Thursday 21 February 2008

All The Boys Love Mandy Lane Review

Ah bless, its my first horror film review and I made it out unscathed. No fainting, no vomiting, no crying like a girl. But hey this isn't a website dedicated to my masculinity or lack of it, (that can be found at www.owenwearsaonesie.com) this is a film review website. You want to know what the story is and whether or not its worth your hour and a half.

Well the story is a simple slasher pic. Young, nubile teens drink, take drugs and get up to rather a large amount of sexual shennanigans then get offed. The heroine is the titular Mandy Lane who wasn't always loved by all the boys but as one stereotypical jock anounces at the start of the film "Hey Mandy, you got hot over the summer!" Now that she is 'hot' she is invited to a weekend away with a select group of teens, and well, you know the rest.

While there is nothing amazingly novel about Mandy, except perhaps the fact the killer is flagged from the first stages, it does tick off some boxes usually left unmarked. The characters are fucked up, of course, but their insecurities are played well. Some are even likeable so therefore not the usual knife fodder.

First time director Johnathan Levine handles the suspense to a reasonable level. Although at times some shots do feel like they are screaming for our attention more than the dying teens. The cast all do their bit too, but if any of them breakthrough it won't be on the strength of this alone. And so the second question, Is it worth your hour and a half? You could do worse but you won't love it as much as the boys seem to love Mandy.

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