Well, if for some reason you’ve ever had the random thought that it would be cool seeing a group of board game loving friends wrapped up in a Taken-like kidnapping mystery – unbeknownst to them (for a good portion of it), then 2018’s Game Night is for you. To have some fun, I have tried to work as many titles of games into this review as possible.
Written by Mark Perez and directed by John Francis Daley (Bones’ Lance Sweets) and Jonathan Goldstein (the pair were part of the writing staff behind Spider-Man: Homecoming), the plot follows a group of weekly game nighters. . . ultra-competitive married couple Max (Jason Bateman) and Annie (Rachel McAdams), long time sweethearts Kevin (Lamorne Morris) and Michelle (Kylie Bunbury), and the oft ridiculed for having a new piece of dim-witted arm candy each week, Ryan (Billy Magnussen – delivering a great comedic performance in which he too is rather dense) – he has finally surprised the gang by bringing a sharp Irish lass named Sarah (Sharon Horgan); each week is a constant battle to discover who will be numero UNO.
Complicating things, their morose and bland next door neighbour Gary (Jesse Plemons), a cop who has recently divorced from his much more outgoing wife, is constantly attempting to get invited to the game. . . something that Max and Annie try to avoid at all costs, coming up with lame excuses to cover up their preparations (three bags of Tostitos for a dollar sound like bs to anyone?).
Further irritating Max, his cooler, better looking, more successful brother Brooks (Kyle Chandler) is back in town (constantly winning THE GAME OF LIFE). . . his return provides him with the perfect opportunity to show off his newly rented home at next week’s game night.
Arriving for the big event, Brooks has pulled a switcheroo, looking to one up the traditional evening’s fare, he has hired a high end company to run an immersive, seemingly real mystery game where someone will get kidnapped – the prize: the man’s vintage Stingray. Of course it is Brooks who gets nabbed (after the fake FBI agent is knocked out – an uncredited cameo by Jeffrey Wright), and the group are extremely impressed by the lifelike way in which he is taken.
Getting to work, they are totally unaware that Brooks is actually in TROUBLE – grabbed by some goons of a notorious gangster (let’s just say that he should be SORRY! for his long hidden behaviour). Splitting up into couples to track down Brooks, they attempt to solve every CLUE, each trying to CONNECT 4 in a wholly different way. Will the couples have the nerve to RISK their lives, using their gaming skills along the way to solve the real-life mystery that is saving Brooks, who is most definitely in JEOPARDY?
An absurdist tale that by all intents and purposes should not work, it is a surprisingly entertaining journey down an ever changing rabbit hole. Perhaps a bit cynically, I kept waiting for it to stumble as it entered the home stretch, though it never does. With surprisingly clever twists along the way, it can be crass (after all, it is R rated), though it is not one of those films that simply does so because the writers just think it is funny. It has a reason, a purpose, an end gag in sight. Taking some risks along the way, a moment finds one of the couples forced to play their own real-life version of OPERATION, a scene that should appeal to those who like both comedy and some blood. Also, look for subtly hidden takes on GUESS WHO and JENGA within the context of the narrative.
The dialogue is sharp and quick (often meaning you have to pay attention – there is a quick one liner making fun of child actors not amounting to much – a clear riff on Bateman himself), playing off the film’s themes of games, criminality, and a group of friends that really have no skills to be in such a harrowing scenario. For when Annie turns the tables on the thugs, thinking she is simply using a fake firearm, she tells them to get “on your knees. Hands in the air. Heads on the ground. Eyes closed. . .” – something the guys point out is impossible, to which she answers with a yoga pose. . . again, showing how very un-criminal like they are. Actually, much of the film’s success goes to the actors, as it is clear they are letting loose and having some fun. When combined with the solid writing effort, each of the main cast feels well rounded and real, and even when there seems to be dialogue that is flippant, it usually comes back in surprisingly entertaining ways. Also, there are two shorter cameos from the great Danny Huston and Michael C. Hall, matching the main casts’ energy stride for stride.
That is not to slight the surprisingly nimble direction. For a more comedically centred feature, its action set pieces are impressively well crafted. A gag with a conveyor belt is outrageously hilarious, while a chase scene in a mansion is cleverly put together in what looks to be one extended take (a nice touch, since several Quentin Tarantino movies are mentioned throughout – and one of the director’s trademarks is the long single take). The action sequences never sacrifice comedy, and vice versa, making for a perfect mix of the two genres. A final touch worth mentioning found the directors utilizing a special tilt-shift lens so that the aerial shots of Max and Annie’s neighbourhood make it look like the miniaturized urban setup found in a board game.
An original premise that deftly balances comedy, crime, action and drama, Game Night is more fun than a BARREL OF MONKEYS. So if you want to see things get a bit dicey, make sure to check this one out, it’s dark humour done right.