Lowlifes (2024)-- My take on the movie with spoilers!

 

Plot: A family faces challenges when they spend a night at a homestead.

A family getting lost in the middle of nowhere runs into people that may just be up to something.

How many times have we seen the same theme in movies?

LOWLIFES follows a family that looks normal from the outside. They are on vacation and travelling around the country in an RV.

When they run into two locals, their trip takes a drastic and dangerous turn.

The movie has a surprising twist that is revealed in the first few minutes of the movie.

There's drama galore and blood as well. What makes the movie interesting is that the twists keep coming right to the very end.

LOWLIFES Plot

The movie begins with a man running in the woods. Someone is chasing him who then catches up to him and slits his throat. The blood pools underneath him and when he is dragged away, the film title appears.

We then meet a family of four. Parents Keith and Kathleen, and their children Amy and Jeffrey.

They are traveling across the country in an RV, and rake regular stops to grill meat. Jeffrey comments that Keith isn't doing a good job with the grilling and the meat is still pink. Keith makes his son still eat it and then kisses his wife who is totally not into kissing someone who has eaten the fat of the meat.

Then we have the typical, bratty teen Amy who throws attitude and isn't keen on having lunch after a heavy breakfast. So off she goes for a walk to get away from the RV for a bit. Keith calls out that one day she will be inheriting her grandfather's RV so she must learn to love it.

Some time later, a truck drives towards them and its two locals Billy and Vern. They are looking for a girl but can't find her anywhere.

The family tells them that they haven't seen her but the locals are up to no good as they taunt the city folk. Jeffrey tries to be friendly by offering them chocolate. Vern eats all of it but still isn't warming up to the family. Then Amy walks in and they make some offhand comments about her so she goes into the RV.

The locals leave and the family drives off. But in the middle of the road they see a truck blocking the path. It's Billy and Vern again.

Kathleen wants to keep moving but Keith insists they help him. When they see Vern holding a gun they realize they have to help the two after their truck broke down.

Billy decides to go with the family to get help while Vern stays near the truck. Along the way, Billy talks about his family and their house in the middle of nowhere.

His family consists of Savannah and Juli Ann, his sisters. They live with his great uncle and Juli Ann's boyfriend Big Mac.

Billy and Jeffrey are playing a game when Billy realizes that Jeffrey may not own the game they are playing.

Jeffrey gets up, miffed at Billy and goes behind him. In the next instant, he stabs Billy in the neck.

Yes, that's the twist.

The villains are not the locals this time but this nice looking city folks.

Amy groans and informs her family that she isn't cleaning up the mess this time.

The family stop the RV and get to cutting up Billy and storing his body parts in the freezer. So yes, they are cannibals as well.

The family has a suit and everything when cleaning up and do everything meticulously and clean up well.

They then decide to stock up their freezer with more meat and head out to Billy's family home.

The family was sitting down for a spaghetti dinner when the family shows up, pretending to need help and asking to use their phone.

Since they live in the middle of nowhere, Juli Ann informs them that they don't have any network and have only one phone which Billy took with him.

The family tells them that they met Billy and he was the one who told them that they could come here.

They are invited to dinner but the family decide return the favor by killing the locals. That is when Big Mac walks in and the family put away their knives.

Keith and Kathleen wonder if it is safe for them to stay the night considering a large man is in the house.

Jeffrey gives Juli Ann chocolate and she and her boyfriend share it.

Vern is waiting in the middle of nowhere, wondering where his friend went and gets violently sick. We are shown a chocolate wrapper. So apparently the family has also been feeding people poisoned chocolate to subdue them faster.

There is a deputy roaming about but he is pretty useless. We see at the end of the movie just how useless he is.

Back to the homestead.

Amy finds out Savannah may be into girls. Juli Ann sure teases her sister about it. Jeffrey is given Billy's tiny room and the first thing he does is put Billy's photo face down. There are can pull up rings there for some reason.

Savannah has a much better room and Amy sets about to seduce her.

Keith warns Jeffrey not to take down Big Mac because he is not ready yet.

Kathleen and Keith wonder if Big Mac has been poisoned yet. Juli Ann is busy occupying the bathroom to puke. Big Mac wants to throw up too and ends up heading outside.

Jeffrey comes up behind him after Big Mac pukes in a barrel. Jeffrey attacks him but Big Mac is stronger and shoves him. Just when he goes to check up on him, feeling remorseful for hitting a kid, Jeffrey attacks him again.

Big Mac may be big but he was a good man to want to help a cannibal.

Anyway, just as Big Mac gets the upper hand, he gets sick and Jeffrey uses this as an advantage and kills him.

Jeffrey really wanted to prove to his family that he is ready for a challenge and that perhaps he should inherit his grandfather's RV.

So the grandfather was a murderous cannibal too? The tradition lives on...

Amy has succeeded in seducing Savannah and told her not to tell Keith anything because he is a Conservative who also has a problem with Amy getting high.

Just as she and Savannah are making out, Amy almost stabs her but Savannah hears noises of struggle outside and wants to inspect. Amy loses her balance and accidentally stabs herself.

Savannah goes to help her and Amy lies about carrying a knife for protection and not for murder.

Savannah heads out to the RV to find medical stuff and gets curious about what she finds inside.

Keith kills the old man with an axe and is now planning to off Juli Ann.

Keith isn't too pleased with Jeffrey going behind his back and murdering Big Mac. But oh, well. More meat for them.

Savannah realizes that the family is up to no good when she finds the freezer. Since she was an award winning archer, she picks up her weapon.

Kathleen and Keith make out as they decide to go ahead and finish the job quickly.

Just then Kathleen is shot through the neck.

Amy is shocked and realizes Savannah is behind it.

LOWLIFES Ending Explained

Savannah tries to help her sister but is forced to forgo her weapons after the family threatens Juli Ann.

She is tied up too. Juli Ann pleads with the family to let Savannah go as she is a pianist and her little sister. Juli Ann looks younger, but okay...

A fight breaks out among all of them and Savannah manages to get free.

Jeffrey is burned at the stove. Keith is killed off quickly too after he gets distracted when he learns that his daughter has too many bad habits.

Amy and Juli Ann think they are saved after the family is knocked out. They are just grateful that they didn't have to eat the meat Keith had cooked that came from Big Mac.

But just then Amy comes behind Juli Ann and stabs her.

Savannah chases  Amy outside and the deputy chooses that moment to come.

He thinks the city folks are being chased by the wild local and shoots Savannah dead.

He helps Amy and puts her in the car but she kills him too.

In the end, Amy looks at her family's photo in the RV and drives off, finally deciding to carry on her family's tradition.

The movie ends.

LOWLIFES certainly has an interesting enough climax. The deputy was far too biased against the locals and probably had watched a lot of horror movies where the locals had preyed upon city folks. He didn't, even for a second, believe that it could be Amy who may be the one who is dangerous.

The deputy's stupidity is what eventually got him killed too.

LOWLIFES is a well-written thriller with interesting twists that will take you by surprise.

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