Drop (2025) - Review

Rating: 3 out of 5

THERE’S a guilty pleasure to be had in watching the preposterously enjoyable Drop unfold. But while certainly engaging for three quarters of its running time, it’s a shame that this suspense thriller ultimately drops its own ball during the OTT finale.

Former White Lotus standout Meghann Fahy (from season two) heads the cast as Violet, a therapist for survivors of domestic violence and a single mother to a five-year-old son, still attempting to get over the trauma of her own abuse at the hands of a violent husband (seen threatening to kill her at the top of the movie).

Years after that incident, Violet finally steps out for a first date with a man she has met via the apps - Brandon Sklenar’s nice guy photographer Henry - who arranges to meet her for a meal at a swish high-rise restaurant.

But not long after arriving, Violet is targeted by increasingly hostile “DigiDrops” – AirDrops without the copyright infringement – sharing files to her phone from within a 50ft radius. At first, the drops are mildly irritating and Henry helps in trying to discover the source.

But then they turn sinister - revealing that a masked intruder is in her home and primed to kill her son if she fails to poison Henry first and retrieve some damaging evidence from his camera.

It’s up to Violet to use every resource at her limited disposal to play for time, while keeping Henry interested, all the while trying to find out who is applying the pressure.

Writer/director Christopher Landon is no stranger to tense scenarios, having previously penned the script for the effective Hitchcock/Rear Window homage Disturbia, and here teases the audience with several red herrings en route to a clever reveal of the actual movie villain. Until then, he successfully keeps you guessing.

Fahy also does well in balancing her ever increasing anxiety with a steely determination to try and do the right thing - even if some of her actions feel downright silly. You’ll find yourself rooting for her to find a way to turn the tables on her tormentor, while also helping that Sklenar’s Henry doesn’t become an unwitting victim. He does decent well - even if most men in his position would probably have walked away from the dining table long before his life really starts to be in peril.

It’s just a shame that once the film hits its final straight and the villain has been uncovered, credibility flies out the window as Landon opts for excess and stupidity over anything subtle or clever.

This is where supposedly clever and ruthless villains come over utterly inept (and singularly unable to shoot straight) while supposed novices at dealing with these kinds of situations (such as Violet or her babysitting sister) suddenly become adept at high speed driving or hiding around the house.

There’s even an obvious high rise death for one of the characters, given the location of the restaurant, which wasn’t strictly necessary - but dials up the absurdity.

The overall result is a film that succeeds perhaps because it embraces its wilder tendencies. It’s just a shame that what could have been a tight, clever Hitchcockian potboiler ends up sharing more in common with the ‘so bad it’s good’ category.

Certificate: 15

Running time: 95mins