Cry
Wolf is a silly little exercise in low budget terror that does manage a few effective
moments despite truly cheese ball acting and some of the most ridiculous dialogue
ever. It should also be noted that this is yet another thriller that has succumbed
to the PG-13 rating. Not that I hate all PG-13 horror films. Far from it.
As
Cry Wolf opens, we are witness to a malicious crime that takes the life of a young
woman in the woods. Following this incident, a group of high school students –
who pass the time playing a game called Cry Wolf – decide to include the
entire, unsuspecting campus in their extra curricular activity. They do so by
spreading rumors about the killer of the young woman online, thereby scaring the
hell out of their classmates. The problem is, the gag backfires as soon someone
who may or may not be the real killer or just one of the gang pushing the game
a little further, begins sending out E-mails of their own - as the Wolf. In either
case "The Wolf"– comes calling again and the bloodshed begins anew
- in the same fashion as the murders have been defined in the online rumors.
Cry
Wolf is never as smart as it thinks it is, but at least it attempts something
a little more intricate than we’re used to seeing in the genre. It’s
sort of a low rent version of The Game with a smidgen of Scream, Usual Suspects,
and the little seen 80's cult gem April Fool’s Day thrown in for good measure.
The
characters aren’t particularly well drawn. As was the case with last year’s
jigsaw thriller Saw, Cry Wolf is more interested in using characters as a means
to continuously throw the audience off rather than allowing us to view these individuals
as real people. Lindy Booth (Dawn of the Dead) does manage to have a few shining
moments as a poor student posing as a rich one. She’s overly melodramatic
to be sure, but she’s cute and watching her flirt her way through various
situations was a hoot. The rest of the cast is made up of virtual unknowns with
the exception of rocker Jon Bon Jovi who appears as a beloved high school teacher
(yeah, right) and the usually dependable Gary Cole (Office Space), sorely misused
as one of the students’ fathers.
Director
Jeff Waldow keeps things moving along at a quick pace, but I must admit, I spent
most of the time laughing and making kick ass Bon Jovi jokes. I just couldn’t
help myself. When one character in the picture is shot in the chest how could
I not resist blurting out; "Shot through the heart, and you're to blame,
you know blood leaves a bad stain." Cry Wolf leaves itself wide open for
such business - and there were plenty of them - some I believe intentional. Thankfully,
the film "does" rebound a little bit in the final act when the true
nature of the whodunit aspect of the movie is revealed. It isn’t anything
particularly fresh, but the downbeat ending is somewhat entertaining.
Cry
Wolf isn’t the bottom of the horror barrel (cough...The Cave...cough) but
it isn’t particularly memorable either. If you feel compelled to see a flick
of the thriller variety, I would recommend Skeleton Key, The Exorcism of Emily
Rose or Red Eye. All things considered though, this wasn’t a complete waste
of time. Particularly if you’re a Bon Jovi fan.
