Stay Alive (2006)

Director:

William Brent Bell

Writers (WGA):

William Brent Bell (written by) &
Matthew Peterman (written by)

Release Date:

24 March 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

It's the game of life and death....

Plot:

For a group of teens, the answer to the mysterious death of their old friend lies within the world of an online video game based on the true story of an ancient noblewoman known as the Blood Countess.

Plot Keywords:

Blood Countess | Flashback Sequence | Police Officer Killed | Chase Scene | Car Accident

US TV Schedule:

Wed. July 9	12:00 PM	USA
Thur. July 10	2:35 AM	USA

Cast

Jon Foster	...	Hutch
Samaire Armstrong	...	Abigail
Frankie Muniz	...	Swink
Jimmi Simpson	...	Phineus
Wendell Pierce	...	Detective Thibodeaux
Milo Ventimiglia	...	Loomis Crowley
Sophia Bush	...	October
Adam Goldberg	...	Miller Banks
Billy Slaughter	...	Rex
Nicole Oppermann	...	Sarah
April Wood	...	Loretta
Monica Monica	...	Mrs. Crowley
Rio Hackford	...	Detective King
Billy Louviere	...	Fidget
J. Richey Nash	...	Young Rookie (as Richey Nash)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for horror violence, disturbing images, language, brief sexual and drug content.

Runtime:

USA:85 min | Argentina:85 min | 100 min (Unrated Director's Cut)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

Canada:14A | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Argentina:13 | Finland:K-18 | Malaysia:18SG | Philippines:PG-13 | Brazil:16 | France:U (with warning) | South Korea:15 | Singapore:PG | Italy:T | Germany:16 (director's cut) | Ireland:15A | Singapore:M18 (director's cut) | UK:15 | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Ontario) | Australia:MA (director's cut) | Norway:15 | Australia:M | USA:PG-13 | Portugal:M/16

Filming Locations:

Esplanade Mall - 1401 West Esplanade, Kenner, Louisiana, USA

Company:

Hollywood Pictures

Trivia:

Steve Zahn was originally cast as Miller, but at the last second Adam Goldberg was cast in the role.

Goofs:

Continuity: At the beginning of the movie, the mansion is shown with Loomis playing. Later when the rest of the group plays, the layout of the mansion is completely different. Towards the end of the movie, the actual mansion Hutch and Abigail are in and the mansion Swink plays in the game are different from the others. The layout of the game mansion and the live mansion never match the previous.

Quotes:

Abigail: I hate telling people the truth and watching 'em get embarassed for that!

Movie Connections:

References Rei Zero (2001) (VG)

Soundtrack:

Sweet Dreams

A Decent Movie -- But wait for the DVD

STAY ALIVE Rated PG-13 for horror violence, disturbing images, language, brief sexual and drug content. Directed By: William Brent Bell Starring: Jon Foster, Frankie Muniz, Samaire Armstrong, and Sophia Bush Runtime: 85 minutes

TO MAKE A LONG STORY SHORT

7 out of 10. Not very scary, but it is enjoyable.

THE LONG VERSION

OK. I was not expecting much from this flik from the get-go. Script although more original than most of the crap movies to come out lately, was still nothing ground breaking. And, having a relatively unknown director on the project wasn't giving this film any better buzz. Then the trailer was released, which made this movie look even worse. So today I see a matinée for this film with a friend of mine, and I'm surprised to find myself watching a genuinely interesting film.

Is it scary? Not really. There's a few boo scares thrown around, but none of them really work. I like during some of the creepy scenes how silent it was, but it never really paid off properly.

Is it at least suspenseful? Yes. It is, in fact, very suspenseful. There are some really cool chase scenes, and some pretty decent "what was that!?" moments.

Is it gory? No. The pictures were, as most suspected, quick shots in the film, and you barely saw any of it. This was, of course, to keep this flik pg13. That's annoying, but whatever, I could get over it rather quickly.

Editing, Directing, etc. was all pretty solid, nothing shocking, but nothing horrible either.

And now, to the part most people are probably interested in: How was the video game sequences? Awesome. This is by far the best part of the movie. When it goes into the video game, it gets really cool. The beginning shines best in this particular style the movie goes for. With some creepy "Samara" like ghosts crawling around, and plenty of stabbing, the video game sequences are the scariest and goriest parts of the flik. These are the scenes that truly shine.

So what else can I say? It's an enjoyable flik that floats in mediocrity until the video game sequences. Thats when it shines. Which makes this a 7 rather than a 6 out of 10.

All in all: Not very scary, but suspenseful. A pretty solid film that can entertain you, but there will definitely be haters. I say lean back and enjoy a decent rental (when it's released on DVD that is) It will be worth the 6-8 bucks you pay for it.