Craig (Pat Healy, Killers of the Flower Moon) wakes up to find an eviction notice on his front door, and things get worse when he gets fired from his auto mechanic job. How is he going to support his family? He drops by a dive bar and bumps into his old pal Vince (Ethan Embry, Empire Records). A couple nearby overhear them sharing their bad luck stories. Colin (David Koechner, Anchorman) mentions they’re celebrating the birthday of his wife, Violet (Sara Paxton, Weapons). Instead of getting her a fancy gift, Colin wants her to have a night to remember. He offers $50 to the first one of them to drink a shot he pours. Things escalate quickly, both in the level of the dares and the price offered to whoever does them first. Is Craig desperate enough to accept self-destructive, indecent proposals to keep his family from being homeless? Will Vince stop him to claim the outrageous payday for himself?
What We Thought:
I saw Cheap Thrills back in 2014 when it first hit physical media. I remember enjoying it, but hadn’t seen it since then. Rewatching it a few days ago I remembered some of it, but not all of it. I knew it was about two friends doing a series of challenges for money from the underrated David Koechner, but their specific character traits I didn’t remember. I thought Sara Paxton was the wife/girlfriend of Pat Healy or Ethan Embry, but she was with Koechner and Healy’s wife is only in the beginning and end of the film.
Healy and Embry play two estranged friends who run into each other at a bar. Healy and his family are about to be evicted and he lost his job earlier that day. They run into Koechner and Paxton at the bar and soon the foursome start partying and Koechner convinces the two friends to do challenges for money. As the night progresses, the stakes increase leading to hard decisions. How far will you go when life demands you to make quick money?
The movie works because of its cast. Different actors would have brought overacting or something different that wouldn’t have worked. Healy is grounded in his performance and you understand how the night gets away from him because he wants to take care of his family. Embry’s character is just into it for a good time and the money. He’s conniving and you see why he’d be doing coke and wanting money. Koechner in reality is the bad guy of the film, but brings a charm to the character that despite knowing he’s pulling all the strings, you sit there wondering what will be next.
Cheap Thrills never wanders and never loses your attention. You wait to see what they will do next and who will walk away. The actors make the film realistic and you get just enough backstory to understand their actions. If you aren’t familiar with the film give it a watch. Bonus features include a new commentary, new interviews and previously released bonus features.
The Nerds Templar 