#POLISH PREMIERE | fear and terror | demon | possession | horror | night of the demons | the 70s | murders | retro horror | USA | school is bad | rituals | school for girls | cult | murder gang | magic | sisterhood | terror | agression | fear
THE SACRIFICE GAME
horror | USA | 2023 World premiere: Fantasia International Film Festival 2023 Polish premiere: Splat!FilmFest
BRUTAL MURDERS AND SATANIST RITUALS IN A SCHOOL FOR GIRLS
Christmas, the ’70s. Two lonely pupils of a reputable school for girls stay at school for Christmas with a sensitive teacher. Abandoned girls, about whom the family has forgotten, try to act like it doesn’t hurt at all. In the meantime, a brutal gang which is responsible for ritual murders prowls in the neighborhood. Every murder enables the gang’s members to get closer to summoning an ancient demon and to finding the last person to kill in an abandoned private school. They knock on its doors right before the first star appears on the sky. A Christmas dinner will turn into a bloodbath. But in „The Sacrifice Game” nothing is really what is seems to be. Will the murderers regret they didn’t step on it when they saw an old school building?
„The Sacrifice Game” is a classic horror movie, inspired by horrors from the ‘80s, especially those with satanist storylines. There is a scene that will especially appeal to the fans of „Night of the Demons” with creepy Angela in black veils. One of the characters, just like Angela, bends in the flickering light of the flames in a terrifying dance, which may be perceived as a tribute to the authors of the 1987 movie. The setting and times of the movie resemble ‘Black Christmas’ from 1974, which, according to rumors, was Elvis Presley’s favorite horror.
„The Sacrifice Game” is directed by Jenn Wexler, whose credits include the award-winning film „The Ranger.” There is a lot of sisterhood in her latest work, but despite the message smuggled in the background that girls must stick together, „The Sacrifice Game” is, above all, a thoroughbred horror film that draws on the tradition of the genre. Brutal cinema in the style of „Initiation” or „Mrs. Slater’s House” and many other classics, where the bloody action takes place in private schools.
„The Sacrifice Game” may tell a well-known story, but thanks an extraordinary cast it is shown from a different perspective. A girl, who is a leader of a murder gang and promises them the moon, is portrayed by an amazing Olivia Scott Welch, famous for her role e.g. in a Netflix production „Fear Street”. Her passionate about killing lover is played by Mena Massoud, who also played Aladdin in a Disney production directed by Guy Ritchie. But it is a brilliant Georgia Acken that steals their limelight with her role of a bit strange student which…Well, you have to find out yourself.
director: Jenn Wexler screenwriter: Jenn Wexler, Sean Redlitz cast: Olivia Scott Welch, Mena Massoud, Georgia Acken photography: Alexandre Bussière music: Mario Sévigny editor: Mathieu Bérubé, Arthur Tarnowski language: English subtitles: Polish duration: 1h 39min recommended age: 16+
