You Die: Get the App, Then Die

Watching or rather comparing two movies with similar themes, especially in the horror genre, can be quite unflattering for one of the movies that are being compared. While this isn't totally bad, it also is not really good either. Bad moments include acting choices, the "evil lurking" and way too many jump scares that surely get way too annoying. And by jump scares I'm being literal: people jumping into frame to scare other people.

Having said that, there are redeeming factors and I'd say especially those who have not seen It follows might find more interesting suspension levels in this, than those who have and might have a higher standard of horror - in many regards. So maybe for some horror heads this will work, but casual watchers should stick to It follows or something else.

I loved this movie! It builds tension right from the start and scared the crap outta me over and over again without being cheap. This is a well-built movie all around and I can't believe I've never heard of it!

I was about to try to explain the premise but I myself went into this completely blind and I think it's better that way, honestly.

Well shot, well acted, great premise, great score, scary as hell, dramatic, and intense. If you like scary movies that rely more on tension than gore or jump scares, I can't recommend this enough!

A few things: 1. It's in Italian with English subtitles so if you can't stand subtitles then I feel really bad for you for missing out on all the wonderful subtitled horror titles out there, especially from Asia, but I get it - some people just don't like subtitles. 2. IMDb inexplicably says this is a Mexican movie when it's in Italian and set in Italy, so ignore that. 3. The movie starts rather abruptly and you don't see the title card or any credits until almost ten minutes in. It felt a little weird but ultimately I liked just being thrown into the movie like that.

The worst thing I will say about this movie is that it slows down a little at around the three quarter mark when I wanted the tension to keep going and building, but that's a tiny gripe.

As of this writing in late June 2021, it is on Amazon Prime, which is where I watched it. It's worth buying or renting from wherever, in my opinion. Highly recommended.

Edit: Looks like it's gone from Amazon, but you can watch it on Tubi for free now (3/25/2022)

"You Die - Get the app, then die" is a kind of "It Follows" spin-off, not about a demon as a sexual disease that you must throw into other person before it can kill you. This time an app must be unloaded in other person cell phone before a dead person can kill you. This Italian film is full of easy jump scares and then it become a slow film. Some good acting, decent cinematography and an unoriginal script. "You Die - Get the app, then die" is a bad film with some good scenes, but very forgettable. Now there is a film titled "Countdown", a similar one, the filmmakers need new ideas.

Firstly, not in english, so an immediate disappointment right there...secondly, overly loud music swells that have you grabbing for the remote every 2 minutes. Finally, i knew in the first minute that it would be awful....an attractive lady, in cutoffs, fishnets, and clog shoes, walking alkne at night in a deserted subway? That just screams lazy filmmaking. Not to mention, the entire thing is cut and edited incoherently and is more intrested in appearing "artistic" than entertaining, or good. If your intrest is in cinemaphotography, thats cool....but stick to your arthouse films and stop tryibg to trick people into seeing your garbage work by calling it horror. The only thing horror aboutvthis film was that it was horrific.

Now I've seen It Follow and Countdown as well and this one looks like their baby. Sure, the latter one appeared after You Die, but this is a mix between them. If I were to choose between You Die and Countdown, I'd pick the second one because that one tries to be its own movie.

The similarities between the italian production and It Follows are simply too many to take the movie seriously. Even more a lot of the spreading happens between people that are engaging in sexual acts, so come on, show some originality, make it seem fresh just a little. I'm telling you the biggest difference between these two movies is the language, so you could try it out in order to see a lookalike. Italy is known in its older cinema for copying a lot of monster movies and other horror productions, and I guess this one is proof that it still happens every now and then. I've seen some recent Italian horrors, this one being the first that is too much of the same, so overall, I'll let it slip as an accident.

Also the very beginning of the movie reminded me of Creep (2004) a little, and I think that was a nice touch. Thus all in all watch it but know what to expect, otherwise it might seem infuriating.

Cheers!