Rating: 2.5/5
The police ask Becky (Lulu Wilson) to recount what happened. She claims not to know. The flashes of her spattered in blood tell a different story.
Flashback to two weeks earlier, where neo-Nazi Dominick (Kevin James) walks the prison yards while Becky doodles on her test.
Her father, Jeff (Joel McHale), comes to pick her up. When they stop around a gas station, the news announces four inmates have escaped.
Jeff takes her to a vacation home for the weekend. He also invited his new girlfriend, Kayla (Amanda Brugel), and her son, Ty.
This news is unwelcome for Becky, who is still mourning her mother’s death. Worse still, Jeff tells Beck that he and Kayla are engaged.
Becky runs away to her childhood fort in the woods. Meanwhile, someone knocks on the door. Dominick and his three friends are there, claiming to have lost their dog.
The real reason they’re there is that Dominick stashed a key there. The trouble is, the key isn’t where he put it. It’s not like he was planning on letting them live, anyway.
What will Becky do?
Kevin James is trying to do a more serious role. When he says nothing, I believe he is his character. When he opens his mouth, I can’t help but laugh at his fake accent, especially as it falters by the end. While his cronies handle the physical work, Dominick mainly stands around and yells at Becky during most of the movie.
I’m happy to see Joel McHale. His character is not a great father, so it’s hard to parse whether that’s his acting or the direction he received. His character being named Jeff has, to my dismay, nothing to do with Community.
Lulu Wilson is the only actor who works in this movie. She leans hard into the teenage angst, but it takes that intensity to pull off what Becky does. The Louise Belcher pink hat also adds to the unhinged vibes.
You’re not watching this for the performances, though — it’s the gore. Good Lord, there is gore. The film is an R-rated Home Alone as Becky finds creative and bloody ways to fuck up all the nazis.
A stronger team of writers and directors could have improved this significantly. Here’s hoping the sequel drops the meager characterization and has more fun.