By George & Josh Bate
Whodunits have been around for over 200 years. And yet, despite their longstanding history, they continue to compel audiences. In part, this is due to creative spins on the whodunit, such as the whydunit (as depicted in the television series The Sinner) and the howdunit (as depicted in the television series Poker Face), that have breathed new life into an established formula. With the new Universal Pictures thriller Drop, director Christopher Landon and company put yet another spin on the whodunit – a whoisdoinit (so to speak). There is still a mystery at its heart, but the question is not who committed a murder and is instead who is currently committing the crime. In Drop, this innovative approach to a mystery is blended with Hitchcockian sensibilities and modern technology to produce the kind of suspenseful psychological thriller that we wish featured on the big screen more often.
Drop follows Violet (played by Meghann Fahy), a widowed mother who goes on a first date with Henry (played by Brandon Sklenar) at a fancy restaurant. During the date, Violet begins to receive a series of threatening messages, or AirDrops, from an anonymous source, who warns Violet that she must follow their instructions or they will kill Violet’s son and her sister (played by Violett Beane). Eventually, the anonymous messenger instructs Violet to kill her date Henry, placing Violet in a high-stakes and stressful situation that tests her moral compass and has her investigating the intentions of all the other people at the restaurant.
Drop bolsters an ingenious premise, one that cleverly integrates modern technology into a contained Hitchcockian thriller. It is the kind of premise that hooks based on description alone and has the potential to make for the type of thriller the master of suspense himself would have admired. Through strong performances, a captivating script, and dynamic directing, this premise is not squandered, but, rather, maximized to its full potential.
Not a moment is wasted in the tight 95 minute runtime. After an introduction to Fahy’s Violet and her family, which establishes the eventual stakes and plants a seed of intrigue about VIolet’s history, our lead is plummeted into the unimaginably stressful situation that encompasses the remainder of the film.
The threat of the anonymous messenger is quickly established, as is an additional conundrum Violet finds herself in. To keep her son and sister alive, Violet must follow every instruction from the anonymous messenger AND must not alert anyone to what is happening. Violet’s phone is cloned and cameras and listening devices are spread all around the restaurant, making it impossible for her to make a move without the messenger knowing. An intelligently crafted script from Jillian Jacobs and Chris Roach positions Violet in a seemingly insurmountable position. Every escape or avenue of reprieve has already been forecast by the messenger, who is privy to every single thing Violet says or does. Great suspense comes from this predicament, which raises questions about how Violet is going to find her way out of this – the kind of puzzling questions the very best psychological thrillers pose.
With Violet being directed to not alert anyone to what is happening, Drop asks a lot of its leading actress. Meghann Fahy is an actress playing a character (one without any acting experience and one placed in the worst of positions) who must act like there is nothing going wrong. She must disguise her inner panic from her date and everyone else in the restaurant in order to keep her family alive. Without any kind of narration or inner monologue, Fahy is given the hefty responsibility of having to convey her character’s emotions and thought processes through non-verbals alone. Fahy navigates this challenge excellently and makes Drop an outstanding showcase for her future as a leading lady. Having gained attention for supporting turns in The White Lotus and The Perfect Couple, Drop feels like it is a vehicle for Fahy to thrive firmly in the spotlight.
Tone in this sort of pulpy thriller can pose challenges. If taken too seriously, the film will lose its charm and viewers won’t have as much fun seeing the situation unfold. If not taken seriously enough though, stakes decline to the point where audience investment is nullified. Fortunately, Drop carefully walks this tonal line. Landon’s film is never too heightened or unrealistic, nor does it make fun of itself. The events feel like they could actually be happening and the threat Violet faces feels genuine and terrifying. However, there are moments of levity that allow the movie to breathe and not suffocate under the intensity of its plot. Whether it be the quirky waiter who serves Violet and her date or jokes about prom kids in the room, there is certainly humor dispersed throughout, but never too much to take one out of the film.
Contributing to the film’s success is stylized, yet restrained, directing from Christopher Landon. The director of Happy Death Day and Freaky has proven to be a master of horror comedies in recent years, but finds himself with a different kind of challenge with Drop. With the vast majority of the film taking place within a restaurant and much of the plot being delivered through phone messages, Landon cleverly employs a technique that has the messages appear on the screen. This isn’t like Sherlock or other movies/shows that merely plant the text message blurb on the screen. Instead, Landon stylistically plants the text on walls and surfaces (much like the video game Splinter Cell: Conviction, for those familiar). Landon also adds flair through other techniques, such as by replicating the screens of Violet’s phone onto the walls of a bathroom stall. Landon doesn’t overdo this flair, but adds just enough style to make an already enthralling psychological thriller that much more dynamic.
Landon also deserves plaudits for his handling of Drop’s contained setting. The restaurant that the film takes place in, beautifully realized through production design, is laid out logically and clearly to the audience from the get-go. In doing so, Landon creates a more immersive experience for viewers, who can easily get a sense of the limits of this setting and a better understanding of Violet’s predicament.
Unlike many psychological thrillers, Drop maintains its suspense and momentum to the end. The mystery of who the anonymous messenger is keeps you guessing until it is finally revealed. There are so many potential suspects in the restaurant and, with plenty of red herrings, the identity remains a true mystery until it is eventually revealed.
The ultimate conclusion of the film goes more overt with the thrills than the preceding movie and, as such, lacks some of the nuance that works well previously. Although the film wraps up with a palpable level of intensity, narrative improbabilities begin to circulate and make the finale more preposterous than anything.
Similarly less successful is the film’s exploration of domestic violence. The first scene introduces Fahy’s Violet character in the middle of harrowing interaction with her ex-husband, which sets the stage for Violet’s career as a therapist specializing in domestic violence. Although this background provides some context for Violet’s behavior in the film and offers some emotional middleground with her date Henry, the integration of domestic violence never quite comes together fully. A conversation between Violet and Henry about the nature of abusers is well written and acted, but, otherwise, this thread adds little of substance to the film.
VERDICT: 8/10
Putting a clever spin on the ‘whodunit’ as a ‘whosdoinit,’ Drop is a contained Hitchcockian psychological thriller for the modern age that hooks you from the start and doesn’t let go. Director Christopher Landon doesn’t waste a moment in effectively establishing the stakes and setting up a seemingly insurmountable threat for our lead character. While having appropriate moments of levity, Drop never becomes too heightened, allowing the film to simultaneously retain its high stakes and allow the audience to still have fun. Dynamic directing that makes the text messages at the heart of the film more engaging is coupled with an excellent use of space and geography that aids in immersing the audience within the story. Playing a character tasked with masking her inner panic, Meghann Fahy provides a showcase for her standing as a leading lady with an invested performance that relies heavily on non-verbals. Although the core mystery keeps you guessing, the ultimate finale dips into preposterous narrative territory, while the film’s integration of domestic violence similarly falls flat. Nonetheless, Drop makes for a thrilling time at the movies and shows that there are still creative spins on the over 200 year old ‘whodunit’ genre.