SXSW 2025 Review: DROP, A Terrifically Taut Techno-Thriller From Christopher Landon

Young widow Violet (Meghann Hahy) is finally ready to get back into the dating game, but while out with hunky photographer Henry (Brandon Sklenar), she is targeted with a series of increasingly frightening anonymous drops to her phone. When the messages make it clear that this is no prank and that her young son – at home with her sister while she’s out – is in danger, Violet has to figure out how to save the lives of the people she holds most dear without tipping off her antagonizer.

In Christopher Landon’s Drop, technology facilitates a sinister villain’s complex plan, all while keeping their identity a secret, making everyone within earshot a suspect. Written by Christopher Roach and Jillian Jacobs, the team behind Blumhouse’s Fantasy Island and Truth or Dare, Drop is a fantastically taught thriller that grips the viewer by the throat early, and never lets go.

Having become one of horror’s most dependable voices over the last fifteen years, Landon knows how to craft tension, and in Drop, the stakes are very high and very clear right from the start. Violet’s first date since the passing of her husband is a monumental event for her. Leaving her son Toby (Jacob Robinson) with her sister Jen (Violett Beane) is a daunting hill to climb, and we see attempt to back out several times before Jen convinces her to leave the house.

Henry, a photographer working for the mayor’s office, is the kind of ruggedly handsome, good solid man that she deserves, but when her victimizer insists that she keep him in the dark – for reasons that will become clear as the film moves forward, Henry’s commitment to this first date is tested in ways that not many of us would stick around for. As the drops move from creepy meme territory to straight forward criminal demands, Violet and Henry begin a complex dance, complicated by a number of recurring personalities in their night who are starting to worry about them.

Contained largely to a single restaurant location, Drop fills out its claustrophobic world with a handful of colorful characters who complicate and complement Violet’s interior terror by reminding us that all of this is happening in a real environment. A sleazy lounge pianist played by Ed Weeks (The Mindy Project), a gruff businessman with a staring problem played by Travis Nelson, a nosy/caring (?) bartender played by Gabrielle Ryan, and an overly enthusiastic waiter in his first night on the job played by Jeffrey Self provide creative color to this very dark film in a way that keeps atmosphere playful while never tipping too far into full blown comedy.

Though the broad concept of the unknown puppeteer is far from a new one, Drop manages to keep the tension high and the surprises coming while utilizing modern technology in ways that – while not necessarily new – are dread inducing and scarily relatable. There’s not a lot of fat in this film, Landon and company keep the scares coming hard and fast, we feel real sympathy for Violet as she’s forced to comply with terrifying messages that put literally everyone she cares for at risk. There seems to be no way to win this battle, and the film does an excellent job of taking us places we don’t expect.

Drop may not be as flashy or high concept as some of Landon’s higher profile work, it is nevertheless a blisteringly paced techno-thriller with strong lead and supporting performances, and just the right amount of humor to give the audience room to release some tension before it snatches their breath away again. There’s always room at the cinema for well-crafted twisty thrillers, and Drop does exactly what it says on the tin, but with a stylish modern twist that is send audiences home with a big grin on their faces and a healthy distrust of public places.