SYNOPSIS
Finally, graduated and off to Croatia. It’s supposed to be the “party of their lives.” But for Julia and her friends, their graduation trip turns into a horror trip, from which not everyone will return.
REVIEW
So yesterday I did something that for a horror fan is actually quite shocking, I signed up to Shudder for the first time. I know, where have I been, right?
After signing up and logging in, Shudder instantly began pushing this little movie on me called Party Hard, Die Young, and as it’s their newest ‘Shudder original’, I thought I would check it out and see what my new streaming service has to offer.
I can’t say my expectations were initially that high as this is an Austrian slasher movie. Now while I’m certainly not opposed to foreign horror, you have to admit it has been quite some time since an original slasher movie has been done effectively…
…and this one is definitely a bit of a mixed bag, so let’s discuss it.
If I had to describe this movie as a mix of anything, it would be a mash-up between I Know What You Did Last Summer and Spring Breakers. It really goes for the slasher elements of the former specifically and turns out a relatively paint-by-numbers approach to the killings for a film shot and made in 2018.
The standard slasher tropes definitely run-amok here. Our killer is a fan of the old ‘appear in one shot, and then disappear in another’ tactic, and for an outdoor music festival, our large cast of characters find almost comical ways to end up alone at the end of the night. This is the biggest drawback that director Dominik Hartl brings here. There’s an almost checklist-style approach to the story of the movie, that really fails to set it out from the pack. The movie even heavily uses the pre-requisite ‘thinking your friend is actually the killer’ storyline (on more than one occasion).
Previous slashers have shown us that you don’t need a truly engaging story if the kills can freshen up the enjoyment factor, and I will say that one or two of the kills aren’t bad, despite being seen before. (Stay through the beginning of the end credits to see the eventual fate of one character.)
It’s slasher roots feel very in the late 90’s/early 2000s era (which may please some of you), and while those movies hold a certain appeal, the aggressive camera shaking and blurring techniques used for the killer in those films should definitely stay within that decade.
As with any slasher, the killer here brands himself with a mask. This one a yellow face with a carved smile, but it has little visual impact and feels like something we’ve seen before. In fact, I couldn’t shake the feeling that it had been used previously in The Purge.
When it comes to the horror genre, it can sometimes be too easy to focus on the negatives, so let’s discuss what the film get’s right.
If there is a selling point to this movie, it is easily the setting. Filmed on location in Croatia, with a nighttime music festival as the backdrop, the movie has a distinctly neon vibrancy to it. Actual festival footage is used effectively to make the movie feel bigger than it possibly is, and while the teen drama is nothing to write home about, combined with the typical drinking holiday shenanigans, the characters are engaging enough to watch when the slasher elements take a back seat.
Elisabeth Wabitsch (Julia) is the one stand out in the cast, having just the right amount of sensibility and scream queen flair to rise above her fellow young actors. The others do commit to their roles but are ultimately not given too much to work with outside of being standard stereotypes, that make bad decisions to propel the killing. Julia makes for a decent final girl, though her status as such is apparent from the very first scene after being introduced to the cast.
Speaking of the cast, this movie’s is huge, as Julia’s group consist of about ten characters. Now you might be mistaken into thinking that this leads to a bunch of kills, but with over the half the cast making it to the end, it feels oddly underutilized, especially for a slasher.
Lastly, the slasher tropes live strong with flashbacks to some infamous party night, wherein standard horror conventions it’s shown that someone was done wrong by our party hard group.
Guys, let this be a lesson.
Don’t be dicks in college, because in ten years someone will likely be stalking you at your favourite music festival.
VERDICT
Overall, I can’t say Party Hard, Die Young is a bad first experience of Shudder’s original content. It’s fun, festival vibe makes sure that the movie is always moving along, and while the slasher elements are best described as ‘by the numbers’, it’s also a completely watchable film with pretty decent production values.
Final Score: 5/10
Party Hard, Die Young can now exclusively be screened through Shudder.
The movie was directed by Dominik Hartl and stars Elisabeth Wabitsch, Michael Glantschnig, and Markus Freistatter.
