The Thinning

I really enjoyed it. The planet is running out of resources and the government has developed this method of "Thinning" out the population by administering a test to students each year until graduation. The film displays a lot of fear. Fear among fellow students who are worried about failing and perspectives from other characters such as teachers and guards who experience this event every year. While there are some scenes where you are questioning the authenticity, I will remind you this is a movie. It's great because:

The story line flowed well and the film has plenty of suspense scenes.

The cinematography is well done.

The characters are likable (most). This film has the potential to spin off a couple sequels. Check it out.

Just a few nitpicky things that will drive you nuts.

1) This is a thinning of the population via testing scores. So why are all the security guards so stupid. Also, who is going to want to work at Burger Queen? 2) A test this important that can easily be cheated or manipulated..not likely 3) No funerals for the people killed? 4) I was gathering from the dialog that Texas has this test but other states may not. Why live there? (or in the USA if it the only testing country) 5) Did I mention the guards... not only are they stupid, they can't fight either 6) There is no twist at the end because wouldn't there be fewer people to take the test each year, hence no need to make LOTS of testing machines?

How? How can a plot have that many holes in it?! Not only that, but the amount of dead weight within the plot that either lead to nothing in particular or provided no depth to the overall arch of the story line and just flopped. The acting was cringe worthy at best and although it's an interesting idea, the whole YouTube starts a production company thing, if you're going to do it YouTube, please, do it right. Giving YouTube or in this case Vine stars a platform to fulfill their 5 second dream of being an actor might initially bring viewers but I can guarantee it'll be short lived. Nothing and I do mean nothing that I've watched off Red seems to have a hint of intelligent thought in it, and this was no exception.

The movie called "The Thinning" is held in the future where pretty much in layman terms, if you're dumb, you die. The government gives yearly annual tests to kids from kindergarten to 12th grade that determines and predicates the propensity of a students intellect, and if you fail that test, you're taken to the thinning where subsequently, you die.

So, I went in watching this movie on Youtube Red with no expectations. What I got was a pretty enjoyable dystopian movie, that had an okay plot, surprisingly good acting, some awkward direction, but overall wasn't too bad! One thing I was mostly surprised about was one of the main leads of the movie, Logan Paul! I follow his vlogs on YouTube, and he was the only reason I decided to watch this movie (so sorry if I'm totally bias about this movie), because I was really curious on what his acting chops were like, and he really surprised me!! His variety of emotions were fluid, and didn't feel stiff at all. He was the best character in the movie in my opinion. But other then him, I have to say he was the only reason I give this movie a 6/10. The direction, plot, and writing was simplistic which made the movie too predictable and stale. It wasn't anything special, and it had no surprises or twists.

But overall, I think anyone can enjoy this movie for what it is. It's nothing special. You'll probably enjoy it a lot more if you actually know the actors from YouTube!

OK, its low budget but that does not effect its premise. It has awful glitches as in the clock saying 10.10am and after a two hour test the clock still says 10.10am......BUT!! This is a blockbuster of an idea that could well be put into practice in the near future. Its notion is horrific but potential in this barbaric world we live in these days.

The acting is strong and commendable and the pace is good and keeps you wanting more.

Its cliché in places, predictable but in my view is well worth the watch; especially if you wear a tin hat like me!

All in all a solid low budget thriller that will have you thinking about the future that just might be around the corner for us all.

7/10