Gorgeous cinematography, cool set design, good acting, an intriguing story, a great monster. The plot is a little bit too "out there" for me (I like my horror movies grounded in reality) and the movie doesn't really give an answer as to WHY the ritual is happening in the first place every year (if the answer is "for the town's prosperity" - well, why don't the citizens just leave the town with, you know, their beloved family members in one piece?). The violence is fun as well, though only people that the viewer doesn't know (and doesn't care about) get killed, so it definitely lacks punch.
On a sidenote: some of my fellow critics in this user-review section have obviously seen another film than I did (or they simply weren't paying attention). Some write this contains elements of The Hunger Games and that the boys have to kill themselves?! That is NOT the case! They are dehydrated, starving and out of their minds after 3 days of being locked in their rooms and let out to kill "the monster". That some of them turn against themselves is a result of the state they are in and of gang rivalry, as seen throughout the film.
TL, DR: Cool little Horror movie that you can enjoy if you don't think too much about the plot and rather enjoy it's stylish cinematography and monster design. Not a classic by any means, but definitely worthwhile!
On a sidenote: some of my fellow critics in this user-review section have obviously seen another film than I did (or they simply weren't paying attention). Some write this contains elements of The Hunger Games and that the boys have to kill themselves?! That is NOT the case! They are dehydrated, starving and out of their minds after 3 days of being locked in their rooms and let out to kill "the monster". That some of them turn against themselves is a result of the state they are in and of gang rivalry, as seen throughout the film.
TL, DR: Cool little Horror movie that you can enjoy if you don't think too much about the plot and rather enjoy it's stylish cinematography and monster design. Not a classic by any means, but definitely worthwhile!