When the game tester Loomis (Ventimiglia) dies mysteriously, a group of colleagues (Foster, Armstrong, Muniz, Simpson, Bush and Goldberg) decide to check out the videogame he was playing: an underground title Stay Alive, about a creepy abandoned plantation and a ghostly, murderous countess (Kalinina). But one by one the gamers die just like they do on their computer screens, and then the game starts playing by itself, luring the surviving players to the real plantation for a fiery final confrontation.

This film was clearly devised by gamers, so it does have a certain visual inventiveness that keeps us watching. It also has a steady pace as it progresses onwards and upwards through the various levels to reach the concluding mayhem. And the young cast is engaging and extremely watchable; they actually seem to be taking the story seriously, which is rather hilarious because it's all so overwhelmingly corny.

Most of the actors are fairly generic, but in the central role Foster has a terrific screen presence. And he even manages to survive the requisite shirt-off moment with some impressive muscle definition. After his excellent work in The Door in the Floor, we had much higher hopes than this. We still do. Meanwhile, Muniz struggles bravely with his geeky sidekick role, clearly trying to transition from childish Malcolm/Cody roles into something more grown-up.

The cast is easily the best thing here. Despite frequent attempts at both humour and horror, director-cowriter Bell only generates a response with deafening soundtrack shrieks or cutaways to bugs or giant scissors or rusty nails. It's brisk and action-packed, but he just makes up the rules as he goes along, so nothing makes any sense at all. Even the death set-pieces are deeply random and uninteresting. And the setting is so clichéd that it's almost silly--a weeping-willow surrounded plantation, complete with foggy cemetery and sinister dark tower. Once the audience starts yawning, it's game over.

themes, violence, language

2.Jun.06