Cry Wolf

This movie is strange. When I remember this movie, it looks like 1998 style horror movie and it's to bad, because this movie is 2005 release. Another bad thing about this movie - the same non-original scenes in student town. It so boring. The director have to take original places, not a college town. The third bad thing - actor. They acted really bad. They not entertaining. producer have to take better horror movie stars. Poor Jon Bon Jovi, he goes to the wrong movie. Maybe he was just for money? Best thing in movie - original idea about imagine serial killer in town, who's killing students in college town. And I think this is it...

I just came back from a screening for 'Cry Wolf.' I must say, at first I thought it was pretty predictable, but then it takes a cool twist that made me stop and think. Great re-telling of the fabled story of the "Boy Who Cried Wolf," this story has a fantastic set of characters headed by Julian Morris, great performance by Lindy Booth, and followed out with good supporting characters played by Bon Jovi, Jared Padalecki, the beautiful Sandra McCoy, and several others. Without giving anything away, I'd recommend anyone who likes good guessing-thrillers and fun jumpy scenes, to go see this movie . . . when it comes out, of course. Good story, good settings, great music.

A surprisingly intelligent suspense/horror film. Notice the dual title I gave to it? Yeah, that's because it takes elements from both to make a much better movie. I'm really surprised they canceled the critics' screenings for this because I honestly think it would get good reviews from quite a few critics. Maybe I'm wrong.

Either way, it starts off in post-Scream slasher mode before kicking things into gear. It quickly takes on the trappings of the urban legend/parable/whatever that the title is derived from, with a group of spoiled rich kids deciding to trick their private school into thinking there's a killer on campus. Trouble is...there actually might be.

The two leads, Julian Morris and Lindy Booth are both actually very good. Booth, who did almost nothing in the Dawn of the Dead remake, shines brightest, mixing girl-next-door charm with a lying, manipulative alter-ego. And it makes sense because her character uses the former so she can accomplish the latter.

Another surprising stand-out is...Jon Bon Jovi? Yeah, the guy can actually act. He skirts the line a few times but he's definitely believable as an English teacher. His story arc is also kind of funny when you consider his career, and what that likely entailed during the '80s. So once again, not a stretch.

The only flaw I could see with the movie is that it seems a little calculating. At points, it seems like it's intentionally trying to avoid teen horror clichés. For example, a victim is being chased and instead of running out a door, he tries to trick the killer into thinking he has. Smart. Probably too smart for a high school student, but at least it's a change from the same run, scream, hide, run again, knife to the throat routine.

Speaking of that tired old routine and the rating it usually causes, this is probably the first time in years where I actually felt a PG-13 rating was warranted. Making this an R horror movie would've killed any semblance of logic. Here the violence isn't necessarily what's supposed to frighten you. Human nature is. Their lies are what bring about the conclusion, which is infinitely darker than anything Jason Vorhees has ever done.

This is one of those movies that try hard to confuse the audience to dissemble obvious twists in the plot, but fail completely. Never does "Cry_Wolf" fool you. You know exactly where it's going and you also know that the final explanation is not going to work after all the "facts" that have been given to us earlier. It sounds confusing, but if you see the movie you'll know what I mean. The worst thing about "Cry_Wolf", however, is that Jeff Wadlow isn't able to pull off one good scare or a thrilling suspense scene. The whole thing just isn't exciting in any way, it's merely tolerable enough for you to keep your eyes on the screen. Needless to say that the characters and the performances are as flat as the story itself (this is, after all, a cast that includes Jon Bon Jovi). There have been far better horror movies (if you want to call it that) in the past 6 years and you'd be well advised to watch the other "Wolf"-movie of 2005, "Wolf Creek", instead of this forgettable affair.

I actually enjoyed watching this. It's not that bad. It's kinda what you should expect from a slasher/mystery movie from 2005. I wasn't expecting an award nominee movie. But the plot twists add a cool addition that are pretty unexpected. Probably wouldn't ever watch it again, nor is it a "must-watch". But if you're bored without anything to do I'd give it a watch.