Cheap Thrills

What would you do for some easy cash? How far would you be willing to go? These are the questions explored in director E.L. Katz’s debut feature Cheap Thrills. This low budget thriller starts off intriguingly enough but the central conceit soon wears thin.

The film begins with our central protagonist Craig (Pat Healy) having a very bad day; he discovers an eviction notice taped to the door of the small apartment he shares with his wife (Amanda Fuller) and infant son, subsequently he is made redundant from his job as a mechanic. Craig heads to a dive bar to drown his sorrows and it is here that the narrative kicks into gear.

He runs into an old high school mate, Vince (Ethan Embry) to whom Craig confides his fiscal dilemma. Vince spies a beautiful young woman at the bar and the pair meet newly married couple Violet (Sarah Paxton) and Colin (David Koechner). There is a noticeable age difference between the two, Violet seems detached, constantly playing with her mobile phone, and Colin is a cashed up over the hill douchebag. They learn that it’s Violet’s birthday and Colin is flaunting his ample supply of money; buying three hundred dollar bottles of tequila and extravagantly tipping the disgruntled barwoman to keep her quiet.

A friendly game of dare ensues where Colin challenges Craig and Vince to perform various deeds in exchange for monetary gifts; finish a shot first, get the surly woman perched at the bar to slap them in the face etc. After an altercation at a strip club the pair end up back at the newlywed’s mansion where the dares become increasingly sick and dangerous and, after a bungled robbery attempt by Vince, the sinister motives of Violet and Colin become apparent. To give anymore away would spoil the plot, but suffice to say blood begins to flow and the tentative friendship between Craig and Vince is stretched to its extreme limit.

Cheap Thrills attempts to explore some interesting themes; financial struggles, class divides, greed and humiliation. However, once the game of dare has been going for a while it becomes rather monotonous. We can predict how most of the situations will play out which causes the film to lose tension and the narrative to become a bit stagnant. The dares just keep coming and not much else happens.

There are some moments of lightness and humour, mainly attributed to the banter between Violet and Colin, but mostly director Katz treats the story very seriously, which takes the fun out of some of the scenarios presented.

The cast is uniformly good; Healy’s Craig is quiet and uptight before transforming into an unhinged individual by the film’s conclusion. Paxton (reuniting with The Innkeepers co-star Healy) plays Violet with a steely sexiness that works well and Koechner, best known for his comedic roles in Hollywood blockbusters such as Anchorman, brings a surprising darkness to the role of Colin. However, for me the standout is Embry as Vince. Maybe it’s because he’s somewhat of a washed up actor best known for his roles in 1990s comedies such as Empire Records and Can’t Hardly Wait, but I find him believable as the damaged and reckless Vince. His performance is unexpected and affective.

The enjoyment of Cheap Thrills is a little hampered by its small budget, which is evident in its murky cinematography and lack of various locations; the majority of the film takes place in the bar and the mansion. There are also a few strange sound choices throughout the film. For example, during the early bar scenes the diegetic background music abruptly stops for no apparent reason. These elements certainly don’t ruin the viewing experience but they are a bit distracting.

Cheap Thrills comes off as a cross between Jackass and Natural Born Killers, a violent film where seemingly normal people do some truly crazy things all for a bit of green. It should also be noted that there are some very gross moments, so if you’re squeamish this is probably not the film for you. Cheap Thrills starts well but eventually runs out of steam. Even a truly shocking twist at the end can’t make up for all the time spent watching desperate people do disgusting things.

Rating: 2 ½ out of 5 stars