Fear and terror come into the lives of a punk rock band in Green Room, a gripping film with a sure fire plot for suspense lovers. The intense plot reminds me of the movie Hostel where three trapped travelers have to find a way out of a maze of horror. Maybe not as gory, but the violence tips the scale in Green Room.
Ain’t Rights a punk rock band featuring Samantha (Alia Shawkat), Pat (Anton Yelchin), Reece (Joe Cole) and Tiger (Callum Turner) have completed a tour that’s been monetary unsuccessful. During their last gig where they made 8 dollars a person, they are offered one last stand at a club run by White Supremacist Darcy Banker (Patrick Stewart). They take the deal for the $350 that will at least help them recoup some of their expenses.
Arriving at the club, the group is met by a neo-Nazi group leader that takes them to the green room to wait for their stage time. There’s a rough crowd in the audience made up mostly of backwoods ladies, groupies and skinheads. They enter the green room and wait for their call to the stage.
They start their set and get a lot of jeers from the lyrics. But, the crowd starts to get into their punk rock music as the set continues. Finishing their time on stage they head for the green room and find their bags and personal things in the hall. Not too upset they just want to get their money and go. Samantha tells Pat that she left her phone in the green room so he goes back to retrieve it. He enters and sees a dead girl on the floor with her friend, a groupie named Amber (Imogen Poots), standing over the body.
Not wanting any witnesses, they tell the rock group to wait in the green room. So begins a night of terror as the band tries to find a way out of the mess. Director and writer Jeremy Saulnier (Blue Ruin) keeps the suspense high and the death toll higher. Working his talent to the bone, they even perform a couple of songs in the film, and they are good. On drums Joel Cole pounds out a punk beat while Alia Shawkat bangs her “metal” guitar, Anton Yelchin accompanies her with his hot bass and along with Callum Turner they all do their best belting out the nasty lyrics.
What I am really impressed with however, is the very good acting by the foursome as they fight their way out of the green room. They’re up against some very scary white supremacists called ‘red laces’ who are called in whenever Darcy Banker needs to cover up any of the wicked happenings at his “anything goes” club. Picking up a helper in their quest to get out alive, Imogen Poots plays a tough character that wants to avenge her dead friend and joins the group slicing away at a few of the skinheads.
Green Room has been rated R for strong brutal graphic violence, gory images, language and some drug content.
FINAL ANALYSIS: A very good terror flick that will keep you on the edge of your seat. (B)
Additional Film Information:
Cast: Anton Yelchin, Alia Shawkat, Joe Cole, Callum Turner, Imogen Poots, Mark Webber, Eric Edelstein, Macon Blair, Kai Lennox, Patrick Stewart.
Directed and written by: Jeremy Saulnier
Genre: Crime, Horror, Thriller
MPAA Rating: R for strong brutal graphic violence, gory images, language and some drug content
Running Time: 1 hr. 34 min.
Release Date: April 22, 2016
Distributed by: A24
Writer, critic, film editor John Delia, Sr. has been on all sides of the movie business from publications to film making. He has worked as a film critic with ACED Magazine for more than 20 years and other publications for a total of 40 years. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Florida. John is a member of the Southeastern Film Critics Association and Critics Association of Central Florida Send John a message at jdelia@acedmagazine.com
