Cheap Thrills (2013)

All I can say is WOW! I was flipping through Amazon Prime one night trying to find something to watch, and I came across this little gem. I had no idea what it was about, but after reading the description we decided to give it a try. Boy am I happy that we did. It starts out a little slow, but when the action starts, it explodes. To watch these two old friends do wild, crazy, and sometimes unspeakable things for money is very entertaining. You have never seen this side of Rusty when he was a Griswold. I'm not to give long reviews, mainly because I never want to give away the essence of the movie, but this is one dark comedy that you have to see.

From the first time I saw a trailer for this movie on YouTube, I was intrigued and wanted to see it badly. I am so glad I finally got the chance to see it and whole-heartedly believe this is one of the most entertaining movies I have ever seen in my entire life! The premise of the film is two down-on-their-luck friends from high school bump into each other at a local dive bar and come across a very wealthy couple looking for a good night on the town. Through a series of increasingly higher stakes dares for money (some that go to some pretty extreme and disturbing levels), these friends go head to head and it all leads to a very exciting denouement. This is one of the most original, most darkly humorous, most intense indie flicks I have ever come across. Now, when I came across this Bluray in the video store, it was listed under "Horror". I would not really consider the film that because it is much more a psychological thriller and plays out more like a Hitchcock film than a typical modern-day horror. If you are looking for laughs, sick and twisted imagery and great performances by a relatively unknown cast then I highly suggest "Cheap Thrills".

Out of the four characters in Cheap Thrills I only recognised one of them, David Koechner (Champ from Anchorman). I went into watching this knowing very little about the film; I had a vague understanding of the storyline but that was about it. Cheap Thrills is classed as a dark comedy, I would disagree with this, there are a few chuckles along the way but in my opinion it is far from a comedy. It's a dark, disturbing and very tense film which makes the viewer feel quite uncomfortable at times. Craig and Vince are old friends who have lost contact and bump into each other in a bar. Craig has been sacked that day and Vince is also struggling for cash. They get invited over by Colin; A millionaire who is out celebrating his Wife's birthday. He flashes the cash straight away, buying a $300 bottle of Tequila and handing out Cocaine like its candy. He starts by offering Craig and Vince money for fun things such as 'first one to down their shot' or 'talk to the girl at the bar'. They then leave the bar and go back to his place and his dares start to get much more dark and disturbing.David Koechner plays his character really well. At the start of the movie I couldn't help see him as Champ from Anchorman, but as the movie progresses he really comes into his role and before long you forget he ever played Champ! His character comes across as very friendly and likable but there is always a nervy feeling, like he could do anything at any moment, he is very intense & Koechner is extremely convincing in playing him.The divide between filthy rich and poor is huge and this movie makes it its aim to show you this. The millionaire takes advantage of his two 'guests' and plays to their desperation for his own twisted pleasure. A man, who has it all, still wants more and is willing to throw hundreds of thousands of dollars to play with two people desperate for cash. The view from Craig and Vince is also a simple one, how far would you and how low would you go if big bucks were being offered to you.This movie certainly isn't ideal family viewing; there is sex, drugs, violence and some disturbing scenes. I did find it somewhat entertaining, I probably wouldn't view it again but I don't regret watching it. With a short run time of just under 90 minutes it did a good job of gripping me and giving me the experience that was intended by the creators.7/10

I loved the premise - you get it straight away, like a good short story, and settle in for the ride. The first half was amusing. The guy throwing the money around was played really well, and the two losers upped their mutual distrust into contempt at just the right pace.But no comedy for me in the rest of the film. It was tense, although I think they got the finger and the dog the wrong way round. Plus the dog story was daft - the choking on the finger didn't "go down" well.After the attempted robbery it lacked any real menace from the rich couple. The husband lost his lethal charm, the wife never seemed more than a nice girl having a wild night. They had to have an underlying weirdness, but in the end they seemed like the normal ones. Maybe that was the point, but if so I don't understand it - is being rich to be in the right? Maybe they're part of CNBS's dwindling audience.Good entertainment, but could have been crazier.