Plot: Eight people wake up in separate cells and are instructed to harm themselves and get more online likes if they want to survive.
Here's a question: when someone is forced to harm themselves by their captor and their survival depends on people's online likes, who is the real sicko here?
The captor who is making the victim torture themselves? Or the viewers who are thrilled to be voting for the best way a victim can injure themselves?
Both. The answer should be both.
Death Count turns out to be a movie about more than 10,000 people seeking pleasure in watching people mutilate themselves. Towards the end, these viewers try to justify themselves by saying they thought it was all fake but even so, why play a game that perpetuates violence?
Death Count is actually a pretty decent horror movie with a passable storyline and good acting by the lead.
What it lacks is good effects. The blood looks awfully fake and the arm in the arm ripping scene looks really gross and not in a way that works in horror movies. It's all skin and tissue. What about the bone?
But in spite of this Death Count manages to keep you at the edge of the seat.
DEATH COUNT Movie Plot
The movie begins with Rachel waking up in a cell. She's wearing a collar and there is a wound on her head. She finds herself wearing overalls with the number 3 on it.
She realizes she's being watched and sees a screen and a camera protected by small cages.
She sees a flash of a woman she used to know before she realizes there are five more people held captive in the adjoining cells.
A man comes on screen wearing a hoodie and a mask. He introduces himself as The Warden and explains that they must all do what he says.
Two of the captives are quick to go when they challenge the Warden. Each of them have a device inserted inside them that detonates when they refuse to play or if they try to remove it.
The Warden takes a special interest in Rachel and tells her to use a knife to take her nail out.
Since she has no choice but to comply, we see a detailed scene of Rachel removing her nail. She then uses the knife to cut off strips from her overalls and tie it around her thumb.
She begins to talk to the others when the Warden goes off on a break. Turns out, all of those who are held are staff members of the school they all work in.
Meanwhile, two detectives are given the case of missing persons. Guess who the missing people are...
The scene was either shot in peak summer or the fan and A/C were not working because both detectives are visibly drenched in sweat yet go on pushing through the clunky dialogues.
They too have figured out that the missing people are all connected.
The captives are given more tasks to mutilate themselves. The Warden instructs them to perform non-suicidal injuries only. How thoughtful of him to tell the captives not to kill themselves. Why should they do it when he could do it for them?
The captives are given a box of weapons. In one game they get to choose, in another, the weapons are chosen for them.
In any case, another one bites the dust and then a woman who is eliminated because she didn’t use an interesting way to mutilate herself. As a last resort she tries to undress herself but its too late and she is poisoned by mustard gas.
To the rest, it was gas but Rachel who is a science teacher, helpfully provides that information.
When one of the captives is set on fire, the detectives are thrilled because now they have to look for the warehouse where there is thick black smoke emitting.
The police force is unfortunately unable to track the game because the Warden is a damn good hacker who lets the signal jump all over the world.
With only three captives left, it is time to unfold the mystery that has brought them all together in the first place.
DEATH COUNT Ending Explained with Spoilers
Turns out that the photo Rachel jad seen previously, and sees again, is of a woman she knew.
It is of Charlotte, the arts teacher at school who killed herself because she wasn't allowed to put up a play based on a novel with what is now considered a racist title. Her theatre program was cut because of budget cuts.
But wait, that's not all. The reason the Warden has been taking a special interest in Rachel is because she slept with Charlotte's husband Simon.
Rachel realizes that the staff was responsible because they signed a petition to have the arts program cut. Rachel tries to vindicate herself by saying she was forced to sign the petition after being blackmailed but then she is reminded of her affair.
Rachel then incorrectly guesses that the Warden is Simon, Charlotte's husband.
The Warden points out Rachel is bad at guessing games by bringing out a gagged and bound Simon. Poor thing doesn't get a single dialogue in the five minute screentime he gets.
After going on and on about why the Warden is doing this to them, out comes Charlotte's mother.
Just how old was Charlotte? Her mother looks like she could be her grandmother.
The old woman glares and grins wickedly. She's clearly pleased with this sick game. She wants more. More blood and more pain.
The Warden explains how he wad happy to help Charlotte's mother for free after he learned what happened to her.
Rachel has used the distraction to help herself while the remaining two captives meet their demise after failing to impress the audience.
Rachel wins...until she doesn't. Turns out she needs to get 10,000 likes in order to be set free. She uses a whip to punish herself but also opens up her overalls to get three thousand likes immediately.
The detectives have finally arrived but don't call back up. One of them dies when he is attacked by the Warden, the other wrongfully shoots down a man he thought was the captor. Turns out it was Simon in a hoodie. Maybe he didn’t even get his five minutes. Maybe it was only three minutes of screen time.
Charlotte's mother comes over and pretends to be a captive when Rachel comes over and falls down. The mother thought she had died in an explosion after failing her task but what she didn’t know was that Rachel had managed to use the distractions of the other player's deaths to cut the wire and device out of her and hide her neck by opening up her hair.
The Detective is unaware of the old woman's intentions and simply walks out of the room when he learns the Warden made away with his car. Is there a tracker in the car? Can the Warden be traced through the call he makes to the detective so he could gloat?
No idea.
Rachel has had it with being nice and uses the fallen detective's gun on Charlotte's mother.
Some time may have passed. The Warden had told the detective that he had another game to play and the detective promises to catch him one day. Sequel? Probably.
We see some people in cells. They are the new players of this sick game. The Warden who is some sort of vigilante is at it again.
Now let's see if the case comes under the detective's jurisdiction or not.
Scare Scale: 3/5
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