, looks comical. In addition, the murders are portrayed rather fantasy and bloodless. Because the cast is bad acting and unsympathetic, their fate leaves you cold.

What remains is anonymous Hollywood horror for tweens. Someone who has never seen a horror film may find this production still watchable. Genre fans can safely skip this movie and that is the complete truth.