Director: Justin Dec

Writer: Justin Dec

Have you ever filled out one of those online quizzes which asks you about your age and weight and health and then purports to tell you, based on said information, how long you’re going to live? What if you download an app, and without giving it any personal details, it gave you the same information, but rather than just a statistical guess, it was an absolute certainty? That’s the premise of Countdown, a slightly better than average horror film that works because of some better than average direction.

The film has all the usual horror film tropes, but there are a few nice touches that elevate it above the average cheesy horror film. An interesting premise, for example. I haven’t seen every horror film out there, but this seemed fairly original to me. Our protagonist, Quinn (Elizabeth Lail), is appealing, and I like her here much more than in the television show “You.” (Maybe she’s one of those actors who is better in smaller doses.) Jump scares are usually cheaply earned, but even so, some of these legitimately scared me. Enough so that I began to wonder if watching this alone at night was the best idea. And I don’t generally get scared at films. Director Justin Dec seems to have a good eye for composition, especially in those scary scenes. I’d definitely give his next film a shot.

It’s not all roses, though. The premise may be original, but it’s also kind of silly. And there’s a stupid sub-plot about Quinn’s boss (Peter Facinelli) covering for harassing her by accusing her of harassment. It’s less believable than the supernatural death app, frankly, and completely unnecessary. The tone of the film is a little uneven, too. It tries to include some comedy, mostly in the forms of an off-the-wall priest (P.J. Byrne) and a cynical phone tech (Tom Segura), both of whom try to help Quinn and her friend Matt (Jordan Calloway) and her sister Jordan (Talitha Bateman) fight the demon app. But the film can’t seem to make up its mind if it wants to give us a straight-up horror film or one that pokes fun at the genre. And finally, the internal logic of the film doesn’t always seem to make sense, which seems the most noticeable in an unsatisfying ending.I wasn’t expecting a whole lot going into this, so I was pleasantly surprised. If you can look past the above shortcomings, this could be a fun streaming flick or rental to enjoy with some friends one night. Just take it for what it is. IMDb counts it as a 5.3, which sounds about right to me. It’s not a gem, but it’s not a lump of coal either. (running time 1:30)