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Average User Score: 7 (52 sources)

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colonel_forte

-1

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I don't believe in movie ghosts, the kind of evil spirits that can pop out of closets, shadows, TV's and such and this movie is no different. These movies don't scare me and most of the time the ridiculous amounts of gore and silly characters...
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I don't believe in movie ghosts, the kind of evil spirits that can pop out of closets, shadows, TV's and such and this movie is no different. These movies don't scare me and most of the time the ridiculous amounts of gore and silly characters deter me from even watching.

I am a fan of videogames and videogame movies though. In this particular case the movie also happened to have a pretty stellar cast. I do enjoy the references to Elizabeth Bathory, a real-life serial-killer (one of the most well-known women serial-killers too) because at least people who didn't know might have learned some real history too.

Poorly written characters, bad dialogue and ridiculous situations in which normal people would never find themselves and always react as stupidly as possible are par for the course in horror movies, this one is no different. Fans of the genre already know this and don't care or else they wouldn't be fans of the genre, so in that respect the movie is perfectly fine.

It wins points for originality and the fact that it isn't a silly remake of an Asian horror film in a Hollywood climate of "if it worked once it'll work again" as well.

Horror fans should check it out, videogame fans should also check it out for all of the in-jokes and fandom allusions and if you liked any horror film featuring any of the silly plot-devices I mentioned previously then you may like this too.

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Posted mar 14, 2009 10:59 pm pt

LB80

-1

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The movie finale is half decent, and the death scenes (despite obviously being heavily cut at times) were fairly entertaining, but overall, this film's failings are clear to see thanks to poor direction, woefull acting, and a story that couldn't...
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The movie finale is half decent, and the death scenes (despite obviously being heavily cut at times) were fairly entertaining, but overall, this film's failings are clear to see thanks to poor direction, woefull acting, and a story that couldn't be less original and more cliche ridden if it tried.

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Posted jan 11, 2009 7:08 pm pt

StarBlade_0_0_9

-1

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A bunch of people play a video game. When their chactrs die, they start dying also.

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Posted mar 25, 2008 5:24 pm pt

jaws2341

-1

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good game.....i mean movie

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Posted feb 20, 2008 12:30 am pt

Jordan765

-1

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This was the best movie that frsnkie muniz has evr done and the game in it well im not a that kind of guy that sits in all day and plays video games unlike some sadows below me but im a big fan of Frankie munizand this film was exciting the plot...
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This was the best movie that frsnkie muniz has evr done and the game in it well im not a that kind of guy that sits in all day and plays video games unlike some sadows below me but im a big fan of Frankie munizand this film was exciting the plot behind the film was spooky and very well written and good on you frankie for finaly taking that leap of horror instead of the kiddy fils that youve done in the past im all of your films are brill :} keep up the good work Frankie

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Posted jul 30, 2007 7:20 am pt

gamer4life27

-1

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I loved this movie i just saw it! Its at least a 4-star movie.Its worth a watch! I also don't know why people hate this movie! It was great, stop drinking Hatorade people!

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Posted jul 12, 2007 8:32 am pt

Tru_Slayer

-1

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So when I first heard about this movie I thought it was going to be like most movies involving video games which are normally cheesy with no real plot. Well I have to say I really like the concept of this movie being a gamer myself. However I can...
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So when I first heard about this movie I thought it was going to be like most movies involving video games which are normally cheesy with no real plot. Well I have to say I really like the concept of this movie being a gamer myself. However I can think of a long list of movies that had great concepts but their actual stories fell short. Sad to say this is another movie to add to that list. I must say I really liked the game in the movie. I wish they also made the game along with movie minus the being killed if you play it part. :) The acting wasn't horrible but it wasn't great either. If you are a gamer this movie is worth your time if only to check out the game. If you like mild horror films this movie might be worth your time. If you are anyone else, then this movie isn't worth your time.

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Posted jul 4, 2007 1:28 pm pt

arctattoo

-1

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I was excited when they started playing this movie on cable. But to be honest I was a little disappointed with it. The whole back story about Elizabeth Bathory was great! I think they should have gone more in that direction. The fact that they...
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I was excited when they started playing this movie on cable. But to be honest I was a little disappointed with it. The whole back story about Elizabeth Bathory was great! I think they should have gone more in that direction. The fact that they turned a brilliant moment in history for horror fans, into a cheesey kind of video game was kind of a let down. I give this one a 4 out of 10. It would have gotten a 1 or a 2 but since it actually talked about Elizabeth Bathory, it got an extra few points just for that!

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Posted jun 4, 2007 11:41 pm pt

Campboy24

-1

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I just finished watching this movie, and man was it awesome!

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Posted feb 9, 2007 8:40 am pt

Samuka

-1

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I liked the movie. Pretty original about the game interfering in the real life thing. It's just like "The Ring" movie, with a lot of Samaras everywhere, running after you just because you watched the tape (in this case, played the game)....
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I liked the movie. Pretty original about the game interfering in the real life thing. It's just like "The Ring" movie, with a lot of Samaras everywhere, running after you just because you watched the tape (in this case, played the game). But, above all this, I liked the movie and specially the game.. . I wanna play that game, even if it kills me!!

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Posted feb 7, 2007 1:28 pm pt

• [+] TV Guide
  
  50
  Horror buffs looking for a novel twist on genre formulas should look elsewhere, but this body-count potboiler about a sinister video game and the poor dopes who make the mistake of playing it is the movie equivalent of junk food: It's not good, but it's predictable and even satisfying, in a low-expectations way.

  by Maitland McDonagh | Read Full Review »
• [+] The Hollywood Reporter
  
  50
  A passable horror-thriller for the young crowd, assuming a movie can lure them away from PlayStations.

  by Kirk Honeycutt | Read Full Review »
• [+] Variety
  
  50
  Despite some hackneyed qualities, helmer William Brent Bell's good-looking if undistinguished cast and the seemingly fresh twist on an old tale should lure the usual fans of mayhem, murder and the medieval.

  by John Anderson | Read Full Review »
• [+] Los Angeles Times
  
  40
  Stay Alive spends a lot of time inside the video game system, and what will terrify the audience very early on is the realization that there's better acting in the video game than on the big screen.

  by John Anderson | Read Full Review »
• [+] Chicago Reader
  
  40
  There's a gothic backstory to all this, which makes no sense but looks pretty cool.

  by J.R. Jones | Read Full Review »
• [+] The New York Times
  
  40
  The star of Stay Alive is a cutting-edge video game, but the film still has hackneyed horror at its heart. And worse, it's not even the stylishly, wittily executed hackneyed horror of the "Scream" movies.

  by Neil Genzlinger | Read Full Review »
• [+] The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
  
  38
  Here's a movie that tries to be a video game but is less entertaining than a vending machine.

  by Jason Anderson | Read Full Review »
• [+] Boston Globe
  
  38
  Always the way in horror flicks: These first scenes, when the characters are being tenderly established and the concept is still young, are the best.

  by James Parker | Read Full Review »
• [+] New York Daily News
  
  38
  There's a fascinating and terrifying story to be told about Elizabeth Bathory, the dramatically depraved 17th century sadist known as the Blood Countess.....This ain't it.

  by Elizabeth Weitzman | Read Full Review »
• [+] LA Weekly
  
  30
  Stay Alive is death porn without the porn: Director William Brent Bell's pre-gore cutaways should enrage even those horror buffs for whom suspense is irrelevant, to say nothing of the fact that the movie's only real scare tactic is playing what sounds like a reverbed electric razor on the soundtrack.

  by Ben Kenigsberg | Read Full Review »
• [+] Film Threat
  
  30
  I never really expected something so utterly lame-brained. Though, the film is not as awful as I've heard, it's quite possibly the laziest script I've ever seen.

  by Felix Vasques Jr. | Read Full Review »
• [+] San Francisco Chronicle
  
  25
  Works better as unintentional comedy than horror.

  by Neva Chonin | Read Full Review »
• [+] Empire
  
  20
  A cool idea rapidly falls apart. A completely missed opportunity.

  by James Dyer | Read Full Review »
• [+] The Onion (A.V. Club)
  
  16
  A laughable would-be fright-fest that's as strikingly inept as a Boll movie, but nowhere near as much guilty fun.

  by Nathan Rabin | Read Full Review »
• [+] Entertainment Weekly
  
  16
  Videogames are no longer brainless, so why are videogame movies so slow to evolve?

  by Gregory Kirschling | Read Full Review »