Amusement

Genre - Horror/Anthology
Year Released - 2009
Running Time - 85 minutes
Directed by John Simpson
Written by Jake Wade Wall (who also wrote the '06 Re-Make of When a Stranger Calls and the '07 Re-Make of The Hitcher)
Cast Includes:
Laura Breckenridge [as Shelby]
Katheryn Winnick [as Tabitha]
Jessica Lucas [as Lisa]

Rating: 2 Skulls

Plot Summary:
While being interrogated by a police psychiatrist, the near-catatonic Tabitha tries to explain why she and two of her childhood friends are being hunted by a serial killer. The truth that's dying to come out weaves together three tragic secrets from their past.

Review:
Not much to tell here really - the movie starts off with scenes from a grade-school yearbook, telling us those "most likely to succeed", "most likely to be famous", and "most likely to shine" [our three main female leads in the film] We then see a report of a likely deviant - "behaviour problems", "dangerous", etc. [the film's antagonist]

The movie is shown in anthology format - the 1st story is Shelby's - her and her boyfriend, Rob [Tad Hilgenbrink] are on a road trip. I liked this one, mainly due to Rob's fascination with driving in a "convoy" [you know, when you're on a road trip, and you get behind someone who you like to follow. . .] Well, turns out Rob decides to get into the wrong convoy.
This story had greater potential - it could have been fleshed out into its own movie.

The 2nd story is Tabitha's - she is the central character which the film revolves around. In this tale, Tabitha shows up at her young nephew's home, only to discover that the babysitter is no longer there. . . It is a dark & stormy night, and her nephews have a thing for clowns [including a killer motion-sensor one, that I want for myself!] There is also a life-size clown which makes for an extremely creepy atmosphere.
It was this story that bumped the movie up a skull - this story too could have been fleshed out into its own movie.

The 3rd story is Lisa's, and hers is the weakest one. She is simply looking for her missing roommate, who may or may not be in a creepy old house that doubles as a hotel. . .

This movie started off really well, however once the stories tried to tie-in with one another, it rapidly fell apart, and for that I have to blame Jake Wade Wall [the writer] This movie should have never been in anthology format, as the pieces just did not fit - by the time the movie gets to the end, you no longer care. [Like I said, the 1st part was really good, though if it hadn't been for Tabitha's story, and the direction of the movie, in general, I doubt that I would have even reviewed this one]

Best to wait for television on this one!

Here's the Trailer:


Jason