‘Prey for the Bride’ Review: A Fine Slasher that Begins Better Than It Ends

Tubi is having a good February. Well, at the very least they’re having a good February for Tubi Original slasher movies. On February 16th, 2024, just days after the release of the pre-Valentine’s-Day slasher My Bloody Galentine came out, the bachelorette-party themed slasher Prey for the Bride started streaming on Tubi. The two movies are like two sides of the same coin. They’re both slasher movies that use relationships as a driving force. But while My Bloody Galentine is silly, funny, and lighthearted, Prey for the Bride is serious, dramatic, and slightly bloody.

What is Prey for the Bride About?

Reviewing Prey for the Bride

The first positive thing that stands out in Prey for the Bride is the fact that something doesn’t stand out. Namely, digital effects. Now, I’m not a CGI hater, but in a lower-budget horror movie digital effects can stand out in the worst way. Not-great blood splatter effects can be particularly appalling. Thankfully, if Prey for the Bride uses any digital blood effects, they hide it well. The kills throughout the movie have a decent amount of blood, and it all looks really good. Kills are mostly done with a knife, and the film uses sound and clever editing techniques to make it feel like you’re seeing more violence and stabbing than what is actually shown on screen. If you’re looking for copious amounts of blood and guts, look elsewhere, but the slashing portion of this slasher still gets a solid thumbs up.

The mystery that motivates the wolf-masked slasher is also constructed well. Without giving away any details, the inciting incident is referred to repeatedly, but it’s never shown in flashbacks. This allows the viewer the opportunity to try to piece together what happened from the extremely unreliable sources of everyone involved. Just as the characters blame each other, viewers will likely have their own suspicions vacillate between a few obvious suspects until certain events make things a lot more clear. But even if you correctly guess the solution to the mystery (which you almost certainly will), the movie is still entertaining thanks to the characters.

Jordan, Dorit, and Brooke could be considered the three main characters in Prey for the Bride. Dorit and Brooke don’t like each other and are passive-aggressive about it, and Jordan is caught in the middle. Dorit is likable, Brooke is aggressively aggravating, and Jordan is mostly passive, being more reactive than proactive. Between the three of them, they create some good drama that is paid off moderately well in the end.

The biggest fault in Prey for the Bride is its ending, which is unfortunate. You’ll have probably figured almost everything out by the time the finale comes around, so the big reveal isn’t terribly dramatic. It’s also staged oddly. The finale involves everyone who has survived thus far, and the involvement of one of the characters is way too convenient. It’s like the killer just forgot about them despite meticulous planning up to that point. There’s also a big showdown which has kind of a cop-out way of wrapping everything up too neatly in spite of some potentially interesting character moments. So, sadly, an underwhelming ending does mar an otherwise pretty good movie.

Who Will Enjoy Prey for the Bride?

Further Reading

• Romantic Horror Movies
• Best Revenge Movies
• Best Slasher Movies of All Time
• Stalker Movies
• My Bloody Galentine is a Fun Alternative to the Valentine’s Day Slasher