Urban Legend
3/4
Starring: Alicia Witt, Jared Leto, Rebecca Gayheart, Tara Reid, Joshua Jackson, Michael Rosenbaum, Loretta Devine, Robert Englund, John Noble
Rated R for Horror Violence/Gore, Language and Sexual Content
Call "Urban Legend" a guilty pleasure. No, it's not a great horror movie. It's pretty dumb, and there's about one too many murders to make things credible. But the plot is interesting and, as is the rage in the post-"Scream" era, ironic. And there are a some tense scenes.
Natalie (Witt) is a college student at Pendleton University in New England. When a fellow student is murdered, she becomes on edge because it was an urban legend come to life. That's when her friends start ending up corpses (in various stages of mutilation), also in the form of urban legends. But who is the killer? Is it the creepy professor who is teaching the class on urban legends (Englund)? Or is it Dean Adams (Neville), who may be covering up one of the school's dirty secrets? Or is it someone closer to home, like Paul Gardner (Leto), the school journalist who stays on the shady side of ethics?
As is par for the slasher movie course, the acting isn't the strong point. Under different circumstances, I could see Alicia Witt being a good actress (James Berardinelli raved about her performances in the Candian film "Fun"). She's too serious (if that makes any sense). The only compliments I can give to her co-star, Rebecca Gayheart, are that she looks great and has a great set of lungs. Her acting ability...not so much (although there are times when this becomes an asset). Jared Leto is rather invisible as the hunky love interest. Tara Reid shows why she became such a hot commodity a year later after she started starring in the "American Pie" movies. The best performance goes to Joshua Jackson, who plays the practical joker frat boy Damon. He's a lot of fun, especially considering he came from a background in kids movies ("The Mighty Ducks" franchise) and the TV show "Dawson's Creek." Surprisingly, Robert Englund is weak. And it's kind of fun to see a classical actor like John Noble in a slasher movie like this.
Director Jamie Blanks does not have a sterling resume. Apart from this and "Valentine," he hasn't done much except a few short films and some direct-to-dvd flicks. The answer is pretty obvious: he doesn't have much talent. The film moves way too fast and lacks solid performances and character identification. It is much more effective than his next film, however. I'll admit that.
Look, I'll admit that this isn't exactly first class entertainment. If you're looking for a superior slasher movie, this isn't it. Rent "Scream," "Halloween," "Psycho," whatever. There are plenty of other slashers out there that I will freely admit are of higher quality than this one. I am giving it a 3/4 because I enjoyed myself, and I think there are others who will too.
Starring: Alicia Witt, Jared Leto, Rebecca Gayheart, Tara Reid, Joshua Jackson, Michael Rosenbaum, Loretta Devine, Robert Englund, John Noble
Rated R for Horror Violence/Gore, Language and Sexual Content
Call "Urban Legend" a guilty pleasure. No, it's not a great horror movie. It's pretty dumb, and there's about one too many murders to make things credible. But the plot is interesting and, as is the rage in the post-"Scream" era, ironic. And there are a some tense scenes.
Natalie (Witt) is a college student at Pendleton University in New England. When a fellow student is murdered, she becomes on edge because it was an urban legend come to life. That's when her friends start ending up corpses (in various stages of mutilation), also in the form of urban legends. But who is the killer? Is it the creepy professor who is teaching the class on urban legends (Englund)? Or is it Dean Adams (Neville), who may be covering up one of the school's dirty secrets? Or is it someone closer to home, like Paul Gardner (Leto), the school journalist who stays on the shady side of ethics?
As is par for the slasher movie course, the acting isn't the strong point. Under different circumstances, I could see Alicia Witt being a good actress (James Berardinelli raved about her performances in the Candian film "Fun"). She's too serious (if that makes any sense). The only compliments I can give to her co-star, Rebecca Gayheart, are that she looks great and has a great set of lungs. Her acting ability...not so much (although there are times when this becomes an asset). Jared Leto is rather invisible as the hunky love interest. Tara Reid shows why she became such a hot commodity a year later after she started starring in the "American Pie" movies. The best performance goes to Joshua Jackson, who plays the practical joker frat boy Damon. He's a lot of fun, especially considering he came from a background in kids movies ("The Mighty Ducks" franchise) and the TV show "Dawson's Creek." Surprisingly, Robert Englund is weak. And it's kind of fun to see a classical actor like John Noble in a slasher movie like this.
Director Jamie Blanks does not have a sterling resume. Apart from this and "Valentine," he hasn't done much except a few short films and some direct-to-dvd flicks. The answer is pretty obvious: he doesn't have much talent. The film moves way too fast and lacks solid performances and character identification. It is much more effective than his next film, however. I'll admit that.
Look, I'll admit that this isn't exactly first class entertainment. If you're looking for a superior slasher movie, this isn't it. Rent "Scream," "Halloween," "Psycho," whatever. There are plenty of other slashers out there that I will freely admit are of higher quality than this one. I am giving it a 3/4 because I enjoyed myself, and I think there are others who will too.
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