Something Wicked

I have a soft spot for B-horror films— it's not just that I am usually very entertained by them, but I really just find them charming. Maybe I have an underdog complex. Regardless, I'm not even sure why I am dispensing this information, because I don't know if I can classify "Something Wicked" as a B-movie completely, given the relatively high production values and moderately well-known cast (including the late and great Brittany Murphy). Even if "Something Wicked" isn't a B-movie entirely, it feels like one, and works within this framework. The plot follows a young woman, Christine (Shantel VanSanten) who loses her parents in an accident; she survives, however, as does her boyfriend, James (John Robinson). Christine moves in with her older brother, Bill (James Patrick Stuart), a local cop, and his wife, psychologist Susan (Brittany Murphy), and attends the local university. She and James begin to plan a future together beginning with a marriage, but Christine begins experiencing personal attacks and believes herself to be haunted by demons of the past and stalked by a real-life attacker. Where does Christine's truth lie?

It is without question that the main reason "Something Wicked" is even seeing the light of day at Regal Cinemas right now is because it marks Brittany Murphy's final performance before her untimely death. Had Murphy not passed away, the film would likely have been relegated to the land of straight-to-DVD Redbox specials, but it is currently having an extremely limited theatrical run in the Pacific Northwest, and is one of the few indie films to surface in quite some time from my beautiful home state of Oregon (it was filmed in Eugene, a college town about three hours south of Portland, where I am from). And you know what? I'm glad the film is playing in a mainstream cinema, no matter how limited. It's just a shame that it took Murphy's death to get it there.

The reasons behind the film's delay are ambiguous (it was filmed in 2009), but regardless, what we have here is a no-holds-barred indie horror thriller that is not quite serious enough to be taken at face value, but classy enough that it cannot be dismissed by genre fans. The script plays with genre setups and conventions galore, but they don't appear as clichés because the film refuses to let them be— it walks the line between a made-for-TV movie and a first-rate thriller, which is bizarre, but also extremely absorbing for people who are into this kind of thing. As someone who watches these films all the time, I should have seen the plot twists coming, but I didn't— the script quickly throws the audience into a disorienting snake pit of red-herrings and spends the rest of its time clawing its way out to the conclusion. The performances in the film are also worth taking note of; Shantel VanSanten leads the film and is vulnerable and believable, paired with John Robinson ("Elephant") as her husband-to-be. James Patrick Stewart plays her (perhaps too) protective cop brother quite believably, and Julian Morris ("Cry_Wolf") appears as the ominous and sexy stalker boy on campus— and then of course there is Murphy, who is completely alive and engaging in all of her scenes, her range oscillating between upper-class psychologist and prescription-addled madwoman.

All this said, I don't know who the audience for "Something Wicked" is, as it's not flashy enough to attract a mainstream horror audience, and it is not something that has enough draw for the general public either. It perhaps has a niche market of diehards and B-horror fans like myself, as well as those who are ardent fans of Murphy's and want to see her last hurrah. At its heart, "Something Wicked" is nothing more than a self-aware indie horror flick with a series of twists and turns that aren't particularly profound, but I'll be damned if they don't make for an enjoyable and entertaining ninety minutes. If Murphy's untimely death gave us anything, it was the chance for an earnest and underrepresented indie horror film such as this to see the light of day— no matter how small or large that may be. 7/10.

'SOMETHING WICKED': Two and a Half Stars (Out of Five)

This ultra-low budget horror flick will probably be most well known as being Brittany Murphy's last film. It was also shot entirely in Eugene, OR (in April of 2009 through June of that same year; just months before Murphy's death in December), and made on a budget of just $3 million! It's finally being released (five years later) and it wasn't worth the wait. I had no idea that Murphy's career had hit such a low; that she was resorting to doing supporting roles in really bad B slasher flicks (and she, like the rest of the cast, is pretty terrible in the movie). Like almost all fright flicks it does have it's pluses too though and the ending is killer (even if the rest of the movie is painful to watch).

Shantel VanSanten stars as Christine, a young college student who was just admitted to 'Oregon University' in Eugene (I'm assuming they mean University of Oregon). John Robinson costars as her fiancé James, who makes a living working at a local sawmill. As the film opens James asks Christine's parents (Betty Moyer and Lance Rosen) for their blessing to wed their daughter. They say the young couple must wait until Christine is done with school (which really upsets James and Christine). Then while James (being the designated driver) is driving them all home, from dinner, their car is struck by a train and Christine's mother and father are killed. The story then flashes forward multiple months when Christine is now attending school (as planned) and being stalked and terrorized by someone. Could it be another student, her obsessive police officer brother Bill (James Patrick Stuart) or Christine's parents back from the grave (making sure she follows their wishes). Murphy plays Bill's wife and Christine is now living with the couple as well.

The flick was directed by Darin Scott (who's directed a few other micro budget slasher films, like 'DARK HOUSE' and 'CAUGHT UP') and written by Joe Colleran and Joseph Mungra (the two also collaborated on the film 'THE American GANDHI'). It does seem like it was made by people with little to no experience (in making movies) and felt awfully amateurish (almost like a Syfy Network flick). I did really dig the ending though and although VanSanten sucks most of the movie she is memorable in the film's climax (and sexy throughout, especially the ending). I have to give the movie some credit since it was accomplished on such a low budget and filmed in my home state of Oregon (it also features a cameo by a friend of mine, Broderick Boyd, as a valet). It is a bad film but it's not horrible. Brittany Murphy was a much better actress than this though and she deserved a better swan song.

Watch our movie review show 'MOVIE TALK' at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RcnKD6oDiBo

This is a bad movie. It took years to get released and there is a reason for this. It is truly bad. The acting is terrible. Everyone in it is truly bad. It is filmed like a cable movie. Both the direction and cinematography are amateurish. Even the editing looks like something out of "The Room," which is the movie this most reminded me of. But where "The Room" became a midnight movie laugh fest, one which its creator now insists was intended to be a dark comedy, "Something Wicked" takes itself very seriously. Which makes it all the worse when you are laughing out loud at how bad it is. The only thing redeeming is the ending - and it is not worth the trouble of sitting through this piece of junk.

I must sadly warn my fellow horror/thriller fans to keep away from this release. If you are looking for a good and scary time filled with suspense you will be disappointed. It is actually impossible to even accept the basic setup for several reasons. While the cinematography is arguably one notch over a passable High School project, everything else pulls the movie down into an amateur ditch – it sinks even lower than many of the other unfortunate horror-releases of newer time. The direction is awful and the acting is really quite terrible. The script problems are obvious and nothing has been done to attempt to fix cringe-worthy plot holes. It really makes no sense. The movie is also full of hand-me-down elements from many previous horror movies, and it does a remarkably terrible job copying them. Something Wicked boils down to an unengaging experience due to the general poor quality, and it is not worth neither time nor money. It is particularly sad to see the last rolls of film of the late Brittany Murphy, which, without a doubt, was the only reason that this was ever released. Murphy looks tired, strung out – and it can be argued that it is in poor taste to publish this unfinished and confused nonsense in her wake. I think this movie is cursed. If this is the case it may be a good horror movie after all. But it is still a three... Stay clear of this release, friends!

Please, do not hate on this movie - it caps off Britt's amazing career, so show it some respect. She was a beautiful , if profoundly troubled, soul. RIP Britt, you are beautiful.