Welcome to Knockout Horror and to day 19 of our 31 Days of Halloween 2024 feature. Today we are checking out another horror movie from the past few years – Bodies, Bodies, Bodies. This movie is something of a comedy “whodunit” with teen horror and slasher elements. Director Halina Reijn mixes things up to keep the viewer off base while the mystery element builds.
The story follows a group of friends meeting up for a “hurricane party” at a remote mansion. After the storm hits and the fun moves indoors. The friends decide to play “Bodies, Bodies, Bodies” – a guessing game tasking players with discovering which of them committed a murder. Little do they realise that the game will become all too real after a horrifying discovery.
Not What You Might Think
I remember seeing the trailer for this a few weeks before it released. Man, what a roller coaster that was. At first it seemed as though this was going to be yet another formulaic slasher movie. After a minute or so, however, it became clear that Bodies, Bodies, Bodies was just a little different. This wasn’t going to be a run of the mill horror. This was something a tad more unique.
The overabundance of internet speak and buzz phrases, initially, seemed a bit cringe and ridiculous. It became clear, however, after about a minute or so, that this movie was going for a far more satirical approach to horror. Poking fun at young people, the terminally online, and a whole bunch of horror movie tropes. Bodies, Bodies, Bodies has no interest in taking a single thing seriously.
Comedy Horror
This is almost as much of a comedy as it is a horror. What would, otherwise, be a pretty generic slasher is propped up massively by some brilliant scripting and a keen focus on poking mild fun at Gen Z. Overuse of traditional Gen Z buzz phrases like “triggered”, “enabling”, “gaslighting” and an entire cast of vapid, two dimensional, 20-somethings keep this movie light and, at times, rather clever.
Characters are placed into a situation where they have no electricity, no phones and no internet. Forcing them to interact in more traditional ways; something that the majority of the group are ill equipped to do. Personalities clash, deep held secrets are uncovered and irrational decisions are impulsively made digging the group deeper and deeper into chaos. And that’s without mentioning the supposed killer stalking the mansion.
The group’s surface level knowledge of each other and paper thin relationships mean they distrust each other hugely. Turning the movie into a good old fashioned whodunit the likes of which you really don’t see that much anymore. Nobody is beyond suspicion and some clever movement of characters keeps everyone worthy of doubt. It’s compelling stuff.
Fun Throughout
The kills take awhile to get going. We are dropped in on the group the day after a fight took place between two members, David (Pete Davidson) and Max (Conner O’Malley). Max left and is yet to return. The group are also joined by an older man, Greg (Lee Pace), who is the Tinder date of one of the women, Alice (Rachel Sennott). We kick things off traveling with Sophie (Amandla Stenberg) and her girlfriend Bee (Maria Bakalova). Sophie has been somewhat estranged from the group so it is a surprise to the others when she arrives. It’s made clear that there is some muddy history between her and some of the others.
Indeed, there isn’t a single person here who is beyond suspicion which keeps you guessing throughout. Some of the kills we see, others happen off screen to push forward the mystery element. As a popcorn horror movie, Bodies, Bodies, Bodies works pretty well. This really isn’t where its strengths lie, though. It is the character interactions that really draw you in and this is where the real meat of the film is.
A constant build of tension and mistrust begins to brew early on. All, eventually, reaching a peak somewhere in the second half. It makes for a massive explosion of conflict that is, by far, the best part of the movie. Some very clever scripting and some legitimately hilarious dialogue tears apart the already frayed relationship and marches the movie towards its conclusion. It is brilliant stuff and the twist ending makes everything even better. Forcing you to mentally backtrack through the film to unravel just how everything went down.
Excellent Acting
Let’s be real, the cast here are horrible. It’s a bunch of self entitled rich kids who you would never want to associate with in real life. They are utterly self important and riddled with personality problems. There is virtually nobody to root for here and plenty of reasons to dislike almost everyone. With that being said, the acting is fantastic, throughout. Pete Davidson is hilarious, Amandla Stenberg is decent, Maria Bakalova is great. Everyone does a brilliant job.
It’s Rachel Sennott who really stands out, though. Completely getting her character and absolutely nailing literally every scene she is involved in. The way she flip flops on opinions and delivers some utterly ridiculous statements completely straight faced is fantastic. She is the most obnoxious character but, by far, the most well acted. Brilliant stuff.
Direction is great! There are some really nice shots and some excellent scene setting with hazy neon blues and pinks punctuating some of the more interesting moments. Pacing is decent, there is a bit of lag in the middle but nothing that feels too obstructive or slow. There are a few parts of the movie that feel a bit cheesy but, on reflection, that feels rather intentional given the cringey cast.
Should You Watch Bodies, Bodies, Bodies?
Bodies, Bodies, Bodies is an excellent horror comedy that is well worth a watch. It’s not going to be for everyone. Some older viewers seem to miss the irony and satirical nature of the script. Other younger viewers seem to get a bit offended by the gentle mockery, despite it being a right of passage for every generation. Others simply don’t enjoy the comedy horror approach. If the humour doesn’t land, you might be left wanting. Other than that, if you enjoy movies like this then the fantastic acting, brilliant script, compelling whodunit story and genuinely surprising ending will be more than enough to keep you entertained. Great fun.
