With the emergence of YouTube Red, there has also been an emergence of original films and series. "The Thinning" is one of these films.
"The Thinning" is a sci-fi thriller with major dystopian themes. In the not- so-distant future, the population of Earth has reached an all-time high, and in order to keep the population from getting out of hand, students are "required" to take a test at each educational level until they are eighteen years of age that determines whether or not they are fit to live on Earth. This test, known officially the 10-241 test, is also known, as the title of the film suggests, the Thinning. But is everything legitimate?
Logan Paul, best known for his work on Vine, stars in the leading role as Blake Redding, son of the governor of Texas and perhaps the most popular kid in his entire school. Blake has become disillusioned by the outcomes of the test, because of what happened to his girlfriend Ellie, played by Lia Marie Johnson, who is perhaps best known for her tenure with Fine Brother Entertainment where she was part of Kids and Teens React. So, when Ellie is "thinned out," Blake decides to teach his father a lesson by purposely failing the test to see if he actually follows through with the Thinning because the governor has to give the official okay before the Thinning actually happens. This prompts Blake's father to alter the ultimate results so that Blake can actually live. This does not sit well with Blake.
At the same time, on the other end of the popularity is Laina Michaels, played by Peyton List, who is perhaps best known for her role as Emma Ross on "Jessie" and "Bunk'd." Laine is perhaps the most intelligent student in the entire school, so everyone is completely surprised to find out that she failed the test. This includes her best friend Kellen, played by Calum Worthy, possibly best known for his role on "Austin and Ally" as Dez, who is constantly sending footage from the security cameras to a news station from his dad's account.
Throughout the rest of the film, Blake and Laina team up in order to find out what is happening with the tests because they both know something is up.
Honestly, this film was a lot better than I expected it to be. The acting was very well-done and the overall story was very good. We've all probably seen or heard of this plot a million times, but the way this one was in this film was actually very good. Michael Gallagher directed and produced this very well and my heart was racing throughout.
The ending of this film might not sit well with some viewers. Spoiler alert: Blake and Laina find out that many of the test results have been tampered with, including Ellie's. This somehow, and by somehow I mean by way of Kellen, makes its way to the news and the story is out. Blake's father Governor Redding, who has announced that he plans for President of the United States is faced with a difficult decision, but ultimately decides that releasing those who passed and replacing them with students who failed, including his son, is for the betterment of his reputation. The way he gives his speech close to the end is very reminiscent of politics today.
The reason I say that this might not sit well is because it's not a particularly happy ending, but it's very realistic. But, maybe there is something at the end of this film. During the last few scenes, the viewer sees a truck driving towards a fenced-in facility. Then, the scene switches to a maintenance elevator with...the students who were just recently thinned out. As Blake opens his eyes, who does he see but Ellie who had been thinned out the year before.
Like another review suggests, this film as the possibility to have sequels. If this does happen, hopefully they can keep the same pace and affect that this one had.