I thought this was another movie when I was preparing to watch it, so I was going to skip it. But in the beginning sequence I saw some names (not Kip Pardue, because I already knew he was in it); Rachael Leigh Cook (one of the most beautiful women on earth) and Cary Elwes. The director (Dan Mitz)
Didn't know him, neither the writers (Jack Moore, Jeff Ritchie). Anyway, I got into it.
What I found out as I watched it is that is one of those, I don't know if independent or low-budget projects that try to bring some different and original stuff to the table. In that sense, the film reminded me to "My little eye". In a way, "American Crime" is not as good "My little eye", but it's not my intention to compare them or anything. As it happens with these projects, they're not always perfect. The film is flawed, and suffers from script problems, music, cinematography and direction.
Writers propose an interesting enough premise to keep one focused for the entire ride, but before you realize, they're not giving any background to the actions of their characters, not even to the killer. It's OK, it's not an obligation to do that, but in this picture you start getting lost in the plot, because you just stop knowing who's who, what's what, why is everything happening in the first place. Big problems right there that remain unnoticed because of the outstanding screen presence given by the cast. I imagine these situations played by a lousy cast of actors I would have been awful.
I must say, first, that Kip Pardue (Rob Latrobe) it's a good actor. If I didn't find him good enough in "Driven", it was for the character he was playing; it was a very clichéd and easy character. But I saw him in other movies, and the kid can do it. Rachael Leigh Cook (Jesse St. Claire) lies between the best young actresses of her generation. Totally underestimated by the industry, she has stepped the lines of independent projects, giving always proofs of the unnoticed talent she is. In other cases, she has taken regular films to the top because of her performances ("Josie and the Pussycats", "Texas Rangers" "Tangled"). This performance is just one more proof. Anabella Sciorra (Jane Berger) is the weakest element of the cast, but that doesn't mean she's bad. Her character hasn't got the depth the others have, and she seems unimportant most of the time. And Cary Elwes (Albert Bodine) as a British investigator with personality problems He's in top form, with an excellent accent and faces you'll remember.
Going back to flaws, Dan Mitz makes mistakes in his own direction and cinematography. This is fault of the script, and it all combines to a major flaw. What can we follow when we're first watching a TV show (American Crime) hosted by one guy, that tells events occurred in real life, supposedly with footage taken from cameras, with personal interviews and people names But what we see is filmed like a common movie, no cameras, and seems real, not to be shown by the TV show. The crimes in the show are about a guy that follows young women, taping them, and then kills them. Well, the characters get involved and are eventually being chased And what about the show that was telling everything? At the end, when we have forgotten about the show, another guy talks as if the show was ending. Come on! We also get the actors presented in TV way at the end; looking at the camera.
Then we have an easy music, not very trapping. There are these loud sounds with string sounds, but this is not scary anymore, because we can't know what will scare us. There's the obligated "cornfield chase" scene, decently edited by Todd Miller, who had proved his skills in "Joy Ride".
As a consolation price, we can only think the characters knew they were being filmed, and that they were in one of those arranged shows, that pretend to be real, but actually never are; and everybody knows what happens.
What I found out as I watched it is that is one of those, I don't know if independent or low-budget projects that try to bring some different and original stuff to the table. In that sense, the film reminded me to "My little eye". In a way, "American Crime" is not as good "My little eye", but it's not my intention to compare them or anything. As it happens with these projects, they're not always perfect. The film is flawed, and suffers from script problems, music, cinematography and direction.
Writers propose an interesting enough premise to keep one focused for the entire ride, but before you realize, they're not giving any background to the actions of their characters, not even to the killer. It's OK, it's not an obligation to do that, but in this picture you start getting lost in the plot, because you just stop knowing who's who, what's what, why is everything happening in the first place. Big problems right there that remain unnoticed because of the outstanding screen presence given by the cast. I imagine these situations played by a lousy cast of actors I would have been awful.
I must say, first, that Kip Pardue (Rob Latrobe) it's a good actor. If I didn't find him good enough in "Driven", it was for the character he was playing; it was a very clichéd and easy character. But I saw him in other movies, and the kid can do it. Rachael Leigh Cook (Jesse St. Claire) lies between the best young actresses of her generation. Totally underestimated by the industry, she has stepped the lines of independent projects, giving always proofs of the unnoticed talent she is. In other cases, she has taken regular films to the top because of her performances ("Josie and the Pussycats", "Texas Rangers" "Tangled"). This performance is just one more proof. Anabella Sciorra (Jane Berger) is the weakest element of the cast, but that doesn't mean she's bad. Her character hasn't got the depth the others have, and she seems unimportant most of the time. And Cary Elwes (Albert Bodine) as a British investigator with personality problems He's in top form, with an excellent accent and faces you'll remember.
Going back to flaws, Dan Mitz makes mistakes in his own direction and cinematography. This is fault of the script, and it all combines to a major flaw. What can we follow when we're first watching a TV show (American Crime) hosted by one guy, that tells events occurred in real life, supposedly with footage taken from cameras, with personal interviews and people names But what we see is filmed like a common movie, no cameras, and seems real, not to be shown by the TV show. The crimes in the show are about a guy that follows young women, taping them, and then kills them. Well, the characters get involved and are eventually being chased And what about the show that was telling everything? At the end, when we have forgotten about the show, another guy talks as if the show was ending. Come on! We also get the actors presented in TV way at the end; looking at the camera.
Then we have an easy music, not very trapping. There are these loud sounds with string sounds, but this is not scary anymore, because we can't know what will scare us. There's the obligated "cornfield chase" scene, decently edited by Todd Miller, who had proved his skills in "Joy Ride".
As a consolation price, we can only think the characters knew they were being filmed, and that they were in one of those arranged shows, that pretend to be real, but actually never are; and everybody knows what happens.