Editor’s note: This piece was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the writers and actors currently on strike, the [series/movie/etc] being covered here wouldn’t exist.

Summary

Til Death Do Us Part is a lackluster horror/action thriller with wonky dialogue, an overlong runtime, and a tedious script. The film has potential with gore and enjoyable kills, but the storytelling falls short, making it a chore to watch. Natalie Burn’s performance as the runaway bride is the saving grace of the film, but overall, it lacks proper execution and a cohesive script.

There’s no beating around the bush here: Til Death Do Us Part is a lackluster horror/action thriller with wonky dialogue, an overlong runtime, and a tedious script. That’s not to say it’s the worst movie of the year, but this tame and less creative version of Ready or Not will make it difficult for you to stay engaged, or even want to for that matter. The story follows a runaway bride (Natalie Burn) as she rages against her ex-fiancé and his seven deadly groomsmen. Reasonable questions that crop up are: Why is she trying to escape her soon-to-be husband, and why must she go through his friends to do so? But instead of getting to the point, the script takes what feels like an eternity to answer these questions in the hopes of being clever.

The most frustrating part about director Timothy Woodward Jr.’s feature is that it has enormous potential. There are great amounts of gore and enjoyable kills that any horror and thriller lover could appreciate. However, these elements aren’t enough to convince them that it’s actually worth a watch — the storytelling just isn’t there. Frequent time jumps can be confusing, and there are too many scenes that overstay their welcome. Long shots of characters strolling around never actually progress the story, so it ultimately feels like a chore to get through.

With more intentional decision-making, Til Death Do Us Part could have been a special entry in its genre. But it has trouble finding its footing early on and struggles to tell its story cohesively; it’s the type of film that will be long forgotten after a single watch. We may have been able to look past some of the most obvious hurdles in the film thanks to some good kill sequences, but the lack of realism throughout actually makes matters worse. In one particular scene, a character gets stabbed near the eye but still manages to carry on a full conversation — it’s a ridiculous occurrence among a long list of absurd moments.

Never mind the painfully unfunny dialogue or the lackluster script, Til Death Do Us Part just isn’t as entertaining as it could be. A part of that is due to characters we never really get a chance to know. The actors are given cutesy and, at times, silly dialogue to give them some sense of personality. However, these one-liners aren’t enough to make anyone stand out, even though there are plenty of opportunities to do so. Even the main characters remain strangers. This makes it easy to feel indifferent about their fates.

Despite everything that goes wrong in Til Death Do Us Part, there is one saving grace: Natalie Burn. Burn plays the runaway bride and demonstrates that, even in a wildly unserious and not-so-great film, she can be a badass. The dialogue is already light and, like the rest of the characters, Burn is given corny one-liners from time to time. However, it’s so easy to cheer her on as she performs with absolute conviction. How she is able to give a performance while surrounded by overacting and unmatched energy is a mystery. Yet, the film is worth a recommendation for her performance alone.

Not much else needs to be said about the quality of Woodward Jr.’s latest. The film struggles to bring the story together, and the excitement surrounding the fight sequences quickly dies due to unrealistic components. It’s a struggle to get into the feature even though the premise should make it easy to do so. What’s ultimately missing from Til Death Do Us Part is proper execution and a script that the actors can build upon. Otherwise, we’re left with a sloppy and uninspired action thriller that is all gore and fight sequences with no excitement and sense to back it up.

Til Death Do Us Part releases in limited theaters on Friday, August 4. The film is 109 minutes long and is not yet rated.