MOVIE REVIEW: We head towards the edge with mystery-thriller 'Drop'
Several suspects served up on menu during first date from hell.
Having helmed the Happy Death Day flicks and Freaky, Christopher Landon has built up a strong reputation for comedy-horror.
With Drop he veers into mystery-thriller territory as widowed mum Violet (Meghann Fahy) is bombarded with anonymous threatening messages on her phone during her first date with Henry (Brandon Sklenar).
The whodunnit element is effectively played out in Jillian Jacobs' and Chris Roach's script as several potential suspects fill the luxurious restaurant.
Violet is literally and figuratively dangling over the edge with an evil blackmailer manipulating her every move while she looks out on a colossal drop from the window at her table.
Landon jazzes up his shooting style with swooping shots, close-ups on faces and key objects and on-screen text sharing the messages Violet is receiving.
Fahy, a relative unknown beyond her turn in TV's The White Lotus, is wonderful as the under intense pressure, out to do the right thing lead.
Her powerful back story lends her character vulnerability and an understandable lack of trust in others.
Sklenar is charm personified; the guy is so likeable, caring and funny you're praying he isn't involved in Violet's torment.
The supporting characters all play their part in adding to the mystery while making for endearing or irritating possible suspects or allies.
This is Landon's most serious movie thus far, although he does include some jokes, and Jeffery Self's first night on the job waiter Matt feels like he's been dropped in from a comedy flick.
The amount of times Violet gets up from the table becomes ridiculous and you end up questioning why even a sweet guy like Henry wouldn't call it a night.
Landon really goes for broke with a wild ending that increases the element of danger and it works as a resolution to the numerous tense face-to-face encounters where characters are often trying their best to say things with body language or avoid doing something terrible.
Drop is Landon's most mature outing to date and its Hitchcockian trappings mix well with modern technology and attitudes.
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