Crush

This was better than I had expected. You start out thinking you know exactly what's gonna happen - girl crushes on boy, boy's girlfriend gets hurt, boy gets hurt, etc.... But.....

The promising high school soccer player Scott (Lucas Till) is injured on the knee in a game and two years after, he is still trying to heel his knee. The teenager Jules (Sarah Bolger) feels unrequited love for him but Scott is concentrated in recovering his physical condition and considers her as a friend. The also teenager Bess (Crystal Reed) that works in the store owned by David (Leigh Whannell) with her mature colleague Andie (Caitriona Balfe) has a crush on Scott. When Scott is stalked by a mysterious person that threatens Jules, he believes that Bess is responsible for the weird situations. Is his assumption correct?

"Crush" is a thriller with a washed up storyline revisited: "Fatal Attraction", "Misery", "May" are example of plots where an obsessed woman stalks a man. However, "Crush" entertains and the plot point with the identity of the stalker really surprises. Another attraction is Sarah Bolger, the lovely eleven year-old girl from Jim Sheridan's "In America" (2002) that has grown-up and become a very beautiful young woman. Caitriona Balfe and Crystal Reed are also very beautiful and promising actresses. Fortunately I did not paid attention to the DVD Cover that spoils the twist, showing the killer's identity. The song that plays in the credits is very nice. In soccer games, it is not allowed by FIFA to display the running time but Scott is playing in an American high school where is might be possible. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Paixão Mortal" ("Deadly Passion")

I was suspicious at first, but it was quite good actually.

The acting of Bess was excellent!

I have to admit, the movie did surprise me more than I thought it would. And it's not only in the title and what it means to one (or more) of the character(s) in the movie. It's also the story and the character arcs themselves. There are things that are obvious and then there are things that aren't.

It's for the viewer to decide, what is obvious and if it actually is that obvious and what that would mean. Sounds complicated? It isn't and the movie actually does more than a decent job telling a story, even if let's say you know where this is going (for whatever reason). There might even be room for a repeat viewing. If you don't expect much ... you'll get a lot

When I first came to check this film out I did it quickly, skimmed over the names etc. and then just hit play. It wasn't till afterward that I did further investigation that I realized that the director for this film was Malik Bader, the crafty actor/director behind the making of one of the most clever & original films I've seen Street Thief(2006). Crush is, in terms of genre & plot, a completely different animal and Bader handled it masterfully. If you're thinking Crush is the average teen obsession film your wrong.

The new girl in town Bess(Crystal Reed) develops an unhealthy fixation on popular star athlete Scott(Lucas Till). Only Scott's attention is towards his long time friend Jules(Sarah Bolger). As Bess becomes more & more drawn to Scott terribly things begin to happen around him. If you're thinking of this as familiar & predictable I can guarantee you will be dead wrong on that assumption. This film will pull the rug from beneath you with a turn of events you will not see coming. Everything here seems to be in order, the story, acting, soundtrack and camera-work. I was indeed glad I had made the choice to check this out, with no reviews & little votes it was a nice surprise. Recommend it highly -^-8/10-^-