!3 Sins

          13 Sins is an American remake of the Thai film 13: Game of Death. Directed by Daniel Stamn, the movie focuses around a young man who is deep in debt and is soon to wed the love of his life. Unexpectedly in the midst of his troubles, he receives a phone call stating that he has been randomly selected to be on a game show and can win up to a million dollars if he completes 13 tasks. Seems simple, right? As he continues further on through the game, he realizes that there is more to this game than what he signed up for. He must now decide whether he should continue on with this sadistic game or end it now before it becomes to late to turn back.

     According to Rob Hunter, he views this film as "committing the somewhat lesser infraction of redundancy." Due to the fact that films such as Would You Rather and Saw were released before this particular film, Hunter presumes that certain ideas from these various movies were repeated leaving a sense of familiarity and repetitiveness. Some scenes did not come across as a surprise since the theme of the movie centered around the theme of movies before it. Rob Hunter also feels that even though the humor added in the film was required, it causes the serious moments in the film to become lost and no longer worth paying attention to. He concludes by stating, "while it offer some thrills and thought-provoking questions early on it loses its dramatic weight well before the end credits roll. "

              Although Rob Hunter may have some factual points, he does somewhat fail to connect the meaning for the director's decision in choosing to create the film the way he did. The film may have some similar characteristics to the movies stated above, but it does differ and separate itself in a manner from looking like a complete copy. The film uses a simple mysterious phone call instead of the typical kidnap someone and lock them in an empty room from all civilization. The theme of the film also differs. In the movie Saw, the theme revolves around the appreciation of a human life and testing various people to see their willingness in holding on to that life when put into dangerous and deadly situations. In  13 Sins the theme not only focuses on the sadistic and dangerous game the main character has gotten himself involved in, but it channels in on the growth of the character as a person. It revolves around the development of the will power and strength the main character never realized he had within him. Drama remains as the film continues because of the twists that play with your head and mess with your mind.

           The humor placed in the film shows the sarcastic and humorous side of the character that was not realized by the viewer in the beginning of the movie. The humor does not diminish the dramatic tension of the film yet it further expands the theme of the movie. 13 Sins is not a copy of various films instead it is a thriller exposing the hidden personality traits of a struggling young man. 13 Sins did not commit the sin of redundancy but broadened the various ideas such as materialism and survival.