Ready or Not is a 2019 horror-comedy from directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett that explores the wealth gap in America, the rich taking advantage of the poor, and the US under Donald Trump.
Grace (Samara Weaving) is about to wed her fiancé Alex, who comes from an incredibly wealthy family, from which he is estranged. The Le Domas family are board game moguls who have had the monopoly on board games for generations. Growing up in the foster care system, where she was bounded around from home to home, Grace is more than ready to join the Le Domas clan, although Alex's familial wealth makes her a bit nervous. His family reeks of status and privilege and, while her relationship seems solid, she's concerned about feeling like an outcast or the black sheep of the family.
After their nuptials, Alex tells her about a strange family tradition that always is played out after a wedding. Since they made their fortune in board games, the bride or groom must choose a game from a mysterious box inherited from their great-grandfather's former business partner, Mr. Le Bail. It seems innocent enough, but when Grace ends up selecting Hide and Seek, it turns out that this part of the tradition is deadly. Other games are not as harmful to the new addition, but this particular one is a literal hunt when all family members load up on antique weaponry of various types and hunt the bride; the goal is to murder her. According to family legend, if they fail at this particular game and do not kill the spouse, they will supposedly all die.
Digging deep into the plot's core meaning, there are distinct messages regarding how dangerous status and wealth can be when it is achieved to abundance. Rich people and privilege have been targeted by horror movies before in other sociopolitical horror films like The Purge and Us. One other film that was slated to be released by Universal and Blumhouse, The Hunt, was a horror film about rich people hunting poor people for sport, which is a similar premise to Ready or Not.
Trump supporters misinterpreted the film's intention and claimed it would be an invitation for liberals to hunt conservatives over political differences. Donald Trump made an announcement condemning the film being made and Universal made the decision to pull the plug. Other sources have claimed Universal decided against running the film to be sensitive to recent mass shootings. As of now, there has been no future release date announced, even though the film had a $15 million budget and included a cast with well-known actors Hilary Swank and Emma Roberts.
Tyler Gillett, one of the directors of Ready or Not, said in an interview with Variety, "what we're hoping to say is that privilege and entitlement are really dangerous things, and the movie in so many ways is a conversation about that." Weaving's performance is an absolute knock-out, and Grace ends up being more than capable of handling her deadly assailants who prove themselves to be very incompetent in their pursuit, even though they've had some experience with this before. Grace possesses an incredible amount of survival skills because she has had a difficult life, which is a sharp juxtaposition to their charmed lifestyle. Though the film isn't explicitly anti-Trump or anti-Capitalism, its message about rich toying with the poor for their own pleasure is felt through every frame once the action gets started, and keeps the audience thinking once the credits roll.
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