"Unrated Version"
'Cursed' certainly isn't the worst horror movie ever made, but it isn't a very good one, either. I shouldn't say that it isn't good. Ignore that I said that. What I mean is that it just isn't special. More than anything else, 'Cursed' will inevitably become one of those forgotten horror movies, kind of like 'Shocker' or 'Witchboard'. You saw them, and even though you may have enjoyed them, the memory of the film did not linger for very long. This is the case with 'Cursed'. Surprisingly enough, at the director's helm we have Wes Craven, a script written by Kevin Williamson, makeup effects by Rick Baker, and a leading role played by Christina Ricci, who plays Ellie. Sounds like a recipe for greatness, huh? Not really. Craven's direction is fine, to say the least, and Christina Ricci, who I think is wonderful, seemed a little laid back. As for the makeup effects, well, it was a bit too animated if you know what I mean...what happened to those old school werewolf transformations from the seventies and eighties? Those were much better than the transformations in this film.
Warning:Minor plot details and details of one minor scene.
The movie opens on the first night of the full moon cycle, and while driving home, Ellie(Ricci), and her teenage brother Jimmy(Eisenburg), hit a large animal which then causes them to lose control and knock another car off the road. While Ellie and Jimmy try to help the passenger in the other car(Shannon Elizabeth), all three of them are attacked by what Jimmy believes is a werewolf. Now they're "cursed", hence the movie title. Ellie is unconvinced, but Jimmy does some research and discovers that several people have been murdered recently, and investigators believe that some wild animal is responsible. Now it is up to Ellie and Jimmy to find their attacker and slay him before they fully transform into beasts of the night. Basic formula, yeah, but with such a fine cast it could have been elevated above average. It wasn't. Ricci holds her own given the material, and Scott Baio even has a small role, and the movie also features Judy Greer(Wedding Planner, Adaptation, 13 Going On 30). She was okay, but I liked her better in her other films. There's also a small 'Urban Legend' reunion in Joshua Jackson and Michael Rosenbaum. Michael Rosenbaum wasn't very important, but Joshua Jackson gives a totally lethargic performance. He didn't get into it at all. I know the guy wasn't an award winner before, but I think he's lost some of his charm while being MIA over the last couple of years. Other than that the cast was good. Even Mya and Portia de Rossi have small roles. From what I've learned, most of these players weren't even going to be in the movie. See the "trivia" section. With those actors and actresses this film could have been much better. Woulda, coulda, shoulda...
Now onto the script. Kevin Williamson was the screenwriter of 'Scream 1 & 2' and 'I Know What You Did Last Summer', and he definitely pioneered the "teens avoiding horror movie clichés because they are in a horror movie" formula, and he did it well. With this script, however, I find it quite ironic that his writing falls right into those familiar clichés which he so cleverly avoided before. For example, after nearly being ripped to shreds by a werewolf inside an elevator, one character hears that all is quiet now and decides to leave her designated area of safety. What would the characters in 'Scream' say? There are other instances where he falls prey to similar clichés, but I'm not going to bash him for it. I still respect Williamson for his work, I thought 'Scream' was brilliant, but I just find it kind of funny that he couldn't avoid these clichés for very long.
In the long run, I would have to say that if you really feel like seeing 'Cursed' then go for it. It's not a total bomb, but if you're looking for something that's actually scary then I would recommend renting 'An American Werewolf In London'. I actually had a kiddie-fear of werewolves thanks to the opening scene in that movie. 'Cursed' failed to scare me even once, and given what I just said about my fear it should have been easy. No. This one was more concerned with playing "guess the killer's identity" and looking good on the outside rather than actually delivering something genuinely frightening. :)
4/10 is my vote. Bottom line, if you're looking for something scary then you probably won't like it, but if you're looking to be entertained for an hour and half then you shouldn't be disappointed.
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