[FrightFest 2026] FILM REVIEW: Dead Reset

Dead Reset - FrightFest World Premiere Review

Director: Stewart Sparke

Starring: Daniel Thrace, Lyndsey Crane, Dennis Rasiq, Andrina Carroll, Elle O'Hara

Written by: Stewart Sparke

Produced by: Paul Butler, Stewart Sparke

Cinematography by: Hamish Saks

Original Score by: Emma Spinola

Synopsis:

Trapped in a terrifying death-loop, surgeon Cole Mason is kidnapped and brought to an underwater facility, forced to operate on a patient to extract an evolving parasitic horror.

Thoughts:

Time loops and horror are a match made in heaven. The idea of having to relive a nightmarish scenario again and again with almost no chance of escape is a terrifying prospect. There have been multiple takes on this idea in recent years but there seems to be a rise in those that are adapted from video games. Last year 'Until Dawn' took the popular survival horror video game of the same name and became a success at the box office. This year psychological horror 'Exit 8' proved to be a huge hit with audiences and critics alike showing that there is an appetite for this kind of horror film. 'Dead Reset' is the latest in this vein of horror film. 

Set in an underwater facility, surgeon Cole Mason (Daniel Thrace) finds himself trapped in a death-loop scenario when he is asked to operate on someone to retrieve an ever evolving parasitic creature but things don’t go as planned. Along with a group of rag tag survivors they have to find a way to escape and survive one death at a time. 

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With 'Dead Reset' writer/director Stewart Sparke takes his interactive video game and gives it the feature film treatment. It is very much a film that blurs the lines between the two mediums in the sense that Mason is in a very bloody “choose your adventure” scenario where every choice he makes leads to one deadly consequence after another. It is a fun idea within the genre we’ve seen exhibited in the likes of 'Happy Death Day' but here it is a much meaner and bloodier prospect as shown in the opening scene where everyone dies in a gruesome manner. As fun as these moments are, this concept becomes increasingly laboured and indulgent (especially in the third act) where you become numb (and somewhat annoyed) at the amount of times you have to relive a particular scene again and again with only slight changes through Mason’s eyes. Instead of eliciting any sense of thrill or horror it makes the film drag its feet. 

Surrounding Mason (aside from the parasitic creature) are a series of characters who are defined by their tropes rather than having any sense of personality to them. There’s the cold scientist, the heavy with an intense dislike for the protagonist and a love interest there to add some emotional stakes to the film. You name it and the film has it in some shape or form that you’ve seen time and time again. It is something that might work in the setting of a video game but in a feature film it leaves a lot to be desired as you can’t latch on to any of the characters. On top of this the performances are very uneven throughout the cast. Thrace is a solid lead and Lyndsey Craine works well opposite him as Fearne but Andrina Carroll’s performance as the villainous Magson is quite wooden throughout. 

You can clearly see Sparke loves the sci-fi horror genre as he wears his influences on his sleeve. From 'Alien' to 'Resident Evil', it's all there and feels at times derivative but the death-loop element does a lot of heavy lifting in trying to inject some sense of originality to proceedings. What is the most admirable aspect of the film is Sparke’s dedication to the practical elements of the film. The industrialised sets are dingey and grimey giving a sense that they’ve been used for decades. Even the dirt and sweat strewn across the actors' faces help to create a type of “lived in reality” for the film. In all films of this nature, they usually stand or fall on the nature of the creature effects. Here they work quite well as it goes from being a disgusting tumour with tentacles to a hulking mass of horror that looks good on screen. The kills it dishes out are gruesome in the best way possible which is a testament to the work of the special effects makeup team and the sound design in these moments makes the attack scenes feel more visceral and impactful. 

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'Dead Reset' is a textbook example of what happens when you try to remain too faithful in adapting a video game to film. It is very much a film that wants to show you what it is capable of doing in terms of special makeup effects or set design over compelling characters or a rich story which is a detriment to what the audience is presented overall. What you get is a very stop/start film that overstays its welcome in the third act making you not want to relive the experience of watching it again. 

Verdict: ⭐️⭐️

-Joseph McElroy

'Dead Reset' received its World Premiere at FrightFest '26 on August 29th