Reviews are in: whether or not to see the EDM horror flick, ‘Enter the Dangerous Mind’Edm Enter The Dangerous Mind

Reviews are in: whether or not to see the EDM horror flick, ‘Enter the Dangerous Mind’

A horror movie focused around EDM may read as a ludicrous plot for a satire film, but as directors Youssef Delara and Victor Teran hope to achieve, Enter the Dangerous Mind (EDM) aims to become one of this year’s standout feature length psychological thrillers. A brief description of the film describes it as:

“A socially awkward EDM musician with a traumatic past, a tenuous grip on reality, and voices in his head. When he meets Wendy, he thinks he might finally have a shot at happiness. But as long-buried memories begin to stir, and his crush turns into obsession, Jim finds himself looking into a violent abyss… and he won’t be going alone.”

The film, set for a wide release on February 6th, has also been previously released at independent screenings under the title Snap and features Jake Hoffman of Wolf of Wall Street and Nikki Reed from Twilight.

To help confused or curious viewers decide whether EDM, as the film has cleverly abbreviated itself, is a flop or a worthy flick to see, we’ve compiled a few persuasive reviews.

Music Times says …

This is probably just a case of Tinnitus gone horribly wrong with some hints of Fight Club and generic horror, slasher film mixed in. The quintessential 2011 American brostep […] is the cherry on top.

 

UK Horror Scene reviewer Joey Keogh was quick to confirm:

‘Snap’ isn’t exactly what one might call an original film – it’s basically ‘Fight Club’ but with less fighting, far less charismatic leads, and lots more shouting in public. The dub-step angle is fairly new, but it also isn’t terribly exciting or even exploited as much as it could’ve been.

 

On the other, slightly more positive hand, reviewer Mike Thomas of Match Flick explained …

On my personal rating scale of with “5” being drop everything and see the video now; if you’re female, bear the producers’ children and “0” being burn down the theater, murder the staff, and violate their dog, this movie earns a “3.75,” using my Patented Bell Curve for Independent films.

 

But was sure to include that …

The only minus is the film’s selling point – the violent, visceral soundtrack, that if you’re not a fan of angry, percussive music, will be headache-inducing, but it adds to the mood of the film.

 

The film received a surprisingly high 7.6 out of 10 rating on IMDb. Reviewers that caught the film’s screening at SXSW (as Snap) shared their positive, although gut-wrenching responses to the film:

Directors Youssef Delara and Victor Teran define the psychological horror largely through an aggressive sound design reflecting Jim’s deteriorating state of mind, coupled with imagery that continually goes askew. It sets the nerves on edge, creating an uneasy, unsettling atmosphere of dread […] Snap exerts a gravitational pull into a well of despair that is overwhelming and/or repellent. Afterward, my stomach remained clenched up. Your emotional mileage may vary. – Peter Martin of Twitch Film

 

In the end, the musical aspect doesn’t seem to play a large role in a film titled EDM:

Describing the film based upon its use of dub-step is a bit misleading; the best description of it is as a thriller. […] Snap isn’t really anything too far outside of the box. The plot is largely predictable, but it is the nuance that gives the film its teeth. It’s nice to see a film where what seems to be the big twist is essentially revealed in the first ten minutes. This isn’t a movie that is meant to surprise you.” -Spencer Fornaciari of MacGuffin

 

Ultimately, the headline worthy title EDM may have more to do with a click bait strategy than film narrative. Not for the faint of heart or even those looking for a horror film with blood and gore, Enter the Dangerous Mind seems to fulfill its destiny as a psychological thriller that explores terrors of the human mind — with just a dash of dubstep on the side.

We’ll let you decide for yourself. Enter the Dangerous Mind is available for pre-order now here and releases in theaters and on iTunes on February 6th.

Tags: ,

Categories: ,