The Boy Next Door

This movie is really nothing we haven't seen before: A woman on the brink of divorce has an affair with her younger next door neighbor and, afterward, wants nothing more to do with the man. As a result, the neighbor gets violent and stalks her.

It is a fast-pace thriller with steamy love scenes and quick action sequences. However, the plot is predictable and the acting is sub-par at best. For a movie called, "The Boy Next Door," there should be more suspense and plot twists that lead up to the title role, rather than a one-time encounter that basically reveals almost immediately who the antagonist is.

It's not a entirely bad movie to pass the time with; however, you will find much more suspenseful and captivating thriller than this one.

Grade C-

Of course, this is a bad movie. Yet, there are plenty of guilty pleasures to behold here. When I say it's bad, I didn't say I didn't enjoy it. I mean, there's a lot of potential going on. Unfortunately, it leads to a bit disappointing finale. But, it is salvaged by an amount of suspense before the ensuing chaos.

At first, J.Lo... why did she even bother signing on this? I thought that this is too low even for her standards. But, later on, I think that she's pretty committed on doing this role. So, I decided to lay back and enjoy the ride.

Then, along came Ryan Guzman, as the so-called "Boy Next Door". Hmmm... He did a pretty fine job. When the tension ratchets up, he looks threatening convincingly, despite what critics say about his performance.

The supporting casts are good as well. Kristin Chenoweth stood out for me, adding comic relief and zing along the way.

My main criticism is the script. Not only it's a bit sloppy, almost made-for-TV writing, but it falters in the end. There are some characters' action including Lopez's, that's nonsensical and... stupid, actually.

When it comes to nonsensical and stupid, I just wished they would close it with being campy and over-the-top. It doesn't truly reached that level and the result is only a half-baked mess.

But, all those flaws don't matter too much because Rob Cohen's direction are superior than most of his movies, especially his last offering "Alex Cross", although it's his fault too.

For a movie released in January, it's better than expected. But, for a real nerve-wracking thriller, don't get your hopes up too high.

Just watch it for pure brainless entertainment without much to think about. It's not that bad...

This movie was so predictable, and so obvious, that I knew a certain image from the very first scene would presage the denouement. And it did. The acting was mostly adequate, given the material. I had never heard of this Ryan Guzman, and will be surprised if I hear of him again. He was, well, adequate, but his was a role that an accomplished actor would sink his teeth into, and not relent until ALL of the scenery was masticated. Guzman was unable to be scary enough, creepy enough, or charming enough. Blah. Which brings me to Jennifer Lopez. I think she has become a pretty good actress, even though it is hard to tell in this one, due to the script. But I see that she has a producer credit. Can you not tell from a script that a film will be a dud? I'm actually asking. I do not know, having never read a script. The only real redeeming feature of this movie is the extreme beauty of Ms. Lopez. Wow. She is 45 now and is such eye candy. But she is the ONLY reason to see this film.

My friend and I had a blast at this movie last Friday, but not for the reason you would expect. We literally laughed through the entire film - and what was even more fun was that the entire theater was laughing, too. The dialogue and plot were so thin and badly written, and the intense scenes so implausible, that it was hilarious. As the movie ended, I think all of us sat staring at the screen wondering if that really was the ending - that the credits were about to prove it was all over - that me, my friend, and the entire theater, cracked up all over again.

So, I have absolutely no regrets about paying money to see it. It was fun in its own right.

Blumhouse Production's The boy next door (2015) with Jennifer Lopez, which went on to gross five times it's budget. A woman called Claire (Jennifer Lopez) , High school teacher , is separated from her unfaithful husband (John Corbett) . She's is on the verge of divorcing her husband Garrett after he was caught cheating with his secretary. While Claire's best friend Vicky Lansing (Kristin Chenoweth) stands by her and urges her to sign the divorce papers immediately and leave Garrett for good. She then falls for a younger man , the handsome, charming teenager named Noah (Ryan Guzman) who has moved in next door. She kicks him out and it causes a rift between both of them and their son Kevin (Ian Nelson). But Noah spends much of the time hanging out with Claire's son. One night, Claire gives in to temptation and lets Noah seduce her, but things go wrong when she attempts to end the relationship . Then their torrid affair soon takes a dangerous turn resulting in violent happenings. A moment she couldn't resist, an obsession he can't control !. Her mistake !. His obsession !.

This is a passable , manipulative and disturbing thriller with intrigue , suspense , twists , turns and the build-up tension is developed step by step . The plot is well-known and ordinary , as a neglected wife by her adulterous husband and left feeling particularly vulnerable as her marriage crumbles, as the lonely teacher has an affair with a younger neighbor that turns terrifying as his fiery lust morphs into perilous obsession . Exploring timeless themes of marriage and infidelity through the lens of modern attitudes toward strong women, personality disorders and coercive control . It results to be a deep-dive reimagining of the classic 80's thriller, ¨Fatal Attraction¨ by Adrian Lyne , equally dealing with one-night stand leads to terror as a main role continue to pursue the realtionship . This ¨The Boy Next Door¨ is an acceptable but no original suspense thriller , beautifully photographed by cameraman David McFarland and set to a successful soundtrack from Nathan Barr and Randy Edelman. Unfortunately, this already says everything positive, specially with films that want to surprise the viewer with their punchline, naturally it weighs particularly negatively if you already suspect the resolution at the end of the first act at the latest . The final part is at least a little more exciting , but eventually fails , due to the weak resolution, which had already been hinted at for an hour, as well as the stolen elements of other psychokiller films. Stars Jennifer Lopez who gives a so-so acting as the newly separated high-school teacher Claire Peterson , while Ryan Guzman is fine as the deranged and unsettling teen on the verge of going crazy . Being accompanied by a good support cast , such as : John Corbett , Ian Nelson, Kristin Chenoweth, Jack Wallace and Hill Harper of CSY New York .

The motion picture was regular but professionally directed by Rob Cohen who often directs high-energy action films, such as : Daylight 1996), The Fast and the Furious (2001), xXx (2002), or Stealth (2005) . He went on to produce and direct some of the most iconic films and television series of the 1980's, including Miami Vice (1984), Witches of Eastwick (1987), Ironweed (1987) and The Wiz (1978) . From 1990 onward, Cohen moved into directing full time. Much success followed with early 90's hits such as Dragon, Bruce Lee life (1993), Dragonheart (1996), Daylight (1996) and the Golden Globe award winning film The Rat pack (1998 ). At 52, Cohen had become a hit action director of youth films, directing the 2001 blockbuster, The Fast and the Furious. With this enormous hit , he partnered up with Vin Diesel again the following year to direct yet another box office hit, xXx (2002). Cohen directed the third installed of The mummy : the tomb of the emperator Dragon in 2008, grossing $405million world-wide. ¨The boy next door¨ rating : 5/10 . Mediocre but passable . The flick will appeal to Jennifer Lopez fans.