Film Review: Till Death

Till Death is a thriller from director, S.K. Dale, and writer, Jason Carvey, the former of which is making his directorial debut. It follows Emma (Megan Fox), a woman who has had a long, but seemingly rocky marriage with Mark (Eoin Macken). We’re introduced to her being with another man, and when we do see her with Mark, we get the impression that he might not be the best guy. He appears to try and make things up, even going as far as taking her out to a lake house that holds some significance to the earlier stages of their relationship.

While things might seem to be turning out for the better, Emma wakes up the next morning handcuffed to Mark, who proceeds to shoot himself. Now bloodied and befuddled, Emma finds herself dragging the body around the house, finding almost nothing left behind, tiring herself out as she tries to figure out what to do next. Unfortunately for her, things take a turn when two men arrive, one being the reluctant youngster, Jimmy (Jack Roth), and the intimidating Bobby (Callan Mulvey), the latter of whom has already traumatized Emma once before through a failed armed robbery that landed him in jail.

I feel like Megan Fox is on the verge of a full blown comeback, which is both exciting and totally deserved. It seems like people are reconciling with the culture of misogyny during that period in the late 2000s where she started coming up, unfairly maligning her as some kind of airhead. Last year, she popped up in the action film, Rogue. The movie was rock solid, and she was great in it. The same goes here, she carries the film really well, and she showcases a lot of skill in getting various emotions and information across without having to spell it out with dialogue. It’s a perfect vehicle for her, especially if it’s meant to usher in this new era of Megan Fox.

There’s a lot going for the film. Carvey’s script might not seem like much, it’s not very demanding, but it does all the Screenwriting 101 stuff really well. There’s great setups and payoffs, it does a great job at building tension by stacking obstacles one right after the other, it’s just very well constructed all around. And Dale’s direction compliments the script beautifully. The suspense is well done, and it does a great job at shifting character dynamics as it goes along, especially between Jimmy and Bobby.

Till Death might not provide the most complicated or nuanced story, but it’s a thoroughly engaging cat-and-mouse thriller that relies on the lead using their wits to survive, and it takes a mostly smart approach to all the various twists and turns that happen throughout the film. While the first ten to fifteen minutes of setup might not build up to much, once the premise is fully revealed, it doesn’t let up until the final second. It’s a hell of a ride, serving as a really great directorial debut from S.K. Dale, as well as a further promising turn from Megan Fox, who definitely has the potential to be a real deal genre movie darling if that’s something she is interested in pursuing. This was a real pleasant surprise, far surpassing any expectations I might have had. It’s definitely worth your time.

Till Death is now out in select theaters and VOD platforms.