Something Wicked (2014)

Good movie but grossly overrated

Wow! What a bizarre film! Unfortunately the few funny moments there were were quite overshadowed by it's completely weird and random vibe throughout.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

Do you sometimes get thew feeling after a few scenes this is going to be a letdown of a movie?Well this one is. The plot is predictable, the acting is so bad you can almost smell through the screen how rotten it is at moments, story not at all logical and connected. Like the movie was rushed for some reason.You get quite many moments when you ask yourself "What????" and not in a good way. Nothing seems to fit although you know what will happen watching the first 30 minutes.Not a tribute to Murphy... The rest of her movies were pretty watchable... well just not the way to go. Wish it did not make the movie theaters, honestly.

I must sadly warn my fellow horror/thriller fans to keep away from this release. If you are looking for a good and scary time filled with suspense you will be disappointed. It is actually impossible to even accept the basic setup for several reasons. While the cinematography is arguably one notch over a passable High School project, everything else pulls the movie down into an amateur ditch – it sinks even lower than many of the other unfortunate horror-releases of newer time. The direction is awful and the acting is really quite terrible. The script problems are obvious and nothing has been done to attempt to fix cringe-worthy plot holes. It really makes no sense. The movie is also full of hand-me-down elements from many previous horror movies, and it does a remarkably terrible job copying them. Something Wicked boils down to an unengaging experience due to the general poor quality, and it is not worth neither time nor money. It is particularly sad to see the last rolls of film of the late Brittany Murphy, which, without a doubt, was the only reason that this was ever released. Murphy looks tired, strung out – and it can be argued that it is in poor taste to publish this unfinished and confused nonsense in her wake. I think this movie is cursed. If this is the case it may be a good horror movie after all. But it is still a three... Stay clear of this release, friends!

This is a solid fun hour and a half at the movies. I would compare it to THE PURGE in that neither film was Oscar-worthy but they were both entertaining enough that I stopped stressing about life and just watched some dumb fun unfold on the screen. Will I think about this movie next year and ponder life's mysteries? No. But sometimes you want to shut your mind off when you watch movies. I am sure that explains how TRANSFORMERS makes a bajillion dollars.I initially saw this because of Brittany Murphy but I really liked the lead actress Shantel Van Saten even more and have become a fan. I even watched a boring cop show on Fox because of her. She's very good, and gorgeous, but her looks are deceiving. The male lead who plays her fiancé is whiny but the character is supposed to be. He was my least favorite. I remember him ruining every scene he was in in LORDS OF DOGTOWN and he does it again. Most of his scenes are with Shantel and she makes up for them. Brittany has a pretty good role as Shantel's sister and her character is kind, nurturing and sweet. It will make you miss her even more. RIP, brittany. The movie starts out a little slow slow start but be patient. The climax is excellent and has great twists. You will seriously gasp at the end LOL.

'SOMETHING WICKED': Two and a Half Stars (Out of Five)This ultra-low budget horror flick will probably be most well known as being Brittany Murphy's last film. It was also shot entirely in Eugene, OR (in April of 2009 through June of that same year; just months before Murphy's death in December), and made on a budget of just $3 million! It's finally being released (five years later) and it wasn't worth the wait. I had no idea that Murphy's career had hit such a low; that she was resorting to doing supporting roles in really bad B slasher flicks (and she, like the rest of the cast, is pretty terrible in the movie). Like almost all fright flicks it does have it's pluses too though and the ending is killer (even if the rest of the movie is painful to watch).Shantel VanSanten stars as Christine, a young college student who was just admitted to 'Oregon University' in Eugene (I'm assuming they mean University of Oregon). John Robinson costars as her fiancé James, who makes a living working at a local sawmill. As the film opens James asks Christine's parents (Betty Moyer and Lance Rosen) for their blessing to wed their daughter. They say the young couple must wait until Christine is done with school (which really upsets James and Christine). Then while James (being the designated driver) is driving them all home, from dinner, their car is struck by a train and Christine's mother and father are killed. The story then flashes forward multiple months when Christine is now attending school (as planned) and being stalked and terrorized by someone. Could it be another student, her obsessive police officer brother Bill (James Patrick Stuart) or Christine's parents back from the grave (making sure she follows their wishes). Murphy plays Bill's wife and Christine is now living with the couple as well.The flick was directed by Darin Scott (who's directed a few other micro budget slasher films, like 'DARK HOUSE' and 'CAUGHT UP') and written by Joe Colleran and Joseph Mungra (the two also collaborated on the film 'THE American GANDHI'). It does seem like it was made by people with little to no experience (in making movies) and felt awfully amateurish (almost like a Syfy Network flick). I did really dig the ending though and although VanSanten sucks most of the movie she is memorable in the film's climax (and sexy throughout, especially the ending). I have to give the movie some credit since it was accomplished on such a low budget and filmed in my home state of Oregon (it also features a cameo by a friend of mine, Broderick Boyd, as a valet). It is a bad film but it's not horrible. Brittany Murphy was a much better actress than this though and she deserved a better swan song.Watch our movie review show 'MOVIE TALK' at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RcnKD6oDiBo