Lisa

This was a beautifully crafted suspense thriller about an overprotected 14-year-old girl named Lisa (played by Staci Keanan) who, in her innocent attempts to have some involvement with the opposite sex, becomes tied up in conversing by phone with a handsome guy, who unknown to her is the crazed serial killer responsible for several murders of young single women in the area where she and her single mom live.

Staci Keanan and Cheryl Ladd made a wonderful mother-daughter team. There are many suspenseful moments involving Lisa and the killer, yet the whole time she has no clue just how dangerous this handsome young man she stalks really is. It would make any teen think twice before trying to pick up a handsome stranger. I was thirteen when this film was first released in 1990. "Lisa" sure scared the hell out of me when I first saw it.

"Lisa" takes me back when I was about 11 or 12 years old. Sometimes bad movies can be good if you grew up watching them. I watch this movie now and I say: "Ok it was kind of stupid, but I still like it". I don't know, I guess I am hooked on the whole fact of Lisa being this stupid kid doing the exact opposite of what I would have done. I get a kick out of watching movies; especially if it is dealing with other people's problems,it makes me feel better if I am having a bad day. Still the movie has it's suspense, and charm, and its about a 14 year old girl making really stupid mistakes, and of course paying for them! Haven't we all! I still love this movie and I'm still going to buy it!

This film begins with a young teenager by the name of "Lisa Holland" (Staci Keanan) who enjoys playing flirtatious pranks on slightly older men. As it so happens, one night while returning from a nearby grocery store, she happens to bump into a man by the name of "Richard" (D. W. Moffett) and she immediately becomes mesmerized by his good looks. Determined to know more about him she secretly follows him and upon learning his name decides to tease him in her usual manner. What she doesn't realize, however, is Richard is a psychopath who the newspapers have dubbed "The Candlelight Killer" who has recently raped and killed 8 other women-and he now wants to find out more about Lisa in the worst sort of way. Now, rather than reveal any more, this film had a bit more suspense than I initially expected and for that reason it left me pleasantly surprised overall. Likewise, having a beautiful actress like Cheryl Ladd (as Lisa's mother "Katherine Holland") certainly didn't hurt in any way either. Be that as it may, while this film may not be a blockbuster by any means, it was certainly good enough for the time spent and I have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.

Chilling, well-observed thriller, whose message seems to be: "Careful when you're making telephone pranks, you never know whom you might mess with!". The bland cinematography gives it a TV-movie look, but it still has natural , believable performances by Ladd and Keanan, a well-cast actor as the handsome psycho, a good ear for dialogue and some moments that would make Hitchcock proud (especially the scene where the girl is trapped in the back seat of the killer's car). (***)

I remember watching this when I was a kid and my own growing pains were starting to act up.

This film is about 14 yr old Lisa. She lives with her single, over protective mother and is in a hurry to grow up. She's like most teenage girls. Boy crazy, eager to date and loves her best friend, Wendy, who seems to have all the freedom Lisa so desperately wants.

After accidently running into an older, but attractive man, she gets his phone number by way of his license plate and begins making flirtatious phone calls. Little does she realize the dashing man is a crazed rapist killer who has earned the title of "The Candlelight Killer" due to the romantic candle lit atmosphere he sets up for his victims just before killing them. Her playfulness creates an obsession within the killer and soon the prankster becomes prey.

I think this is a pretty solid, yet understated, thriller. While it holds some nostalgia for me, it has a decent storyline and the lead actress does a wonderful job with her character. It's also filmed well aside from a slight "made for tv" vibe.

This is a great film for a bit of suspense and remebering the innocent naivety of youth. I'd recommend it but it's not likely to be a film for everyone. I was just tickled to come across it after all these years.