Drop

As someone who is single, I can tell you—dating sucks. I’ve been on more than my fair share of first dates, and while some are good and even lead to a second, most just feel like bad job interviews. So for me, it was easy to relate to a first date that goes astray, like in Christopher Landon’s new film Drop. I mean, I’ve never had the experience of some stranger asking me to kill my date, but hey—we all have our own nightmares.

Drop isn’t just about first dates from hell, though. It’s a top-notch thriller that takes you on quite a ride.

For Violet (Meghann Fahy), the last five years have been about her and her son Toby (Jacob Robinson), as she tries to get their lives back on stable ground. Her ex-husband was violent, and now, as a widow, she’s been trying to heal from that abusive relationship. But tonight, she’s decided to give a guy a chance. Her sister Jen (Violett Beane) is watching Toby, giving Violet the little push she needs to follow through.

So off to dinner she goes—at a restaurant with quite the view. On the way, her date Henry (Brandon Sklenar) texts that he’s running a little late, so, nervous, Violet has a glass of wine. Henry arrives and things start to click. But even before he shows up, Violet begins receiving mysterious AirDrops inviting her to play a game. At first, she ignores them, but eventually gives in. The game is simple: kill her date, or her son dies.

The clock is ticking as Violet tries to figure out who’s pulling the strings before time runs out.

Written by Jillian Jacobs and Chris Roach, Drop delivers a tightly arranged story that keeps you on your toes, using limited space to full advantage. Things start off calmly enough, but with excellent pacing, the tension ramps up and even leads to some genuinely shocking moments. Landon uses all the tools at his disposal—camera movement becomes more fluid as the pressure builds, and sound plays a key role, with silence heightening the urgency of the situation. Add to that Drop‘s lean 100-minute runtime, and it’s easy to see why this is a thrill ride that doesn’t let up.

Drop is a top-tier thriller that cleverly merges modern tech threats with old-fashioned suspense. You can’t help but sympathize with Violet, and Fahy plays her perfectly—she easily carries the weight of the movie on her shoulders. The rest of the cast is mostly background to her story, even Sklenar, whose character is just one part of the night’s chaotic events.

Where Drop truly shines is in how it builds suspense, making the most out of its confined setting to deliver a roller-coaster ride you’ll want to jump back onto again. That said, it’s not a perfect film—some plot points veer into the nonsensical—but while those moments might knock it down a notch, it’s still a hell of an entertaining movie.

I wish we had more thrillers like this. Drop knows exactly what it wants to do, and it gets in and out while making the most of every minute.