Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)
In 2016, my friend and I went to watch the horror thriller 10 Cloverfield Lane in the theater, and we both absolutely loved it – at least until the interval. (For non-Indian readers, Indian movie halls pause movies midway for a 10-minute break to hit the loo or grab snacks.) However, once the climax rolled in, I was still thrilled and satisfied with the film, while my friend hated it. So if we had to rate it, I’d give it 8 out of 10 stars, and my friend would probably give it a 6 or even lower. The point being – ending twists can make or break a movie depending on viewer expectations.
The 2024 dark comedy thriller It’s What’s Inside is one of those films where the ending is hilariously twisty, but not everyone will be on board with it. And just to be clear, it’s nothing like 10 Cloverfield Lane.
Written and directed by Greg Jardin, It’s What’s Inside follows a group of friends gathered at rich boy Reuben’s (Devon Terell) family mansion for an epic party before his wedding. The night takes a bizarre turn when their estranged classmate, Forbes (David Thompson), shows up at the door with a mysterious suitcase and proposes they play a wacky game. Forbes had fallen out with his friends after being expelled from college for bringing his underage sister, Beatrice (Madison Davenport), to a drinking party, so there’s this underlying tension that maybe he’s back for revenge. Who knows?!
“Don’t watch the trailer, just read the Netflix description and go for it. It’s trippy AF.” That’s the text I sent to my brother along with the link to It’s What’s Inside. That’s basically the short version of my review. The story unfolds over one wild night, with eight characters getting high on a new kind of sci-fi stimulation from Forbes and his mystery bag, which contains an unbelievable party trick. The party is packed with drinks, drugs, sex, jealousy, lies, cheating, and more identity crises than anyone can handle in one night. Think Freaky Friday or the recent Netflix comedy Family Switch, but with friends and raunchier themes.
The other party-goers include Cyrus (James Morosini) and his girlfriend Shelby (Brittany O’Grady), popular online influencer Nikki (Alycia Debnam-Carey), spiritual weirdo Maya (Nina Bloomgarden), Dennis (Gavin Leatherwood), who used to date Forbes’ sister Beatrice, and Brooke (Reina Hardesty), who has a crush on groom Reuben. There are eight characters playing Forbes’ mind-bending game, which makes it tricky for viewers to follow who’s who. But, in a clever screenplay trick, special effects help keep track of the characters (although I still had to rewind a few parts to understand what was going on). So yeah, the first half can feel chaotic, especially if you’re easily overwhelmed by too many characters. But for the story to work, it definitely needed multiple people for the party to feel like the truly maddening experience it is. You know how a casual game of football needs at least ten players, five on each side, to be fun? Like that.
David Thompson, who plays the trouble-stirring Forbes, is the standout character. He makes Forbes seem both shady and likable at the same time. In fact, he reminded me of Mark Zuckerberg—someone with the mixed vibes of a killer robot pretending to be a friendly human. You don’t know if his offerings (like Facebook/Instagram) are trustworthy, but you’re tempted to try them anyway, only to get hooked.
At about 1 hour and 43 minutes long, It’s What’s Inside might feel a bit off in the first half because it’s hard to tell where the story is going. But once Forbes’ intentions start to become clearer, things get fun. This is essentially one heck of a trippy movie, even if you’re watching it sober, where the characters learn what it’s like to live in someone else’s shoes—literally. The climactic twist almost feels like it belongs in a completely different movie, with a new character popping up to make revelations that solve one of the biggest questions: Why did Forbes turn up with the suitcase after years of ghosting his friends? The answer is unhinged and comedic as hell. It might come as a total surprise to some, but it’s foreshadowed pretty well!
Rating: 7.5 out of 10. Watch It’s What’s Inside on Netflix.
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