First Dates Can Really Make Your Heart Drop (SXSW) in Suspense

Title: Drop

First Non-Festival Release: April 9, 2025 (Theatrical Release)

Director: Christopher Landon

Writer: Jillian Jacobs, Chris Roach

Runtime: 100 Minutes

Starring: Meghann Fahy, Brandon Sklenar, Violett Beane

Where to Watch: Check out where to find it here

This film’s review was written after its screening at the South by Southwest Film Festival in 2025.

First dates can be killer. Nerves can make first impressions difficult and, for the perpetually anxious, may cause a sufferer to catastrophize every situation. Most of the time, the worst thing that will happen is a mismatch of chemistry or an unavoidable environmental factor will ruin it. Other times, they can be dangerous.

Violet (Meghann Fahy) has good reason to feel on edge for her date. Widowed from her previous marriage after her abusive husband (Michael Shea) died by suicide and attached at the hip to her son Toby (Jacob Robinson) who is at home with her sister Jen (Violett Beane), it is understandable why Violet has jitters going into the evening. Arriving at the venue, she meets her date, the charming photographer Henry (Branden Sklenar). All is going well until Violet begins receiving mysterious airdrops from a stranger threatening her son if she doesn’t kill her date.

A tight, tense thriller, Drop leans into camp sensibilities to deliver a fun murder mystery for all audiences.

Everything is ridiculous in Drop, but the film leans into it, making the improbable circumstances exciting. Mixing a whodunnit with high stake thriller tension, Drop focuses on Violet’s mission to find out who is forcing her to kill Henry, save him, and also save her son. While there isn’t much new to its setup, Drop plays with its concept all the same. What seems like a simple mission for Violet is complicated by the variety of ways she can escape. Of course, they’re all thwarted by her invisible foe, much to her, and any audience member who inevitably believes they’re smarter than the film, chagrin. Violet’s frustration and increasing desperation fuels the narrative and tension.

Balancing the mystery behind Violet’s torment with the escalating stakes of her date, Drop focuses on building tension rather than wowing the audience with its reveals. Every time Violet works a way around her predicament, her unseen tormentor halts her advances with threats and condescension. Even before Drop allows its violence to get more physical, it knows how to add suspense to its ever-growing conspiratorial story. Flashes of text and cellphone buzzing induce audience flinching, becoming a great indicator of how well Violet’s plans are going. Their stylish integration allows the film to ensure its unseen agitator’s presence is felt without veering too far into irritating territory.

Meghann Fahy and the impressive ensemble cast around her make Drop work even when it stretches the bounds of absurdity. Fahy is magnetic as Violet, commanding the screen while unraveling as her attempts to break free are blunted. Never appearing as clear victor or victim, Fahy balances the emotional work exceptionally. Branden Sklenar charms easily, allowing his quiet and affirming masculine energy to appear both inviting and worthy of suspicion as well. Their chemistry is palpable, even when their characters grow weary of each other throughout the painful night. A dopey middle-aged man on his own blind date, a tight-lipped restaurant manager, a flirtatious piano player, a flamboyant wannabe actor moonlighting as a waiter, and more add color to the first date while making the ever-growing list of suspects reach dizzying heights.

The true star of the show is cinematographer Marc Spicer, who adeptly captures the dizzying atmosphere of Drop. Navigating the vast space of the restaurant, Spicer manages to make the space feel claustrophobic. The intimacy of Violet and Henry’s date is juxtaposed against wide pans of the restaurant’s comically long list of suspects. By homing in on Violet, Drop mimics the surveillance she is subjected to while also projecting the hopeless feeling of not knowing who could possibly be torturing her. We rarely leave Violet’s side, and if we do it’s to watch footage of her home alongside her. It’s disorienting and makes the tension even more unbearable.

Good gateway horror has become a lost art in recent years with the push for genre fans to go harder. Drop is a great example of how toning down the violence doesn’t preclude quality. Balancing humor and terror, Drop plays with its concept by using its gifted cast and engaging characters fully to its advantage. Overcoming its familiar story, Drop proves that it isn’t necessary to reinvent the wheel to make a nice, tight thriller. Don’t let the words of a man hidden behind a screen fool you and check out Drop for yourself this April.

Overall Score? 7/10