Horror movies and video games are two separate entities. One is more hands-on while the other is a straight visual experience. However, they’re both meant to transport you into another world, one more terrifying. “Resident Evil” and “Silent Hill” are two examples of how video games can morph into phenomenal films. Yet, not every adaptation is a smash hit. “Until Dawn” (2025), instead of following the game’s plot, references every horror movie cliche. So buckle up, VALLEY is here to rank them for you in order of ridiculousness.
7. Unnatural Weather
When the main characters first arrive at the cabin, there’s a thick wall of rain. They stick their arm out and half of it gets poured on. While this seems a bit weird, it doesn’t create an eerie feeling. Many cabin horror films have used strange weather before (not that original).
6. Unnecessary Gore
There are film franchises like “Terrifier” that rely solely on insane gore to get by. Unfortunately, this film followed that cliche too. The characters kept dying in graphic ways but with no tie backs to the plot. Their deaths were unnecessarily brutal, and it was clear the first few times this pattern would continue. Boo.
5. and 4. Possession/Invisible Force
One of the characters gets possessed, levitates off the ground and starts talking like the missing person posters at the cabin. This writer doesn’t want to elaborate more, but here’s a list: “The Conjuring,” “Insidious,” “The Nun,” etc.
The main character, Clover, is dragged across the ground by an unseen force. Again, nothing new here. Watch “Poltergeist” or “Paranormal Activity” instead for a better scare.
3. and 2. No New Ideas? Just Reference Stuff
There were two parts of this film that were just stripped from others. The first is the scene where the characters randomly explode. This is taken from “Ready or Not” (2019), where all the rich family members die in that way at the end.
The other aspect stretches throughout the entirety of the plot. There’s a ticking hourglass that restarts once the characters all die. The premise is that they need to find out how to stop this process. The “Happy Death Day” franchise follows this exact plot. Plus, this aspect wasn’t even in the original video game.
1. Same Old Scary Images
What took the cake was the number of horror images smushed throughout. They were stereotypical and clear as day to notice. There was a masked man running around hunting them. There was an underground bunker with a hidden meaning. There was a monster trying to tear them apart. All of these things have been done before. All of these things will continue to not surprise or shock audiences.
Overall, this movie did not make enough references to the original video game. As far as adaptations go, the title was the only thing the two had in common. As a VALLEY horror critic, it must be said that this movie would not pass an originality test. It should not be watched (unless you want to do some shrugging).
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