Don't Hang Up

"Don't Hang Up" (2017) is an absolutely derivative horror movie that nevertheless manages to be halfway decent. I'd rate it a 7 out of 10.

We follow a handful of older teenage boys whose favorite avocation is perpetrating cruel prank phone calls and then posting them on the Internet. The horror genre's penchant for vengeance should make their comeuppance predictable. "Don't Hang Up" seems to borrow in equal (large) measure from the "Saw" and "Scream" film franchises, with touches of "Unfriended" (2014) and even "Silence of the Lambs" (1991).

Still, this was a halfway serviceable scary movie. There were nice moments of tension, and it held my interest.

This doesn't belong on anyone's must-see list, but it's a fun enough time-waster if you can't find a better movie.

Just got done watching it. Really liked it, nothing new but well done on old ideas. Kind of a cross between "I know what you did last summer" and "saw" with maybe a little "are you in the house alone" mixed in. High tension throughout, kept me interested and played out well. Lots of horror tropes that we all know and love (well some of us anyway) Looking at IMDb reviews and a lot of people didn't like it. But they're the same people who only like the artsier horror like Babadook or The Witch. Both good movies but sometimes you just want a good old fashioned slasher, something that doesn't make you think or try and figure it out. This is that movie.

Good production value, good use of lighting, sound etc. Acting was decent and even though the ideas were old I thought the way they were brought about was good. I give it an 8 of 10, good use of an hour and a half on a boring night.

If you are a film student you know that the "reversal" usually comes in the final act, and there is a reason for that. By that point, the viewer is fully engaged, the endorphins are pumping, the action is flowing, and there is a need to take things up a notch.

What is happening here -- and let's give credit where credit is due -- is that the reversal takes place off the top, two pranksters get the tables turned, and it all happens in the first 10 minutes.

That is clever and it is a great start. But it creates problems. If you bring the reversal in too early, you run the risk of becoming dependent on it to drive the film, instead of relying on the basics. Such as dialog, characterizations, empathy, viewer connection.

Which is what happens here. After a great start there are major chunks that just lag, and the reason is that -- to be blunt -- by the halfway point, if you are a typical viewer, you don't really care if the 'slasher' gets the kids or the kids get the slasher. NO EMPATHY.

Many of the subsequent "slasher tropes" that close the third act are just that -- borrowed tricks from dozens of films you have already seen.

Overall the film is technically perfect and at some point in the not-too-distant future, those involved in it will look back at DON'T HANG UP as a great start for their Highlight Reel, but not entirely representative of their best work.

id recommend this movie for the ending, some what predictable, and somewhat not, ultimately rewarding. i mean, its touching on something millennials are literally making profitable lifestyles out of... who hasn't binge watched prank videos on youtube for hours before. this movie depicts a watch worthy result of one gone too far.

I did have low expectations going in after seeing the trailer thinking to myself "how many more times can they do this type of film?" However, it wasn't as bad as I expected. The plot twist at the end was refreshing, but I had trouble with the two main leads - I don't feel they were cast properly and belonged instead in some low budget comedy, not a thriller of this caliber. They were very unconvincing. Even the rest of the cast were nothing special. What was the most impressive was the directing, editing and cinematography - the latter of which I felt was too good for this type of film (i.e. camera zooms from keyhole). The pace was slow, but otherwise this film was not too shabby. It's a 6/10 form me