From Console to Cinema
Since 2023, there has been a rise in video game to movie adaptations and Until Dawn follows suit. If you go into viewing Until Dawn solely as an adaptation, then you will be left disappointed. While there are homages to the original video game, the overall premise separates it. With the many noticeable differences to the original game, it is reeking of a money grab, utilising the nostalgia to its advantage. As many reviews have pointed out, the movie does not play out well as a movie adaptation of the game; however, as a standalone, it is a recommended watch.
Story & Characters
Directed by David Sandberg, Until Dawn was released in theatres on April 25th 2025. The film follows a group of young adults on their journey to retrace the steps of the main protagonist’s sister. Instead of going to a known location like the game, they stumble upon a mysterious town. As the continuous night goes on, more and more death traps appear. The group of friends are required to work together to find a way out of the cycle so that all of them can survive until dawn. There are nods towards the original video with cameos of the infamous Josh, Wendigos as a cause of death, and of course, the inclusion of a therapist called Dr. Hill.
The group of young adults consists of Clover, Nina, Abe, Megan and Max. Clover is comparable to Sam from the video game, as she has the closest relationship with the character who went missing. Nina and Abe are almost entirely stereotypical couples who have not been together long but are trauma-bonded by the events of the horror movie. Megan is the stereotypical character within horror movies who finds and delivers the clues to help the protagonists survive. Max is the voice of reason and a plot device to continue the story by chasing after Clover. However, critics have commented on the lack of development of these characters in the exposition. There is limited exploration about the closeness of these friends and their personal lives, which in turn has made it difficult for viewers to care about their survival.
Adaptation vs. Expectation
Each choice in the game alters the storyline, thus allowing for about three possible causes of death. The movie shifts away from these causes of death, as they add many more deaths each night as the cycle repeats. This change in itself is drastically different from the game, as once a choice is made, that will permanently alter the story, and there is no repeating in that play through, unless, of course, you were to restart the whole game from the beginning. The movie takes a Groundhog Day approach, giving it a video game feel as it imitates multiple lives that survival games usually follow.
The main factor that failed this movie was that Until Dawn fans were expecting a word-for-word movie format. When the announcement of Sandberg bringing the video game to the big screen was made, there was a lot of speculation about how it would be formatted into a movie style. A key factor that audiences admire about the video game is its way of utilising the “butterfly effect” theory. With Until Dawn being a theatrical release, they cannot create a choose-your-own-path that simulates the video game. Although some movies, like Netflix’s “Choose Love”, have done it, they have all been released directly onto streaming services.
However, if Sanberg chose this direction, the movie would have flopped even worse at the box office than it did. Rotten Tomatoes and IMDB ratings have rated Until Dawn slightly better than mediocre. The average ratings of critics on Rotten Tomatoes resulted in a value less than the overall audience score. Critics found the adaptation to be unoriginal and too cliché.
Although it would have been amazing to see a film that follows the same storyline, there are still many strengths that Sandberg orchestrated. The film is not a scary horror; it is more of a comedic horror. To me, it gives off similar vibes to “Scary Movie”. Likewise with the video game creating lovable horror cliche characters, the film follows the key horror stereotypes whilst simultaneously acknowledging these said stereotypes. Another positive factor of the film in Sanberg’s corner is how he could carefully articulate a gory masterpiece. Despite critics arguing that the film was unoriginal, the gore gave it uniqueness. Until Dawn will be forever known as the movie that has made tap water undrinkable to most.
Verdict
Overall, the movie is worth a watch, but do not go in expecting an Until Dawn video game replica. Compared to other standalone movies, it does not fully compare. But it is a movie worth watching between the battle of parody horrors. Sandberg delivers a Groundhog Day horror movie that has gore for days. Despite this, it screens as a nostalgic money grab using the beloved Until Dawn video game.
Caitlin 
Clara 
Kath Smart