Amazon.com

Fully aware of its status as the sequel to the surprise hit thriller of 1996, this lively follow-up trades freshness for familiarity, playing on our affection for returning characters while obeying--and then subverting--the "rules" of sequels. Once again, movie references are cleverly employed to draw us into the story, which takes place two years after the events of Scream, at a small Ohio college, where the Scream survivors reunite when another series of mysterious killings begins. Capitalizing on the guesswork involving a host of potential suspects, director Wes Craven and screenwriter Kevin Williamson have crafted a thriller that's more of a Scream clone than a genuinely inventive new story. But the shocks are just as effective, and escalating tension leads to a tautly staged climax that's simultaneously logical and giddily over the top. Background information for trivia buffs: to preserve the secrecy of plot twists, copies of the screenplay were heavily guarded during production and restricted to only the most crucial personnel. When an early draft was circulated on the Internet, screenwriter Kevin Williamson did rewrites, and subsequent drafts were printed with red ink on brown paper, eliminating the threat of photocopying. None of the cast members knew who the killer was until the final scenes were filmed! --Jeff Shannon ... Read more

Reviews (302)

Scream And Scream Again!
After the incredible, phenomenal success of the first "Scream" movie, a sequel was inevitable. Actually, it was inevitable from the start since a part 2 and 3 were already planned and part of Kevin Williamson's deal when selling the first movie. While many people thought this was only made since the first one was such a monster hit, it was not. I'm sure the box office didn't hurt tho!. Kevin Williamson is back with another sharp, fresh, and clever screenplay. Wes Craven is back in the director's chair and makes that screenplay into a stylish thriller that exceeds all expectations and puts the "sequels ..." curse to rest...for now anyways. It's been two years since the grisly murders and stalking of Sidney Prescott in Woodsboro, and now Sidney is enrolled in college and trying to put her life back in order. It's much easier said than done since she is now caught up in the frenzy of a new movie called "Stab", which is a film about what happened in Woodsboro based on the book "The Woodsboro Murders", by tabloid journalist Gale Weathers(Courtney Cox). Two young students(Jada Pinkett, Omar Epps)are killed during the premiere of the film in the movie's dazzling and well executed opener, and the hunt is on once again. A copycat killer dressed in ghost figure attire is jumping on the "Stab" hysteria and stalking Sidney and her friends. Returning is Gale, who is still the money loving, attention getter we loved to hate in the original, but we love more now here. Deputy Dewey(David Arquette)is back as well, having survived the stabbed in the back incident from the original. Unfortunatley, it has left him with a bad leg and limp. Film geek Randy(Jamie Kennedy)is back as well, and sets the tone for the film when he explains the rules of a horror sequel. Cotton Weary(Liev Schreiber)also appears in this one. He has a far more interesting and pivotal role than he did in the brief moments he had in the original film. We are introduced to a new pack of characters as well. Sidney's boyfriend Derek, who is played by Jerry 'O' Connell, film lover
Mickey, Sid's roomate Hallie, and Gale's new camerman Joel, among others. "Buffy" star Sarah Michelle Gellar also appears in one of the films's best moments. Former "Roseanne" star Laurie Metcalfe, and David's father Lewis Arquette, round out the great cast. The movie definitley knows that it is a sequel and is fully aware of how sequels usually go. There's even a great scene about students talking about film sequels. But what the first film did horror films, this one does with horror film sequels and gives it a fresh and clever spin. The scares are great and the suspense scenes are carefully executed and fully effecting. The movie still manages to be surprising and scary and catch us off guard, unlike so many sequels. Neve Campbell is a fabulous scream queen heroine. She does another solid turn as Sidney. Cox looks fantastic in this one. Gale is such an entertaining character to watch. Arquette has the Dewey schtick down pat, although it feels as if he wasn't given much to do this time around and was out of the action quite early than he should have been. While many horror films seem to only care about violence and a high body count, these films are about the characters. Not the killer or what he does and how he goes about doing it. It's about why it's happening and how these characters that we have come to love and cheer on will respond to it. Wes and company did something that many people didn't think they would. They made a sequel that is as convincing, smart, scary, and entertaining as the original. "Scream 2" is a follow up that not only does the brilliant original justice, but it also gives sequels a good name.

One of my favorite sequels
At the time of it's release a lot people I know didn't like it at all. I have no idea why either. The lines are funny, the cast good and it even has it's scary moments. I have no idea why they did part 3 without Kevin Williamson doing the screen-play. His scripts made the movies clever, funny and down to earth. Plus the cast in part 3 is laughable compared to the telented cast in 1 and 2. I mean in this one you got David Arquette "in no doubt his best role", Neve Campbell "in possibly her best role as well", Courtney Coxx, Liev Shrieber, Jamie Kennedy, Jada Pinkett Smith, Timothy Olyphant "Go!", Jerry O'Connell, Omar Epps and Sarah Michelle Gellar. Oh and Roseanne's sister from...Roseanne is in it too. Also look for Joshua Jacksan "Dawson's Creak" in a small role as a film class student.

Anyway this movie is a lot of fun and entertaining. Some things don't work of course though. Like how they use Han Zimmer's score from Broken Arrow whenever they show Dewey. Jerry Connell "singing I think I love you" to Sydney. Things that make it clever though for example, is when it pokes fun at other movies and even at itself. I like how Timothy Olyphant trys to come up with sequels that out-due the originals to Jamie Kennedy's character. It discusses sequels when it itself is one...trying to out-due the original and in some ways it does.

WHAT A DIFFRENCE!!!!!!!!!!!!
Scream 2 is a million times better than the first Scream, which was teribble. The killer is no longer a wimpy teen like in the last film. This film is aimd to an older audiance( the first was aimed to the teens) which I think was good and it really worked for this one. This plot is about someone who saw a movie called Stab, a film based on what happened in the first Scream, and the film drives him mad and makes him turn into a killer. Okay, I know that sounds like a bad plot on papr, but it's much better on screen. They don't make fun of the old movies as much as they did in the first one( the( the orignal was trying to be serios, not like Scary Movie). If you enjoyed movies like Halloween, then you should like this. Much better than the first movie.

Sequel-itis
Unfortunately, Scream 2 falls victim to the oh-so-common sequel-itis that plagues many horror sequels. After the original redefined the term "sleeper hit" by grossing $103 million (domestically), Dimension Films rushed to release the sequel. Less than a year after the release of the original, Scream 2 opened to less than enthusiastic reviews, yet still managed to make a killing at the box office (101 million).
Was Scream 2 a bad film? Not really. In fact it is much better than most of the disposable horror trash on the market today, however it does not hold a candle to the original. The script and acting seem very rushed, and the film falls victim to many of the horror cliches that the original so effectively denounced. The film's biggest downfall is the identity of the killers. Part of what made the first film so great was that all the clues to killer's identity were there. The sequel however, offers no logical clues to the identity of the killers, who turn out to be somewhat minor characters who have played a very small partt in the narrative until this point. When they are finally revealed, it's like "Where did they come from?"
Scream 2 lacks the originality, script (though still helmed by Williamson), acting, and sheer terror that made the original such a classic. That said, it's still worth a rent, but think twice about buying it unless you are a die hard fan of the series.

good movie
Scream 2 is far from as scary as it's predeccesor, but it is still a good movie. Sydney Prescott is at college and having a good time, until a sorority girl[Sarah Michelle Gellar] is murdered. The survivors of the original movie are back, but Randy is eventually murdered, and Dewey hospitalized for being stabbed multiple times. Sydney once again suspects her boyfriend to be the killer, and upon this realization, Sydney and her friend is picked up by the dean to be moved, but the murderer is on their tail, and murders the dean, and Sydney's friend. Sydney then discovers the real murderer, and has the murderer arrested. Not very scary, but less gory than the original, and still fun to watch. ... Read more

Description

Patrick Stewart gives an outstanding performance in the title role of this high-spirited, new adaptation of Oscar Wilde's classic tale of mystery, romance, and adventure. The fun begins as the unsuspecting Otis family moves into the stately, rambling rooms of Canterville Hall where young Virginia (Neve Campbell, "Party of Five") meets up with the castle's resident specter: the 400-year-old ghost of Sir Simon de Canterville (Stewart). But while Sir Simon does his moaning, chain-rattling best to frighten the newcomers, Virginia soon befriends him, and learns the sorrowful secret: unless a purehearted mortal agrees to plead his case before the dreaded "Angel of Death," Sir Simon will be doomed to haunt the Hall for all eternity. With the midnight moment of truth approaching, Virginia prepares for a journey into the unknown -- in a hair raising conclusion to this all-time favorite tale of ancient spirits, young love, and otherworldly adventures! ... Read more

Amazon.com

With the smash hit Scream, novice screenwriter Kevin Williamson and veteran horror director Wes Craven (A Nightmare on Elm Street) revived the moldering corpse of the teen horror picture, both creatively and commercially, by playfully acknowledging the exhausted clichés and then turning them inside out. Scream is a postmodern slasher movie, a horror film that cleverly deconstructs horror films, then reassembles the dead tissue, and (like Frankenstein's monster) creates new life. When a serial killer starts hacking up their fellow teens, the media-savvy youngsters of Scream realize that the smartest way of sticking around for the sequel is to avoid the terminal behaviors that inevitably doom supporting players in the movies. They've seen all the movies, and the rules of the genre are like second nature to them. One of the scariest/funniest setups features a kid watching John Carpenter's seminal Halloween on video. As Jamie Lee Curtis is shadowed by Michael Meyers and the kid on the couch yells at her to turn around, Craven reverses his camera and we see that the kid should be taking his own advice. The fresh-faced young cast (including Drew Barrymore, Neve Campbell, Skeet Ulrich, Courtney Cox, and David Arquette) is fun to watch, and their tart dialogue is sprinkled with enough archly self-conscious pop-culture references to make Quentin Tarantino blush. The digital video disc includes an audio commentary by director Craven. --Jim Emerson ... Read more

Reviews (515)

A must see film!!!
If anyone says that this film is boring, dull, or anything else like that, I ORDER you to shut them up. Scream plays with you like 'I know what you did last summer' or 'Halloween' never could. This movie IS the original teen slasher, a mix of humour and suspense, that will leave you terrified all night. Although it is not as good as its sequel, Scream 2, I feel that Scream is much funnier, and more clever.

The movie is about a group of teenagers, and one by one people in their high school are being brutally murdered. Neve Campbell plays the starring role as Sidney Prescott, a teenage girl who is being stalked by the killer that murdered her mother. The movie also includes Countney Cox, as annoying and persistent News reporter Gale Weathers, and David Arquette as the dim-witted cop, Dewey. The film also features a cameo performance from Drew Barrymore, who's appearance made the film a smash hit, even if she was only in it for 10 minutes!

All in all, this film is a masterpiece from horror director, Wes Craven. You HAVE to see this film. I INSIST!

Make Sure to Watch This Movie With The Lights On!
Scream is one of my favorite, not to mention scarest, movies I've ever seen. It's about a group of five teenage kids, who are all obsessed with scary movies, find themselves in a situation where they are being prayed on by an unknown killer. EVERYBODY'S A SUSPECT, states Randy (Jamie Kennedy) geeky, fifth wheeler of the group. This movie's cast was picked very well. The starring role for Scream is:

starring:

Deputy Dwight "Dewey" Riley: David Arquett Sydney Prescott: Neve Campbell Gale Weathers: Courtney Cox Stuart Maker: Matthew Lillard Tatum Riley: Rose McGowan Billy Loomis: Skeet Ulrich

Co-starring:

Casey Becker: Drew Berrymore Kenny the Camera Man: W. Earl Brown Randy Meeks: Jamie Kennedy Cotton Weary: Liev Schreiber Sheriff Burke: Josheph Whipp

Which one of these 11 people will survive, which of these will die, which one of these 11 suspects are the killer, because tonight, SOMEONE HAS TAKEN THEIR LOVE OF SCARY MOVIES ONE STEP TOO FAR.

Tips to survive: -Don't have sex -No Drugs/Alcohol -Never Say, "I'll be right back" Cause you won't be back -Never answer the phone -Never answer the door -DON'T TRUST ANYONE...EVER!

"Thank you Randy" Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich)

Good luck!

Do u like scary movies?
When I first saw the movie I was totally in love with it. But that was in like what? 1997. Anyways, I still think its a really good movie, but not scary at all. The first time I saw it i did think it was, but after that I was like " and why did I think this was scary?" But the plot in the movie is really good and original. I also like how they make fun of other horror movies. This is one of the best teen/slasher flicks though. The Sequals are pretty good. I read someone else's review and I totally agree with them on how the third one probably wasnt the way Kevin wanted it to be. I would have like to see what he came up with as the last installment. But whatever, the guy who wrote it still came up with a good idea.

Scream, ahhh.
If seeing a guy running around in a cheap coustome that he got from party city killing teens and every one's craking jokes all the wile entertains you, there's nothing wrong with that. If seeing all that scares you, well, you better get some help. Scream is a movie that tries hard to scare you but fails. I don't know if it was that cheap costume, the jokes, or the fact that it's amazingly not scary, Scream is a falire. If you want to be scared, go see Halloween. Speaking of Halloween, I was hoping that Michael Myers would come and beat up the killer in this film by the end.

Scary
Scream is an extremely scary movie, but when it isn't scary, it's funny, and that's what makes it so good. The story is Drew Barrrymore's character is murdered one night, so everyone at her school is being questioned by the police. Later that night, Sydney Prescott the main character is attacked by the killer, until her boyfriend Billy comes to rescue her. Sydney then notices that Billy has a cell phone[the killer called her first], which leads Sydney to believe that Billy is the killer. After this accident, Billy is sent to jail, but Sydney gets called again. After that happens, Sydney believes Billy isn't the murderer, and after what happened to Sydney, school is canceled, which leads up to a party that the killer is attending, so in turn, many deaths follow, making this a very scary movie. ... Read more

Reviews (203)

Worth a viewing, but rent it.
WILD THINGS is definitely worth a viewing, but only one. Save some money and rent it from the video store, but get it on DVD if you are able, because the colors, picture quality and cinemotography are excellent. All of the leads are fabulous in this film. Denise Richards is a standout as a spoiled and vicious teen.

The twists and turns that Leonard Maltin spoke of aren't THAT clever. And the film does wind up shooting itself in the foot, because too much of something is never good--the viewer does catch on quickly and the surprises are no longer unexpected, hence the "gotchas" at the end are predictable. WILD THINGS could've learned something from THE USUAL SUSPECTS. There is one character surprise at the end that will have you laughing with malicious glee. They're not Keyser Soze, but they're just as clever!

A word of advice: if you rent the DVD, do NOT watch the theatrical trailer before viewing. It reveals too much of the plot.

A cool movie, twisted and sexy plot, great cast
A sexy movie churned up in a twisted plot, Neve Campbell, Denise Richards, Matt Dillion, Kevin Bacon, and Bill Murray make this a very worthwhile film to see. Guys will probably oogle over the threesome scene with Denise, Neve and Matt, and it's a really nice scene :-) The acting is very good, and the cast played their parts well. I knocked off a star because I didn't need to see Kevin's sausage. That could have stayed in the towel. (All I can say is, fast forward through the shower scene!) Great movie to see, and its worth buying it!

Great ending.
Great Movie I loved the ending. Did not know what to expect from this movie but it turned out great. BUY IT....

(Can not give it 5 starts since no movie is that good.)

Hot Chicks, Man's Shlong?
Probably the best movie I have ever seen, except for Kevin Bacon's bacon in the shower. I did not need to see his noodle. Nice looking Girls. Best plot I have ever seen. I have seen other movies copy their plot and it wasn't as good.

Wild Things lives up to it's title
If it's not sex, it's murder. This movie continuously keeps you wondering what's going to happen next. With great performances by Neve Campbell and Matt Dillon, this movie is all about who's telling the truth. Though this movie has a few holes as to what happened, they are all filled up when you watch the credits. It has lots of violence, some drugs, a good story, and a few interesting sexual scenes. Very interesting. For the good acting, good ending, and suspense, I give this movie four stars. ... Read more

Amazon.com

When Sarah (Neve Campbell) strikes up a conversation with a sad-eyed man called Alex (William H. Macy) at her therapist's office, she asks, "Are you one of those middle-aged guys who's tired of his marriage and thinking maybe a beautiful young thing could help him out?" She's right, but the source of Alex's depression is far from typical: he's a second-generation hit man who wants out, but his mom and dad won't let him quit.

Donald Sutherland makes Alex's laconic and utterly monstrous father the most frightening parent since John Huston in Chinatown. A series of flashbacks show how he introduced Alex to his trade, beginning with shooting squirrels in the woods. We never find out whether Alex's father has mob connections, and the fact that it's just a business to him ("This one's a big job, lots of moola, I'll buy your mother a Lexus") makes him all the more chilling. Alex's mother (the steely Barbara Bain) knows all about the family business, but his wife (Tracey Ullman) thinks he runs a mail-order company, and the only person he confides in is a therapist (John Ritter). When he meets and falls for Sarah, Alex realizes that he alone can stand up to his father, and he needs to act before his own son becomes the next apprentice.

Henry Bromell's debut film as a writer-director probes the same dark corners of the middle-aged male psyche as American Beauty and The Sopranos. Alex's tormented life is a symbol of the damage that parents can inflict on their children, and Bromell imbues his story with a tragic inevitability. Panic received a shamefully limited theatrical release, in spite of its rare combination of a great script and brilliant performances. It deserves to be rediscovered and appreciated by a much larger audience on home video. --Simon Leake ... Read more

Reviews (37)

A Small Masterpiece
This film needs your support! It was apparently completely disregarded by critics when it played theatrically... Written and directed by Henry Bromell, writer-producer of the Baltimore-lensed HOMOCIDE TV series, PANIC is a tight little masterpiece (clocking at less than 1 hour and 25 minutes) of ensemble acting and superior screenwriting. All principal actors hit just right notes in their roles, from William H. Macy (one of the best actors currently working in the US, who single-handedly made my experience of watching ultra-sophomoric FARGO durable), Donald Sutherland, John Ritter, Barbara Bain (Remember MISSION IMPOSSIBLE?), Tracy Ullman (TRACY ULLMAN?!) and, oh, Neve Campbell. The characters are so well-written and so devoid of historionics that some viewers may actually suffer from disorientation, adjusting their brains from the state of overexposure to usual mind-numbing stereotypes in Hollywood movies. Ritter's psychiarist, for example, is one of the two or three among hundreds of psychiarists I have seen in Hollywood movies who actually behaves like a NORMAL PSYCHIARIST and acts SENSIBLY. (MUCH superior to Lorraine Bracco's shrink in THE SOPRANOS) David Dorffmann plays Macey's son, and even though he is supposed to be a super-smart kid, he is NEVER annoying. The scenes are all underplayed with minimum of melodramatics, but they nonetheless pack emotional wallop. The quiet, beautifully lit sequence in which Donald Sutherland introduces the child version of the Macey character to "family business" is not only absolutely chilling, but also immesaruably sad. PANIC reminded me of Paul Schrader's AFFLICTION and Claude Chabrols' morally complex thrillers, such as THIS MAN MUST DIE. It is also like a particularly well-made 1950s film noir suffused with psychological insight ordinarily missing from them.

The DVD version includes a generally informative if a little reticent commentary by Director Bromell, and six deleted scenes. The deleted scenes provide additional background information for characters and deepen our understanding of them, but they also include some stilted and overblown dialogue completely absent in the actual film, the reason I suspect they were in the end dropped from the final product. I am a little disappointed that the audio commentary does not come with Macey, Sutherland and others discussing their acting strategies, given the fact that this film's success depends so much on their contributions, but this is nit-picking. I definitely recommend this movie for anyone who is a fan of Macey, Sutherland, Campbell and those who appreciate morally complex human dramas and/or thrillers. NOT RECOMMENDED, however, to those who want an action film like AIR FORCE ONE or a "quirky" movie like FARGO.

It's Hard Being Someone's Son
It's amazing to me that this film wasn't released as widely as, say, Memento or even Sexy Beast. It is an absolutely superb film featuring William H. Macy(Fargo) in his finest performance to date as Alex, a second-generation hitman railroaded into the business by his controlling monster of a father, played by Donald Sutherland(JFK).

The first thing that should strike any viewer about this movie is its cast. There isn't really a weak link in this movie, even though it does feature Neve Campbell. Campbell's performance, incidentally, really says something for Henry Bromell's direction: she's actually convincing, cast against type, and gives her strongest performance to date as the troubled love interest Alex meets in his psychiatrist's office.

The extreme circumstances featured in this film -- i.e. a middle-aged hitman seeing his shrink -- are really only a metaphor for the mid-life crises of half of America's middle-aged men, who went unwillingly into their father's businesses and sacrificed their own dreams. This movie is not about a love affair or a hitman; it is about how hard it is to be someone's son in America, about the expectations placed on men in our society and the outlets which we are given and which are denied us to express ourselves. Perhaps Neve Campbell herself delivers the most telling line in the film: "It's easier being a man, don't you think?" to which wife Tracy Ullman replies only with a knowing look, then turns her back.

It's a shame this film was overlooked. Henry Bromell's debut as writer-director on this film proves one of cinema's finest. William H. Macy gives the strongest performance of the year, far outdoing Russell Crowe's unintelligible stone-faced Maximus; it is also Macy's greatest role, the culmination of every unsure forty-something he's played. Do yourself a favor and see this movie. Then go home and love your son.

The Sins of the Father ...
What a find this movie was. Subtle, tense, occasionally laugh-out-loud funny and ultimately satisfying.

A hit-man wants out of the family business, and in to the pants of Neve Campbell. Which, I suppose, makes him a murderer and a philanderer. Not that you'll feel anything but empathy and compassion for William H. Macy's character: which, of course, is his genius.

In a story that explores, among other things, the whole family dynamic - from the damage our parents do us, to the effort needed to make a marriage succeed - you'll find it all rings true. The context of the story is alien and exotic, but the relationships aren't. Your father is probably not a controlling and manipulative sociopath (and, you know, small mercies and all that ...) but even so, how many of us would find it easy to step up and admonish him, when he steps over the line?

Donald Sutherland's performance as the sociopathic pater is astonishingly good. He actually had me shouting at the screen. And I'm British. We just don't do that ...

Give this movie a go. You won't find the experience entirely comfortable, nor will it be an escape from the rigours of the world (because there's too much of the world in the movie) but it will make you laugh, wince, cheer and, most importantly of all, it will make you think.

symbolic
There is a scene in the middle of the movie when Alex takes his son to see his grandfather, who has bought him a birthday present. It is the most interesting scene of the movie, and the heart from which everything else should radiate. It is the only time that Alex, his father, and his son are all onscreen at the same time and you realize that this is the conflict that is killing Alex -- he is his father's son, cynical, secretive, and ruthless, but he is also equally his son's father -- innocent, curious, and affectionate. Framed that way, both his father and his son can be seen as reflections of his own psyche. The reason why he is so blank, so tired and depressed, is that they cancel each other out. By then end of that scene I knew how the movie had to end.

The side story involving Neve Campbell isn't very interesting.

Great movie -- what a cute little boy!
The boy who plays Sammy, the hit man's son, is about the cutest thing I've ever seen! He's just darling! He reminds me of that kind from Jerry McGuire -- "the human head weighs 8 pounds" Soooo cute!

The rest of the movie was pretty good, but I just loved the little boy's scenes! ... Read more

Amazon.com

If Buffy the Vampire Slayer represents the lighter side of high school as a macabre experience, here's a movie that asks the burning question, "What happens when angst-ridden teenagers develop supernatural powers?" More to the point, how do four outcast teenaged witches handle their ability to cast wicked spells on the taunting classmates who've nicknamed them "The Bitches of Eastwick"? The answer, of course, is "don't get mad, get even." That's about all there is to this terminally silly movie, which makes up for its ludicrous plot by letting its young female cast have a field day as they indulge their dark fantasies. Fairuza Balk is enjoyable as the most wicked of the witches, and is therefore the focus of the film's most dazzling special effects. But it's Neve Campbell from television's Party of Five who made this film a modest box-office hit, just before she became her generation's fright-movie favorite in Scream and its popular sequel. --Jeff Shannon ... Read more

Reviews (170)

This movie was great, despite it's fictional entities
When I first saw this movie I was blown away buy it. Since then it has become one of my favorite movies of all time. Like many other people this movie gave me false ideas about Witchcraft, which I found otherwise as fictional. Even now as a practitioner of Wicca I still find it to be a great movie. This movie was made for entertainment purposes and not to persuade or disuade anyone one way or the other.

Fairuza Balk as Nancy was awesome. She played and looked the part so well and I don't think anyone could have done a better job. The movie is based around three teenage girls classified as the misfits of the school. They come together to form a small coven and cast spells one themselves and other people. Sarah is the newcomer who is quickly accepted into their circle. As the movie progresses things get out of hand and Nancy ends up way in over her head and it's up to Sarah to use her powerful inheritated gift of magick to stop her. I suggest this movie for anyone who wants to be thrilled.

Craft Services
The Craft is a solid, yet still somewhat predictable thriller, that tried to ride the surging horror wave started by Scream.

Sarah Baily (Robin Tunney) has always felt like an outsider all her life. So, when she and her Dad (Cliff De Young) move to a new town, she finds herself having to start fresh. As the new gal at St. Benedict's Academy, she immediately falls in with the high school's female misfits. But, this group of girls won't settle for being just powerless outcasts, that nobody wants to hang out with. Indeed, Nancy, (Fairuza Balk) Bonnie, (Neve Campbell), and Rochelle (Rachel True) have discovered just how much fun school can be if you have the skills to use "The Craft" and they plan to show Sarah the way.

Director and co scripter Andrew Fleming plays things pretty safe throughout the film. The tried and true horror formula isn't tested that much. Young and trendy stars populate the cast, with moments of humor and a few jolts, thrown in for good measure. The breakout performance for me here is Balk's sassy Nancy. She is one tough witch you don't want to mess with. She helps make the film better than it would be otherwise. As with any film about the wicken way, there's also a certain female "bonding" subtext that has to play itself out, as well.

The special edition DVD substitutes for the movie only edition from awhile back. The audio commentary from Fleming is a nice mix of the tecnical and on set trivia about the film. There are two making Of featurettes on the disc. The first,is a six minute EPK style prepublicity kind of thing, while the second is a 24 minute retrospective, produced for the DVD. Conjuring THE CRAFT features "new" interviews with Fleming, Robin Tunny, Rachel True among others, intermixed with on set comments from Balk and Campbell. This is well produced. Fleming provides commentary for the deleted footage that, doesn't really amount to much as far as the final version is concerned The entire film score from Greame Revell is preserved and given its due as an isolated music track. Talent files, as well as, theatrical trailers for The Craft, among other films top off the bonus material on the disc. Addtional production notes can be found inside the keep case.

The Craft is worth a dabble, with a *** and a half star rating, as long as your expectations are kept in check.

These Girls Know Their Rites!
Sarah Bailey (Robin Tunney) is the new kid in town, but even under the best of circumstances she has never been accepted by the popular crowd. At her new school, she falls in with a trio of other female misfits (Fairuza Balk, Neve Campbell, and Rachel True) who, it so happens, are trying to learn witchcraft and form their own little coven. When Sarah joins them to make it a quartet, they slowly develop multifold preternatural powers and learn how to focus and use them. With such abilities literally at their fingertips, it's not too long until the little coven, initially formed for self-protection and companionship, becomes an instrument for personal gain and revenge. Sarah soon realizes that one of her friends is evil to the core, and fearful of what THAT one may do with the group's newfound powers, she decides it's best to resign from the coven and thereby weaken the magic abilities of the others. But the coven has different plans, particularly regarding Sarah....

The sleeper hit THE CRAFT (1996) could've easily been played for camp, but it is instead a story of modern urban witchcraft that is both literate and emotionally powerful. The success of the film is due to Peter Filardi and Andrew Fleming's tight, well-written script, excellent direction from Fleming, and outstanding acting from principals Tunney, Balk, Campbell, and True. The supernatural elements of the story are handled carefully and earnestly, and witchcraft or the belief in it is never ridiculed or treated derisively. This keeps the tone of the film somewhat dark and edgy, which in turn creates an uneasy, spooky atmosphere that cues the audience to the fact that this is a serious horror film. Fleming wisely keeps the special FX to a minimum until the story's climax on the final reel, and he instead emphasizes the relationships in this group of dysfunctional, angst-ridden girls, well knowing that the primary target audience--to wit, teenagers--will easily relate to these characters and their normal desires and fears.

The Special Edition DVD from Columbia/Tri-Star offers THE CRAFT in anamorphic widescreen at its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1. The digital transfer is very good, with minimal filmic or digital artifacts. The disc also features an informative commentary with director Andrew Fleming, 2 featurettes, deleted scenes, and more. THE CRAFT is a cool horror film that most fans of the genre will enjoy, and the very reasonable price makes it easy for fans to add this DVD to their collections.

Darkly peculiar, yet entertaining all the same
I was looking for entertainment and I found it in THE CRAFT.

So maybe it was filled with holes. Maybe it's a tad unrealistic. Maybe it doesn't portray Wicca with fair accuracy (not that I care about that). So it's flawed. So what?

That said, THE CRAFT is awfully entertaining and worth more than one watch - hence my umpteenth watch a few weekends ago. I especially appreciated Fairuza Balk's performance - just as much as gorgeous Robin Tunney's. It's a shame she's no Hollywood starlet today. A year or more ago I saw her in this dreadful movie called CHERISH, a truly tedious indie flick.

Tunney plays Sarah, newcomer to the neighborhood. After being shunned by the popular girls, a circle of peculiar witches take her beneath their collective wings. Nancy, Bonnie, and Rochelle all have supernatural powers and the rumor mongers have always been spreading gossip about them. (They are played by Fairuza Balk, Neve Campbell, and Rachel True, respectively.) Now, it is time to get revenge on those who have wronged them - yes, revenge is the only remedy to their teenage angst and turmoil.

Each girl has a different situation. Rumors have been churning through the mill that Sarah Bailey slept with popular jock Chris Hooker (played by Skeet Ulrich, who later appeared with Campbell in SCREAM). Not only that, but he claims she sucked in bed, according to Nancy. Sarah had really been into Chris during their first date and after one kiss on a rooftop, he'd tried to take her back home with him. She'd declined and Chris had seemed a little disappointed. Still, Sarah never guessed he'd begin spreading lies about her. Now, she will get Chris, who snubs her in the halls, to fall truly, madly, and deeply head-over-heels in love with her. In fact, with Sarah's powers, he develops humorous stalker-esque tendencies.

Nancy Down's troubles mainly concern her homelife. Her father is a bum. She and her two parents live the stereotypical white trash lifestyle. Nancy uses her powers to give her father a heart attack (odd, yes...I know) and because of his death, she and Mrs. Down are left with a big 'ole sum of money. They move into a very nice apartment and are able to live quite comfortably.

Bonnie was involved in a terrible accident that left her permanently scarred - much of the high school knows about the disfiguring scars. She has a beautiful face but her scars inable her to wear certain clothes and she's oh-so self-concious about it. She undergoes a painful hospital operation that may or may not improve her condition - it does, thanks to her supernatural powers. :) Because of the operation, her mother and the doctors aren't all that suspicious. They just assume it to be the goodness of medical technology.

Rochelle's dilemma concerns racist Laura Lizzie (Christine Taylor), who is on the school's swim team with her. Laura makes it crystal clear that she can't stand Rochelle because she's black. Whenever Rochelle is at work perfecting her dives, Laura shouts out cruel remarks to distract her and she also calls her racial slurs in the locker room. Rochelle's spell causes Laura's hair to begin to fall out in huge clumps that leave bald patches all over her blonde head. Within days, she's totally bald.

But what you do to others in your spells comes back to haunt you. Times three. So now, the girls will have to deal with the consequences of their actions. Sarah must also deal with the fact that her three friends are turning on her and she must face the harrowing battle all on her own.

That is, if they don't kill her first.

With good performances and an exciting plot, this movie may appeal to fans of HEATHERS, MEAN GIRLS, and other movies in which the theme of all-girl friendships are stressed. Many critics took an intense disliking to this film, but it has been rather popular with many audiences, doing mildly well in the box office and on video.

Awesome movie
On her first day of school, Sarah is snubbed by the more popular girls and ends up becoming part of a circle of girls who are witches.

One by one, it goes through and shows each one of the girls problem. Bonnie was in a fire and left with horrible burn marks, Rochelle is the target of a racist clique, Nancy comes from a broken home, and Sarah is still haunted by memories of a suicide attempt. They all cast spells to improve their lives, and they work. Sarah makes a guy fall in love with her, Rochelle causes her harasser's hair to fall out, Bonnie overcomes her scars and Nancy ends up killing her jerk stepfather, resulting in her mother and her to inherit a bunch of money from him.

As the girls get deeper and deeper into the craft, Sarah realizes that they are taking everything too far. Bonnie has turned into a total snob, Rochelle's tormentor goes completely bald, Sarah's love spell has turned into dangerous obsession, and Nancy has completely turned power hungry. When Sarah makes her desire to leave the circle known, they will not hear of it. Nancy ends up trying to kill Sarah, resulting in one of the best fight scenes EVER.

Overall, some of the stuff referring to the craft in this movie is true. The quarter calls made by the group are actual Gardnarian Tradition quarter calls, and the threefold law is TRUE (I know from experience, lol) ... Read more

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Wild Things
Wild Things is the kind of lurid, trashy thriller that you'll either dive into with unabashed pleasure or turn away from in prudish disgust; it's entirely your choice, but we suggest the former option since it's obviously much more fun. The plot's so convoluted it's hardly worth describing, except to say that it's set in humid Florida and involves a respected high school teacher (Matt Dillon--yes, Matt Dillon as a teacher!) who is faced with accusations of rape by a student (Denise Richards, from Starship Troopers) who had been giving him the kind of attention most people would consider improper for such a "nice" young lady. Another student (Neve Campbell) raises a similar charge against the teacher, and that's when a police officer (Kevin Bacon) begins to investigate the allegations. Just when you think the movie's gone overboard with its shameless sex and absurdly twisted plot, in drops Bill Murray as an unscrupulous lawyer (of course) to spice things up with insurance scams and welcomed comic relief. As directed by John McNaughton (who has a way of making just the right moves with this kind of film noir melodrama), Wild Things is a bona fide guilty pleasure--the kind of movie you may be ashamed to enjoy, but what the heck, you'll enjoy it anyway. --Jeff Shannon

Body Double
Even Brian De Palma's staunchest defenders had to swallow hard with this gaudily gory bauble of a thriller that is built around a gruesome (yet surprisingly wittily staged) stalking and murder involving a female victim and a killer with a giant power drill. This is De Palma at his most sensational, in a story about a B-movie actor with career problems (Craig Wasson) and a habit as a voyeur. He witnesses the aforementioned murder, then teams up with a porn actress (Melanie Griffith) to try and find the killer. De Palma has a blast going inside the porn film industry, and even films a pseudo rock video with one-hit wonders Frankie Goes to Hollywood. Wasson is an unlikely leading man, bland and pasty, but he's perfect in the role of a decidedly imperfect hero. --Marshall Fine ... Read more