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Movie Review - Cry_Wolf (2005)
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(What this rating means)
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| Director: |
Jeff Wadlow |
| Starring: |
Julian Morris, Lindy Booth, Jared Padalecki, and Jon Bon Jovi |
| Rated: |
PG-13 (for violence, terror, disturbing images, language, sexuality and a brief drug reference) |
| Length: |
90 minutes |
| Genre: |
Mystery/Thriller |
| Tagline: |
Believe |
| Studio: |
Rogue Pictures |
| Website: |
Cry_Wolf |
| Release: |
September 16, 2005 |
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PLOT
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The kids at Westlake Prep Academy are starting to get a little bored. Our main group of supposed teenagers
likes to play a game at the old chapel called "Wolf." One person is secretly chosen as "The Wolf," and this
person's goal is to keep from being found out. The object of the game is to avoid suspicion, manipulate your
friends, and eliminate your enemies.
The students decide to spice up their little game by playing Wolf with the whole school. When a young woman
is found murdered in the woods near campus, the kids send an email to the entire student body claiming that a
serial killer called "The Wolf" is just getting started. They describe his outfit, his weapon of choice, his next
victims - in essence, they create a killer. However, the game loses its charm when the victims start dying in
the order described. Did the actual killer receive the email and decide to make the game real, or did one of
the students decide to take things a step too far (an understatement, to be sure)? A surprisingly satisfying
low-budget whodunit ensues.
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JOHNNY'S TAKE
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Avoid suspicion. Manipulate your friends. Eliminate your enemies. That's the name of the game that these
fictional students play on campus, and on a bigger level it's the name of the game they're playing with the
audience. Well, except for the "eliminate your enemies" bit. Though there were some annoying chatters that
I wish could have been eliminated from the theater.
Working with a minimal budget and a no-name cast (except for Bon Jovi and Gary Cole), director Jeff Wadlow
has shown us, just like last year's Saw did, that when your ambition is bigger than
your pocketbook then you can still create an extremely entertaining film. This isn't quite as frantic and
intense as Saw, but I have no problem admitting that it sucked me in and
forced me to thoroughly enjoy it.
Get ready to bait your pole for a little red herring fishing because this movie's teeming with 'em. If you don't
mind being manipulated as you try to guess who the killer is then you should have a fun time. I thought I had
it figured out several times, and within the last 10 minutes I finally did guess what was going on ... somewhat.
There was another small twist at the end that kind of caught me off guard. The movie is constructed slickly
enough to convince you that you've got the mystery solved, but the twists are just subtle enough to throw you off
the trail and reveal that you're not as smart as you think you are.
I get tired of people complaining about PG-13 horror movies. "I want lots of cussing! I want lots of gore! I want
nudity!" Really? Well, I want a decent story that I can sink my teeth into and follow with interest. I want an element
of surprise. I want dialogue that doesn't rely on ye olde "f" bomb as an uncreative crutch. I don't want to be
seething with anger over a stupid plot twist that makes no sense in retrospect to the rest of the movie.
Cry_Wolf succeeds on each of these points, and if you keep in mind the limitations that come with such a
small budget and remind yourself that there are no Oscar winners in this cast, then you should get your money's
worth. If you're looking for a gore-soaked bloodbath with topless women running all over the place then you're
probably just going to troll the message boards and complain about how horrible this movie is, so just save us all
your whining and go watch a Chucky movie instead.
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ODDS & ENDS
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- Estimated budget: $1 million.
- I overheard someone at the screening try to be cute by saying, "People are going to think
this is a sequel to Dances With Wolves." No one laughed at this guy's misguided attempt
at humor.
- Johnny wants to send a big thank you to Tracy S. and April S. for arranging to have me screen
this in Houston.
- The screening in Memphis was cancelled, making it even more convenient that I was in Houston
at this time.
- I have a spoiler-filled theory relating to Jon Bon Jovi's role. Email me if you'd like to hear
it.
- Gary Cole was in Dodgeball with Ben Stiller who was in Flirting With Disaster with
Josh Brolin who was in Hollow Man with Kevin Bacon.
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MAMA'S APPROVAL
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Bravo to Mr. Wadlow for making a movie with horror elements that doesn't saturate itself with
profanity. There's usage of the middle finger, but profanity is nothing that can't be found on
network TV. There is no nudity, but there are some brief discussions of a sexual nature, as well
as one scene with a girl in skimpy pajamas. However, there are enough scary and tense moments to
make this one unsuitable for the youngsters.
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TRAILER COMPARISON
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The trailer is a little misleading. I was expecting a slasher/horror movie, but that's not
what this is. That's fine with me because I prefer a good mystery to a gory slasher, but
moviegoers looking for lots of blood won't get it.
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THE GIST
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Cry_Wolf is not a slasher movie that is focused on how many deaths the killer can pile up. It's
more of a mystery that is concerned with keeping the audience guessing for 90 minutes. I would've liked
a little more tension and a few more scares, but I tip my hat to director Wadlow for a fine effort on such
a small budget.
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