I think every writer — at least a little bit — kind of hopes their work comes true, that the words they’re putting on a page somehow reformulate into real life. For Rian, his words may be too deadly to bring to life. A stay at an old motel may not give him a choice. In I Know Exactly How You Die, every word a writer jots down inexplicably spells “death.”
When his slasher-fiction novel manifests in real life, hack writer Rian Burman has to finish his story without getting his protagonist murdered by a seriously sadistic Stalker who will stop at nothing to have her.
I Know Exactly How You Die, IMDB
And that’s what he does. Rian (Rushabh Patel) holes up in a dank motel, drowning his sorrows in vape fumes, mini alcohol bottles, unanswered voicemails to his ex, and angry calls from his agent. Many of the people he meets at the hotel are assholes, except for the owner, Naja (Rawya El Chab), who also writes. Katie (Stephanie Gomes Hogan) moves in to the hotel in an effort to escape her serial killing mailman and soon finds friendship with Rian. But as murders start to happen, Rian loses control over his story and becomes a main character himself.
I Know Exactly How You Die gave me such a rush. It was a murder mystery without being too psychological. It was meta without being in-your-face. The characters weren’t one-note and had their own background stories, as did the motel itself. The movie felt whole. The filmmakers achieved what Rian was trying to do in making a story appealing and dangerous. Rian finds out that everything he writes comes true, but what about things he didn’t write? What kind of magic does this hotel possess? Will Katie survive, or better yet, will she be understanding? So many unknowns thrown around keep us watching and anxious for the next scene. What the hell is even going on?!
And that’s one thing, among many, that I Know Exactly How You Die does right. Every scene pushes you further into the story, or worse, into another grisly kill. We read bits and pieces of Rian’s work, but see it in all its blood-red glory on screen. Kudos to the effects team for solid injuries that looked suspiciously real. Sure, a bathtub full of blood and a tooth-encrusted heart may not be the norm in terms of reality-based kills, but they looked the part!
What I think stood out to me the most was a sort of theme song heard throughout I Know Exactly How You Die; it’s a carnival-like melody, one you might hear on a carousel, waltzing just behind the characters as peculiar moments happen. When Rian enters the hotel with his newspaper-covered idea board. When he and Katie discover the identity of the stranger lurking amongst the motel rooms. For a horror movie, it’s quite an odd, almost happy tune to use. But it makes perfect sense because what is happening to these characters is exceptionally crazy. It doesn’t make sense that Rian’s stories are coming alive, and that the plot is not only getting away from him but pulling him into it too. We all just sit in amazement at the absurdity of it all.
I Know Exactly How You Die was terrific. The story was highly engaging with not one dull moment. I loved the poetic beauty of the murders. Rian and Katie were so empathetic and people I rooted for to the end. And while there were no jumpscares, the nature of the kills is enough to put hair on your chest, plus, the serial killer is pretty creepy too. I Know Exactly How You Die is very much an indie film, but with filmmaking as perfect as this, you would never know. The difference is in the care and determination put into a project like this one.
For more on I Know Exactly How You Die, follow Rushabh Patel and Dances With Films on Instagram.
