You might recognize Chris Chalk as a character actor who has shown up in everything from 12 Years a Slave to Godzilla vs. Kong. However, his time spent on the small screen might be more memorable as he was third billed on Perry Mason, and he even stepped into a role once played by Morgan Freeman as Lucius Fox on Gotham. In Our Deadly Vows, however, Chalk pulls double duty, appearing both as the film’s star and stepping behind the camera to make his directorial debut (and, for good measure, writes the film as well.)
Alongside Chris is his wife, K.D. Chalk as Chance’s wife. However, she isn’t the only one, as the movie is an ensemble piece full of new and emerging acting talents. Those actors do a great job playing some truly unlikeable characters that berate and betray one another at every opportunity. The movie gives us ample time to despise almost all of them, as roughly the first half of the movie is spent ruminating at an awkward dinner party. Highlights include an uncomfortable discussion about cheating on partners (with two people in an affair and their partners all in attendance) and an archery competition led by the human embodiment of toxic masculinity.
“…an unseen killer begins to pick off the guests one by one.”
Of course, the other shoe eventually drops, and an unseen killer begins to pick off the guests one by one. Cryptic notes chastising each successive victim make the shadowy figure feel like a combination of Jigsaw and Edgar Allan Poe. The film isn’t so much concerned with the ways these people are dispatched as much as the dynamics at play between the characters. In this way, it’s truly a reversal of the style over substance that so many similar films fall victim to. Those dynamics are largely interpersonal, but the film also addresses relations between differing ethnicities, genders, and sexual orientations. The downside is these overwhelmingly unlikable characters can often feel like negative stereotypes. The film regrettably reinforces some that are outdated, particularly towards bisexual women.
The end of the film might be called a twist… technically speaking, but anyone who’s seen a horror film will likely see it coming. However, that doesn’t take away from the impact of the final message of Our Deadly Vows. Being in a relationship is an important decision that necessitates ultimate dedication, requiring being there for the one you love for better or worse (in this case, much worse.) Should we buckle down and bear the shared weight of this requirement or walk away? Perhaps sometimes we sacrifice too much for these relationships, but the film argues that indecision is one of the worst sins of all. In fact, it seems to take a harder stance against indecision than murder, but hey, if it didn’t, it wouldn’t be much of a horror film.
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that, ultimately, the strongest thing in a directorial debut from a seasoned actor is, in fact, the acting. Other aspects of the film can sometimes be uneven or even frustrating. Nevertheless, the strong ensemble makes the film well worth watching.
"…feels like a combination of Jigsaw and Edgar Allan Poe..."
