Jun 12, 2001 11:32 AM
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The Univ. students of Film making are in the process of making a suspense and horror film, hoping to win the prestigious Hitchcock Award. Jennifer Morrison plays Amy Mayfield who works with a team of students who are helping her out in her thesis film; she has decided to make a film on Urban Legends based on a serial killer. And then things go really wild, scary and out of control. The film begins with the news of the death of Travis (Matt Davis), Amy's talented, handsome friend, much to the shock and horror of the students. Then Amy finds that her team mates start disappearing one by one...Worse, they turn up dead ! Then the nightmare of blood, gore and violence is unleashed..the killings are brutal, hard and senselessly merciless.
Is it the Special Effect boys in disguise or is there an insane masked killer stalking the Campus ? There are jumpy, scary scenes like the one where Sandra (played by Jessica) suddenly takes a leap from atop and lands with a thud, with sticky blood bathing her face and head. We realise she was just showing off her histrionics only when she rises, pealing off the red gore from her face. Later she is attacked and cornered by the masked maniac who wants to capture the gory details of the attack on film. Worse, the entire chilling drama is being viewed by Amy and her friends on screen, all the while whistling and applauding her ''true to life'' acting without realising that it is a gruesome murder going on right there and then, live!!!
The film is full of repulsive shots like the one where a dog is seen hanging in the bathroom with his side slit and carved...Broken and battered heads and limbs, shattered glass. Dirty jokes, use of profanities are in plenty...When Amy asks her friend if she would like to give a lift to this womanising fellow student with a huge professional camera, he answers ''she has already done it''
The sets are scary: dark meandering staircases, long dark tunnels of terror, dark, stony structures, trap gates, moving statues inside transparant plastics....a huge nude form of a woman, suggestively arched, with life like bust and panties suddenly falling on a table!
The film goes on to show how Amy, together with Travis's twin brother Trevor (double role here) take it upon themselves to unravel the mystery of the masked maniac, taking the viewer through several panic situations. The scene where Amy makes love to Trevor and suddenly he drives in a jagged edge knife into her back is chilling (Basic Instinct style)
The punky lady Security warden plays an inquisitive role making those wierd faces all the time. Another important role is that of the Head of the Film Department, Prof. Solomon (played by Hart Bochner). Suffice it to say that its a marvellously knit film within a film, within a film, where one does'nt know where to separate the real from the unreal.
There is plenty of action, suspense, gore,sex....everything that sells.