The Resort Review

I’m usually behind when it comes to the latest and greatest releases, but one recent option caught my eye because of the poster. They say never judge a book by the cover, and well, a good poster will get me to watch just about anything. That’s what happened with “The Resort” a movie that has akiller poster, and the one thing that drew me in. Now, I like movies like “A Perfect Getaway” and “The Ruins”, so I figured this was going to be along those lines. What I found instead was something that played more to a television romp than a full-length feature, and that’s not necessarily bad, but it’s far from good too.

The plot of “The Resort” is simple enough, a group of friends are traveling to an abandoned resort and want to see what paranormal elements are there. The search for the “half-faced girl” is in the plot as well, and it honestly features just a handful of people.

What should be a slam dunk, turns into a movie of privileged people walking around debating topics that are not critical to the plot. There’s a lot of this, so much so that you are left wondering if this is a horror movie at all. Things go off the rail in the third and fourth act, and the real horror comes through, but by that point the majority of the audience has thrown in the towel.

“The Resort” has pacing issues. It’s slow, and without a formidable amount of jump scares, you’re left asking why the plot works. There are moments when you’ll even ask yourself why things are happening, and why decisions are made the way they are. Heck, you’ll just throw the rule book out the window by the time the real horror comes through, and you’re left with a possession element.

If there’s anything to praise about this movie it’s the practical effects that are utilized in horror elements of the movie. They are not CGI from what I can tell, and that’s a plus in my book. However, getting to that aspect of the movie takes you a long time, and by that point you’re either in or you’re out. I was definitely on my way out, but I stuck with it, and it turned out to be ok at best. I don’t recommend “The Resort” but hey, if you’re a horror addict, you may want to pick up the dvd.