Suburban Gothic

Matthew Gray Gubler from the television crime series Criminal Minds gets to let loose in this comedy-horror movie. At the same time, Ray Wise from the classic Twin Peaks television series (1990) also gets to expand on his former character again as the father figure, this time as Gubler's character's dad. What sets this rather conventional movie apart from other comedy-horrors is the script which delightfully expands and enhances those stylistic characters of Gubler and Wise and transforms them into a comedic parody upon which both actors take to their roles with a feverish outpouring of electric sophisticated humor. At the same time, the script at a few points seems to cross the line of parody and seemingly endless excessive mimicry making the movie almost overly burdened with pretentious acting (possibly the fault of the movie's director). The movie also sharply turns pretty dark later in the movie straining the carefully crafted balance of the tone of the movie. Nevertheless, Suburban Gothic offers an entertaining spark to the comedy-horror genre, making it rise above the many mass of ordinary movie titles.

It's called Suburban Gothic for a reason. There may not seem to be a real goal or something this movie is heading towards (none the main character can see at least), but the ride we take with it, is so much fun, that you might not care. Ray Wise is exceptional as the bad father figure, setting the tone early on. But in a very funny way, so that you can't really be mad at him.

Humor is something that is hard to grasp or be sure about. Like obviously this is awkward and weird in a way, that will either entice the viewer or appall them. Kat Dennings seem to be shoe-in for the role she's playing, because we've seen her play similar characters before. Without knowing her you could be fooled into thinking that it's very close to who she really is. But no matter if that is true or not, this movie thrives on her and every other actor, who play their role exceptionally

Kat Dennings will probably always be an underrated actress until she gets the "it" role she needs. Until then she will do bad movies like this, but she has enough star power to get people to see it. All that aside, the main character is so irritating I wanted to punch him in the face every time he opened his mouth, except one scene.

"Ok, I'll look into his work. What's your favorite movie of his?" "Running out of Bullets" "I'll watch that one first."

Also, John Waters is Jesus Christ, so it's a must watch. But overall it was a pretty lame movie.

Matthew Gray Gubler is perfect in this. Ray Wise is at his best. Kat Dennings is underutilized, though. She has great comedic timing and presence and is not given enough of it to perform. The editing could have been tighter, giving it more flow. But I like that this movie is exactly what it wants to be and is unapologetic about it.

If you like quirky movies, this is for you. If you like your horror straight, best to skip this one.

It doesn't squarely fit comedy/horror or any other label, but it's fun (and a little dark) with some interesting characters and laugh-out-loud moments.

Matthew Gray Gubler is great as the man-child and Ray Wise is perfect as his father.

There are a few scenes sprinkled through the film that look oddly "cheap". Perhaps late pickups or second unit production. They're kinda distracting but don't ruin the film.