MATT’S MOVIE REVIEW: Netflix Original, ‘Gerald’s Game’
Everyone loves a good thrilling horror movie no matter the time of year. However, there's just something so eerie about the month of October and it doesn't always have to do with Halloween falling at the end of the month. As the days get shorter and night falls earlier and the ominous skeletal figures of leafless trees creek and groan in the autumn wind... Okay, I'm going to stop. I'm literally freaking myself out here. Let's just get to the movie, shall we?
The movie, which was produced in 2017, is a Netflix original thriller called Gerald's Game. Now, let me just say right here, if you're not a fan of spoilers, you may want to stop reading now. I'll try not to give too much away, but we at least have to talk about the plot and overall feel of the film.
Set in modern era, a husband and a wife, played by Bruce Greenwood and Carla Gugino, take a trip up to their beautiful vacation home out in the country in an attempt to repair their failing marriage. The idea of this retreat is for them to finally begin reconnecting on a sexual level. You see, the two of them, married for 11 years so far, have recently lost the physical spark in their relationship and have gone months without any kind of intimacy.
Once they've reached their secluded palace in the woods, after nearly colliding with a stray dog, they head for the bedroom and attempt to rekindle the fire. Gerald has brought along some kinky props to help spark the mood, including real police-grade handcuffs. He cuffs his nightie-wearing wife by the hands to the bed's solid mahogany bed posts. It is at that point that we learn she has some past sexual trauma that has led to her not enjoying this whatsoever and she demands Gerald remove the cuffs and let her up. Gerald, stunned by this turn of events, begins to argue with his wife about it. The argument heats up and Gerald becomes increasingly agitated, so much so that he suffers a massive and life-ending heart attack right there on the bed. That's right, Gerald drops dead, half-naked on top of his wife who is now chained to the bed.
What happens next is a mix of Jessie's own reality, and things that she thinks she's seeing in her head and aren't real. Or are they? We also learn about the past sexual traumas that she faced from her own father when she was just a child. Oh, and that stray dog eventually makes his way back into the house because he's starving and needs to eat.
All in all, I give this movie a solid 7.5/10. The plot was simple, yet super-captivating, and while 85% of the film took place in the exact same set and scene, it was wonderfully written and acted to maintain the audiences attention the whole way through. There are also some dots that don't connect themselves until the very end leaving you stunned and saying 'how did I not see that coming?!'. If you have some time this week, I'd recommend checking Gerald's Game out on Netflix. But, you should wait until the kids are in bed. This is rated TV-MA. Check out the trailer for this thriller below,
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