Cherry Falls

This film is about a town plagued by a serial killer who kills teenage virgins.

I know it's a horror film, but I can't stop myself from being amused by the ridiculous plot that the serial killer killing virgins. How is the killer supposed to know who is a virgin and who is not? Anyway, this killing spree gives the high school student the perfect excuse to have sex with each other, which I also find darkly humorous. There is an attempt to put some emotional drama involving the main family, but it does not quite work. The film does not provide much tension or scare, but it does keep my interest because I want to know how it will end. I think "Cherry Falls" is the kind of horror film that people enjoy because it is actually more funny than scary.

I have been waiting for quite a while for this movie to be released in Canada, and after skipping a theatrical release, it finally lands on video today. Since I work for a video chain, I was able to get my hands on it early and I am so glad. I watched it twice. Having read other people's reviews, I can see their point-of-view. Due to reviews I had read, I too knew who the killer was before I even popped the tape into my VCR, but if I had not known anything about the movie, I probably wouldn't have figured it out that quick.

Of all the reviews here, not one person mentions Gabriel Mann. Who is he? He plays Kenny Ascott (the boyfriend) in Cherry Falls, and within the year he will probably be a household name. Having previously appeared in films such as I Shot Andy Warhol, High Art, Great Expectations and Outside Providence, he will be featured in Summer Catch, Josie and the Pussycats and Buffalo Soldiers in this year alone. His charm and acting ability are the qualities that put this movie over the top into something I would actually buy and watch over and over again. If you haven't seen any of his movies, I urge you to check them out because he just rocks!

I am still curious to see the DVD for this movie however, because from some of the reviews I read, I thought this movie was going to be a lot more graphic (in both sex and horror) than it actually was. Running at a mere 92 minutes, I am led to believe that there is more to this movie (hmmm maybe we'll get to see more Gabriel??). In any event, I am counting the days until it is released on DVD.

In the small town of Cherry Falls a masked murderer is killing off the virgins of the local high school.

The cast was decent if not quite A-list: Jay Mohr as a teacher, a post-Clueless Brittany Murphy as the female lead (and sheriff's daughter), and genre favorite Michael Biehn.

AllMovie gave it a favorable review, writing, "Of all the teen slasher flicks that premiered after the wildly successful Scream series (Urban Legend, etc.), Cherry Falls will possibly go down as one of the most creative, but sadly unseen ones in the bunch."

Although reviews were generally mixed or negative, Entertainment Weekly gave a shockingly positive one (grading the film as A-). They have labeled the picture "the wittiest, most subversive teen thriller since 'Heathers'." While I am not a fan of "Heathers", this is still high praise.

I probably would have expected more from "Romper Stomper" director Geoffrey Wright, but I guess it is a different territory. The concept was good, and they more or less succeeded in carrying a one-joke film all the way through...

The success of the `Scream' series spawned many clones, this being a reasonable attempt. The makers of such scream clones were obviously faced with a dilemma, how not to stray too far from a winning formula – yet be original at the same time – therefore in this one they give the story a little twist. Here, the preposterous twist is that the killer only kills virgins! – sending the youths in the local village sex mad - in order to save their life, obviously!!.

As bad as it sounds, its not all bad, especially when the absolutely delicious Brittany Murphy is the lead role as the daughter of the local sheriff (Michael Biehn) who is investigating these grisly murders – and guess what, she's a virgin!!. The final twist is pretty good, although if you really think about, the killers motive for hating all virgins isn't really that convincing, Fun though if you take it for what it is, enjoyable rubbish!!

Great fun both to see Brittany Murphy and to see this flick. It's like a comedy visual with a drama soundtrack. A serial slasher targets teen virgins in small town high school USA. In an attempt to thwart the killer all the kiddies have a deflowering fete which, I gotta say affords some of THE BEST stampede scenes.