URBAN LEGEND
Columbia 1998 Color 99 Mins. Horror/Thriller Jared Leto, Alicia Witt, Rebecca Gayheart, Michael Rosenbaum, Loretta Devine, Joshua Jackson, Tara Reid, Robert Englund, Danielle Harris, Natasha Gregson Wagner and Brad Dourif star. Written by Silvio Horta Directed by Jamie Blanks Rated R for language, violence, gore and sexuality.
Urban Legend arrived in theaters on September 25, 1998 on the heels of much better slasher fare such as Scream and I Know what you did last summer. It was met with negative reception pretty much across the board with only 20 percent positive reviews. I remember going to see it opening night with my boyfriend at the time and complaining pretty much the whole time about every aspect of it. Now seventeen years later I've revisited it and it's easy to see why the movie sucks so bad. From the opening moments when a severely over acting Natasha Gregson Wagner is attacked from her backseat while driving on a stormy night after being warned by a wasted Brad Dourif as a creepy gas station attendant. We than are introduced to an impressive cast of annoying characters whom act accordingly. The movie is never suspenseful and always thinks it's way more clever than it actually is. The death scenes are pretty goreless and pretty much every one involved delivers the worst performances of their careers Devine (knowingly campy), Leto, Englund and surprisingly Reid aside. Especially Alicia Witt who over acts at every turn delivering unintentionally funny reactions to the generically unscary turns. Joining her in the turkey performance hall of fame is jailbird Rebecca Gayheart so craptastic as the killer delivering her lines with an atrocious but entertaining pizzazz. There are moments of such stupidity such as Tara Reid's radio host running downstairs from the killer and than going back up in the elevator besides going out the front door or someone wandering into the swimming pool area in the killer's trademark winter coat and than stripping it off at the last minute exposing a swimsuit. The movie is without a doubt awful but rewatching it so many years later it's hard not too appreciate the over abundance of so bad it's good moments. In the end it's pretty tragic but offers a fare amount of silly fun none the less. **/5
Budget: $14,000,000
Opening Weekend Gross: $10, 515, 444
Total Domestic Gross: $34, 455, 177
Worldwide Gross: $72, 527, 595
URBAN LEGENDS: FINAL CUT
Columbia 2000 Color 97 Mins. Horror/Thriller Jennifer Morrison, Loretta Devine, Matthew Davis, Hart Bochner, Joey Lawrence, Anson Mount, Eva Mendes, Jessica Caufiel and Anthony Anderson star. Written by Paul Harris Boardman and Scott Derrickson DSirected by John Ottman Rated R for language, violence, gore and sexuality.
Unfairly met with only 8% positive reviews Urban Legends Final Cut is so, so much better than it's predecessor. the film centers on a new group of victims at a film school who decide to shoot a horror movie based on a serial killer who uses Urban Legends. it's no doubt that the film is overly dumb in places. But where the original fail it's sequel prevails. The story is more interesting and more ambitious. John Ottman directs the film stylishly and creates interesting more developed characters this time around. Although the film culminates to the trademark scooby doo ending of the self referential cinematic time period. The killing scenes are way more brutal with some moments that will actually make you wince away. All around this is a much better film. Sure it has some cliched goofy spots but the majority of the film is way more promising than any sequel to the disastrous original should've been. Also the performances from Jennifer Morrison, sexy Matthew Davis and a feisty Eva Mendes are memorable. ***.5/5
BUDGET: $14,000,000
OPENING WEEKEND: $8,505,513
TOTAL DOMESTIC GROSS: $21, 468, 807
WORLDWIDE GROSS: $ 38 574, 362
URBAN LEGENDS: BLOODY MARY
Columbia 2005 color 93 Mins. Kate Mara, Robert Vito Tina Lifford and Michael Coe stars.Written by Michael Dougherty Directed by Mary Lambert. Rated R for language, violence and gore.
I can't even begin to think about the ridiculous absurdity that this movie is. This in name only sequel is more like a cheap remake of Hello Mary Lou Prom Night 2 without the conviction or cool factor. Any complaints I had about the franchise before this I take back because this is what a terrible movie looks like. Replacing the whole serial killer angle with a angry spirit of a girl from the 50's come to take vengeance upon her bullies after her name Mary add the bloody is recited a few times during a sleepover. The nonsensical plotting moves forward from there as we are introduced to a mind numbing array of annoying one note characters doing their best to act like cardboard cut outs of actual people. If you've seen any movie about a vengeful spirit you can guess how it ends up. But the execution for this film feels like if Disney channel got together with Syfy and tried to make a crossover flick. Even while goretastic things are happening the film has an overbearing amateur goofiness about it. I wondered if they set out to make a comedy. The characters that populate this film and the performances aren't just terrible and stereotypical but they don't resemble actual people at all. From the girl who awakes from a nights sleep in a nightie and than gets off her bed puts on heels and strips down to her undies and the guy that gets baked to death while tanning (one of the worst death scenes I've ever seen). Whats most puzzling about all this is how much talent is attached to it. Kate Mara so wooden here has made a name for herself with solid turns in AHS. The writer Michael Dougherty has made two of the strongest genre films this decade with Trick or Treat and Krampus and Mary Lambert directed freaking Pet Semetary. I'm sure they all wanna forget they had anything to do with this cinematic atrocity as I will try and forget I've seen it. The only pro about the whole experience is that gnarly spider scene besides that the movie is a forgettable and overly stupid franchise killer. */5
URBAN LEGENDS: BLOODY MARY
Columbia 2005 color 93 Mins. Kate Mara, Robert Vito Tina Lifford and Michael Coe stars.Written by Michael Dougherty Directed by Mary Lambert. Rated R for language, violence and gore.
I can't even begin to think about the ridiculous absurdity that this movie is. This in name only sequel is more like a cheap remake of Hello Mary Lou Prom Night 2 without the conviction or cool factor. Any complaints I had about the franchise before this I take back because this is what a terrible movie looks like. Replacing the whole serial killer angle with a angry spirit of a girl from the 50's come to take vengeance upon her bullies after her name Mary add the bloody is recited a few times during a sleepover. The nonsensical plotting moves forward from there as we are introduced to a mind numbing array of annoying one note characters doing their best to act like cardboard cut outs of actual people. If you've seen any movie about a vengeful spirit you can guess how it ends up. But the execution for this film feels like if Disney channel got together with Syfy and tried to make a crossover flick. Even while goretastic things are happening the film has an overbearing amateur goofiness about it. I wondered if they set out to make a comedy. The characters that populate this film and the performances aren't just terrible and stereotypical but they don't resemble actual people at all. From the girl who awakes from a nights sleep in a nightie and than gets off her bed puts on heels and strips down to her undies and the guy that gets baked to death while tanning (one of the worst death scenes I've ever seen). Whats most puzzling about all this is how much talent is attached to it. Kate Mara so wooden here has made a name for herself with solid turns in AHS. The writer Michael Dougherty has made two of the strongest genre films this decade with Trick or Treat and Krampus and Mary Lambert directed freaking Pet Semetary. I'm sure they all wanna forget they had anything to do with this cinematic atrocity as I will try and forget I've seen it. The only pro about the whole experience is that gnarly spider scene besides that the movie is a forgettable and overly stupid franchise killer. */5
In Conclusion the Urban Legend trilogy isn't the best. The only actual good movie is the second and the first has it's campy moments and the third doesn't even exist. There are much better films to revisit but sometimes you just have to remind yourself why movies suck.
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