Mine Games (2012) Synopsis

A group of friends is on vacation. Michael (Joseph Cross) and Lyla (Briana Evigan) are a couple, as are TJ (Alex Meraz) and Claire (Julianna Guill). Guy (Ethan Peck) and Rose (Rebecca Da Costa) appear to be unattached and just friends. TJ's cousin Lex (Rafi Gavron) is along for the ride because Lex's dad killed himself. Rose is a "medium, and a damn good one". They are expected at their friends' cabin at 6:00, according to early dialog, but that is potentially a script issue because it is long after 6PM when things go sideways given the summer attire and darkness of night.They stop at a gas station to get food. Here we see a "newspaper headline" declaring that a couple was found murdered in their RV (ref 0).While driving to the cabin in the dark (about three miles from it), they see someone in the middle of the road (ref 1); they swerve off the road to avoid this person, but apparently rupture their radiator. The van sputters to a stop about a "mile" down the road. The friends see the liquid streaming out of the van's engine and take off on foot towards the cabin.After some amount of walking we learn that Michael is taking meds (anti-psychotics as we later learn he is schizophrenic) and left them in the van. While walking they see something like the Aurora Borealis (ref 2) although they say they are too far south for the actual northern lights display.The group sees a house with lights on. Two of the friends (TJ and Rose) go up to the front door, knock, and try the handles, which are locked (ref 3). They decide to go around back. While going around they hear a noise (ref 4). They find the back door open, and go inside. There they find a note telling TJ, Lex, and Clair to sty here; they will be back soon (ref 5). They assume this was from Matt and Sarah even though only addressed to half of the group, and so head into the house to stay.TJ and Michael go out to fix a failing generator by adding more gasoline (ref 6). The group drinks but Guy hears something outside, which is followed by a loud thump (ref 7). The group posits it might have been a racoon, then goes outside to check it out. Michael finds another half-full gasoline tank and decides to put it in the generator as well; we next see him confused next to the generator as someone is running off (ref 8). Michael heads off to bed.We next catch up with Matt (Michael Guillod) and Sarah (Lindsay Lamb), who are in their RV in the woods "lost". They say the group might miss them, but won't be able to find the driveway in the dark. So, sex.Afterwards, someone appraoches the RV from the darkness, stabs Matt, then heads inside and we hear Sarah screaming (ref 9) (see ref 0).Michael dreams of his friends in a mine (ref 10), throwing a body down stairs (ref 11), and being taunted by his friends in a mine some more. He wakes up with Lyla next to him.The next morning, Rose asks Michael where he went wandering off to in the middle of the night (ref 12). Lex finds a bunch of mining gear in a closet. TJ comes across the mine entrance while out walking.Lex and Rose take mushrooms on the way to the mine.The mine entrance has "Break the cycle" scrawled alongside it (ref 13).Rose has strange feeling before going in.Inside the mine they see an Oroboris drawn on the wall (ref 14).Lex and Rose separate from the group presumably to scare them later on; Lex claims that the shaft they are in just comes around in a big circle, proving he's never seen a layout of an actual mine.While the larger group is crossing a wooden bridge they come across a rotted-out broken section (ref 15) and decide to turn back. They hear some noises in the area.Lex and Rose hit a dead end and decide to go back. Rose hears something at the dead end. Michael, TJ, and Guy come across a small closet with a metal door. Michael goes in and sees "This is the first time" written in red crayon on the wall (ref 16). His friends shut the door behind him as a joke, but the door jams shut. Eventually they open it again.Rose sees fresh blood on the floor of the mine and runs. She sees something in a section of the mine (ref 17), but while investigating something which she somehow identifies as a girl (we learn later) grabs her leg (ref 18). Her screams reunite the group.Back at the cabin, Rose sees large scrapes on her leg that no one else does.Michael heads back to the van, with Lyla in tow. Michael asks Lyla if she thinks anyone would hurt him, then if Lyla would stop them if they did. Back at the van, they see the van door left open (ref 19). The van still doesn't start, but they notice a large blood spatter and broken headlight on the passenger side front (ref 20).The group decides they should stick it out for a little more waiting for Matt and Sarah to come back.Lex says he dropped his wallet in the mine, so they Lex and TJ head back to find it. Lex and TJ play with the mine carts.Rose, Lyla and Claire research the Oroboris (ref 21) (see ref 14). Rose heads outside with a bad feeling. She sees the scrapes on her leg looking infected. She sees visions of people running, then sees someone (Guy? See ref 31) running at her from the woods. She runs inside as her imagined stalker slams against the door leaving a bloody handprint (that disappears). She says seeing spirits doesn't usually affect her like this (ref 22).Michael sends the others (Lyla, Claire, Guy) off swimming while he stays with Rose (ref 23).Back at the mine Lex and TJ drink beer while looking for his wallet. They find a closet with a metal door and key (ref 24).Michael tells Rose he is going to take care of her.TJ and Lex go down some stairs and see a bunch of old TNT; they wisely do not kick the boxes. Lex sees some burlap and nudges it. An arm falls out from under the sheet, with his tatoo. He pulls the burlap away to see his own dead body underneath (ref 25). TJ pulls a different burlap sheet away to find his own dead body, then they find Guy's (ref 26). The two run away back to the house.While Claire, Lyla, and Guy are returning to the house, Rose screams. They ask Michael what he did, and Rose is inconsolable. At this time TJ and Lex come back saying they saw their own bodies in the mine.Guy, Lex, and TJ head back to the mine. Michael and Claire follow along, leaving Lyla at the house to tend to Rose. Rose has visions of Michael moving mine carts and bodies being dragged. Rose says that the mine is not "our world".The group sees the bodies in the mine.Rose sees Lyla with wounds all over her body; from now on she sees everyone in this way. Rose says "Break the cycle" repeatedly.It is night again. The lights flicker as the group looks over Rose (ref 27). The group discusses the possibilities, including a number of cliche'd movie plots. TJ and Lex decide to go back to the mine again. Michael asks them what they are planning, but does not appear to be included in their plans.Someone (presumably Michael) makes tea and squirts something into it from under the kitchen sink. We see Michael bouncing a ball in his room, then he discovers a red crayon (see ref 16).In the mine, TJ and Lex hear muffled sobbing coming from behind yet another metal door. They open the door and find Claire huddled with a knife of some sort. She says she saw TJ dying. She says they can't help Michael. Lex calls TJ out, while Claire pleads with them to not leave her there. Lex says the Clair TJ loves is back in the house, convincing TJ to leave the other one in the mine.At the house, Lyla wakes Rose up to feed her something. Claire comes in and asks how Rose is. Rose sees them both as dead. Rose says "stop Michael", then passes back out.Michael drops a bag out his window.TJ and Lex return. TJ, Lex, Claire, Lyla, and Guy discuss Claire #2 in the mine. Claire is glad they left her there. Lex reveals what Claire #2 said.When TJ and Lex come up with rope to deal with Michael he says this is how is happens. The group is all upset that Michael seems to know more about what is happening than the rest. With his wrists bound, the grop votes to confine him in the mine. Along the way they see the Aurora Borealis in the sky again (ref 28) (see ref 2). Michael says "this is the second time" (ref 29). Lyla reveals to Claire that Michael had expected the group to turn on him. They take him to the room with the key (see ref 24) and lock him in (ref 30).Rose walks into the room horrified to see everyone's "dead" bodies. She says Michael has escaped.Back at the mine, Michael walks along the wooden bridge. There is no broken section in the bridge, just a spongy rotted area (see ref 15).Claire, TJ, and Lex head off to the mine to check on Michael.Lyla and Guy stay at the house with Rose. Guy wants to leave, but Lyla won't leave Rose. Rose, however, has a convulsion and dies.Claire, TJ, and Lex discover the locked closet open and no Michael to be found. They then see Michael down the shaft and give chase (see ref 10). Michael leads them across the wooden bridge, being careful to stay along the outside edge of the rotted area. Lex follows without that level of care, breaks through the floor, and falls to his death (see ref 15). TJ and Claire keep looking for Michael in the cave. Michael drops something heavy on TJ, apparently killing him. Claire wanders into a room, and Michael closes the door behind her; we see this is the same room where Claire #2 had been found.With Rose dead, Lyla and Guy choose to leave (see ref 3). They decide to leave a note to TJ, Lex, and Claire telling them they will be back, which Guy writes (note he hadn't seen the note originally so didn't recognize his own handwriting). (See ref 5) Lyla and Guy head down the road. Guy sees the van heading towards them on the road and tells Lyla to stay off to the side while he waves his hands in the middle of the street. The van swerves to miss him and runs over Lyla before continuing on (see ref 20). Lyla is still alive but appears to be in very bad shape. Guy says he thinks he can warn the van and break the cycle, apologizes to Lyla, and leaves her by the side of the road.Back at the mine, Michael gathers the bodies together to hide them under burlap (see ref 25). He writes "This is the first time" in the cell where he had been held the first time (note that the writing was not there at this time). He heads back to the house, replaces the crayon in the drawer, then finds Rose's body. Hearing TJ and Rose outside, he bundles Rose up and dumps her into the basement (see ref 4 and ref 11).Guy runs along the road back to where the van had been left. He opens the front door (see ref ref 19) and drinks from a bottle of water. He makes it back to the house (ref 31), and just before or while knocking is knocked out (see ref 7 for noise) by Michael. The new group comes out to investigate. Michael slices Guy's throat then drags him down to the mine entrance. Guy scrawls "Break the cycle" using his own blood (see ref 13).Michael gets back to the house and confronts Michael from the next group. He tells him he can not trust Lex, TJ, Guy, and Claire. He says they are going to lock him up in an abandoned mine twice (see ref 16), and that the second time (see ref 29) they have no intention of letting him out alive. He says to defend himself or he will be killed. He hands him the key to the door in which he will be locked (see ref 30). Michael from the next group watches our Michael leave, confused (see ref 8).Michael tidies up Guy's body by dragging him into the mine along with the others (see ref 26).Lyla sees the Aurora Borealis while laying on the road.Michael comes up to the RV in the woods. Seeing Matt outside, he sneaks up and then stabs him. He goes inside with a bloody cleaver to finish off Sarah (see refs 9 and 0).Rose from the next group wakes up and looks outside and sees Michael walking through the yard (see ref 12). Next we see Michael at a campfire in the woods with another version of himself (real or imagined?). He burns his anti-psychotics.The next morning a third group is at the gas station when a bloody Lyla stumbles up to the van and slams against it, which might finally break the cycle.

A group of friends is on vacation. Michael (Joseph Cross) and Lyla (Briana Evigan) are a couple, as are TJ (Alex Meraz) and Claire (Julianna Guill). Guy (Ethan Peck) and Rose (Rebecca Da Costa) appear to be unattached and just friends. TJ's cousin Lex (Rafi Gavron) is along for the ride because Lex's dad killed himself. Rose is a "medium, and a damn good one". They are expected at their friends' cabin at 6:00, according to early dialog, but that is potentially a script issue because it is long after 6PM when things go sideways given the summer attire and darkness of night.They stop at a gas station to get food. Here we see a "newspaper headline" declaring that a couple was found murdered in their RV (ref 0).While driving to the cabin in the dark (about three miles from it), they see someone in the middle of the road (ref 1); they swerve off the road to avoid this person, but apparently rupture their radiator. The van sputters to a stop about a "mile" down the road. The friends see the liquid streaming out of the van's engine and take off on foot towards the cabin.After some amount of walking we learn that Michael is taking meds (anti-psychotics as we later learn he is schizophrenic) and left them in the van. While walking they see something like the Aurora Borealis (ref 2) although they say they are too far south for the actual northern lights display.The group sees a house with lights on. Two of the friends (TJ and Rose) go up to the front door, knock, and try the handles, which are locked (ref 3). They decide to go around back. While going around they hear a noise (ref 4). They find the back door open, and go inside. There they find a note telling TJ, Lex, and Clair to sty here; they will be back soon (ref 5). They assume this was from Matt and Sarah even though only addressed to half of the group, and so head into the house to stay.TJ and Michael go out to fix a failing generator by adding more gasoline (ref 6). The group drinks but Guy hears something outside, which is followed by a loud thump (ref 7). The group posits it might have been a racoon, then goes outside to check it out. Michael finds another half-full gasoline tank and decides to put it in the generator as well; we next see him confused next to the generator as someone is running off (ref 8). Michael heads off to bed.We next catch up with Matt (Michael Guillod) and Sarah (Lindsay Lamb), who are in their RV in the woods "lost". They say the group might miss them, but won't be able to find the driveway in the dark. So, sex.Afterwards, someone appraoches the RV from the darkness, stabs Matt, then heads inside and we hear Sarah screaming (ref 9) (see ref 0).Michael dreams of his friends in a mine (ref 10), throwing a body down stairs (ref 11), and being taunted by his friends in a mine some more. He wakes up with Lyla next to him.The next morning, Rose asks Michael where he went wandering off to in the middle of the night (ref 12). Lex finds a bunch of mining gear in a closet. TJ comes across the mine entrance while out walking.Lex and Rose take mushrooms on the way to the mine.The mine entrance has "Break the cycle" scrawled alongside it (ref 13).Rose has strange feeling before going in.Inside the mine they see an Oroboris drawn on the wall (ref 14).Lex and Rose separate from the group presumably to scare them later on; Lex claims that the shaft they are in just comes around in a big circle, proving he's never seen a layout of an actual mine.While the larger group is crossing a wooden bridge they come across a rotted-out broken section (ref 15) and decide to turn back. They hear some noises in the area.Lex and Rose hit a dead end and decide to go back. Rose hears something at the dead end. Michael, TJ, and Guy come across a small closet with a metal door. Michael goes in and sees "This is the first time" written in red crayon on the wall (ref 16). His friends shut the door behind him as a joke, but the door jams shut. Eventually they open it again.Rose sees fresh blood on the floor of the mine and runs. She sees something in a section of the mine (ref 17), but while investigating something which she somehow identifies as a girl (we learn later) grabs her leg (ref 18). Her screams reunite the group.Back at the cabin, Rose sees large scrapes on her leg that no one else does.Michael heads back to the van, with Lyla in tow. Michael asks Lyla if she thinks anyone would hurt him, then if Lyla would stop them if they did. Back at the van, they see the van door left open (ref 19). The van still doesn't start, but they notice a large blood spatter and broken headlight on the passenger side front (ref 20).The group decides they should stick it out for a little more waiting for Matt and Sarah to come back.Lex says he dropped his wallet in the mine, so they Lex and TJ head back to find it. Lex and TJ play with the mine carts.Rose, Lyla and Claire research the Oroboris (ref 21) (see ref 14). Rose heads outside with a bad feeling. She sees the scrapes on her leg looking infected. She sees visions of people running, then sees someone (Guy? See ref 31) running at her from the woods. She runs inside as her imagined stalker slams against the door leaving a bloody handprint (that disappears). She says seeing spirits doesn't usually affect her like this (ref 22).Michael sends the others (Lyla, Claire, Guy) off swimming while he stays with Rose (ref 23).Back at the mine Lex and TJ drink beer while looking for his wallet. They find a closet with a metal door and key (ref 24).Michael tells Rose he is going to take care of her.TJ and Lex go down some stairs and see a bunch of old TNT; they wisely do not kick the boxes. Lex sees some burlap and nudges it. An arm falls out from under the sheet, with his tatoo. He pulls the burlap away to see his own dead body underneath (ref 25). TJ pulls a different burlap sheet away to find his own dead body, then they find Guy's (ref 26). The two run away back to the house.While Claire, Lyla, and Guy are returning to the house, Rose screams. They ask Michael what he did, and Rose is inconsolable. At this time TJ and Lex come back saying they saw their own bodies in the mine.Guy, Lex, and TJ head back to the mine. Michael and Claire follow along, leaving Lyla at the house to tend to Rose. Rose has visions of Michael moving mine carts and bodies being dragged. Rose says that the mine is not "our world".The group sees the bodies in the mine.Rose sees Lyla with wounds all over her body; from now on she sees everyone in this way. Rose says "Break the cycle" repeatedly.It is night again. The lights flicker as the group looks over Rose (ref 27). The group discusses the possibilities, including a number of cliche'd movie plots. TJ and Lex decide to go back to the mine again. Michael asks them what they are planning, but does not appear to be included in their plans.Someone (presumably Michael) makes tea and squirts something into it from under the kitchen sink. We see Michael bouncing a ball in his room, then he discovers a red crayon (see ref 16).In the mine, TJ and Lex hear muffled sobbing coming from behind yet another metal door. They open the door and find Claire huddled with a knife of some sort. She says she saw TJ dying. She says they can't help Michael. Lex calls TJ out, while Claire pleads with them to not leave her there. Lex says the Clair TJ loves is back in the house, convincing TJ to leave the other one in the mine.At the house, Lyla wakes Rose up to feed her something. Claire comes in and asks how Rose is. Rose sees them both as dead. Rose says "stop Michael", then passes back out.Michael drops a bag out his window.TJ and Lex return. TJ, Lex, Claire, Lyla, and Guy discuss Claire #2 in the mine. Claire is glad they left her there. Lex reveals what Claire #2 said.When TJ and Lex come up with rope to deal with Michael he says this is how is happens. The group is all upset that Michael seems to know more about what is happening than the rest. With his wrists bound, the grop votes to confine him in the mine. Along the way they see the Aurora Borealis in the sky again (ref 28) (see ref 2). Michael says "this is the second time" (ref 29). Lyla reveals to Claire that Michael had expected the group to turn on him. They take him to the room with the key (see ref 24) and lock him in (ref 30).Rose walks into the room horrified to see everyone's "dead" bodies. She says Michael has escaped.Back at the mine, Michael walks along the wooden bridge. There is no broken section in the bridge, just a spongy rotted area (see ref 15).Claire, TJ, and Lex head off to the mine to check on Michael.Lyla and Guy stay at the house with Rose. Guy wants to leave, but Lyla won't leave Rose. Rose, however, has a convulsion and dies.Claire, TJ, and Lex discover the locked closet open and no Michael to be found. They then see Michael down the shaft and give chase (see ref 10). Michael leads them across the wooden bridge, being careful to stay along the outside edge of the rotted area. Lex follows without that level of care, breaks through the floor, and falls to his death (see ref 15). TJ and Claire keep looking for Michael in the cave. Michael drops something heavy on TJ, apparently killing him. Claire wanders into a room, and Michael closes the door behind her; we see this is the same room where Claire #2 had been found.With Rose dead, Lyla and Guy choose to leave (see ref 3). They decide to leave a note to TJ, Lex, and Claire telling them they will be back, which Guy writes (note he hadn't seen the note originally so didn't recognize his own handwriting). (See ref 5) Lyla and Guy head down the road. Guy sees the van heading towards them on the road and tells Lyla to stay off to the side while he waves his hands in the middle of the street. The van swerves to miss him and runs over Lyla before continuing on (see ref 20). Lyla is still alive but appears to be in very bad shape. Guy says he thinks he can warn the van and break the cycle, apologizes to Lyla, and leaves her by the side of the road.Back at the mine, Michael gathers the bodies together to hide them under burlap (see ref 25). He writes "This is the first time" in the cell where he had been held the first time (note that the writing was not there at this time). He heads back to the house, replaces the crayon in the drawer, then finds Rose's body. Hearing TJ and Rose outside, he bundles Rose up and dumps her into the basement (see ref 4 and ref 11).Guy runs along the road back to where the van had been left. He opens the front door (see ref ref 19) and drinks from a bottle of water. He makes it back to the house (ref 31), and just before or while knocking is knocked out (see ref 7 for noise) by Michael. The new group comes out to investigate. Michael slices Guy's throat then drags him down to the mine entrance. Guy scrawls "Break the cycle" using his own blood (see ref 13).Michael gets back to the house and confronts Michael from the next group. He tells him he can not trust Lex, TJ, Guy, and Claire. He says they are going to lock him up in an abandoned mine twice (see ref 16), and that the second time (see ref 29) they have no intention of letting him out alive. He says to defend himself or he will be killed. He hands him the key to the door in which he will be locked (see ref 30). Michael from the next group watches our Michael leave, confused (see ref 8).Michael tidies up Guy's body by dragging him into the mine along with the others (see ref 26).Lyla sees the Aurora Borealis while laying on the road.Michael comes up to the RV in the woods. Seeing Matt outside, he sneaks up and then stabs him. He goes inside with a bloody cleaver to finish off Sarah (see refs 9 and 0).Rose from the next group wakes up and looks outside and sees Michael walking through the yard (see ref 12). Next we see Michael at a campfire in the woods with another version of himself (real or imagined?). He burns his anti-psychotics.The next morning a third group is at the gas station when a bloody Lyla stumbles up to the van and slams against it, which might finally break the cycle.

Published Time: 2022-02-01 10:24:57