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"Scream"'s Matthew Lilard is at his insane best in this variation on student life. Unlike another film which took a comic approach to the "dead roommate equals good grades", this film is deadly serious. Good performances aside, the script meanders and lacks true thrills, making it slow going at times. But hang in for the ending - as usual, the best part of the curve is the twist.

I really didn't expect much of Dead Man's Curve at first but I became immediately thrilled once I started watching it. The performances (especially Matthew Lillard) were great and I just dig it when a bad guy thrives as much as Lillard did in this movie. The bigger part of the film was pretty good and would have easily been rewarded with a 7 or maybe even a 7,5 but in the end it just didn't get away with it. In the end Dead Man's Curve just becomes one of those thrillers that wants to be too smart and too original / surprising, resulting in a very annoying and unbelievable ending. It would be rightful to say that by introducing twist after twist after twist the filmmaker succeeded in breaking the movie's neck. Since the ending for me was a big fat 3 out of 10 I find it very hard to make a recommendation regarding this film.

6 out of 10

Matthew Lillard always manages to be the shining light of a film. He was great in Scream, even better in She's All That,and somehow managed to go one better in Dead Man's Curve. It doesn't matter how bad the film is, you can always count on Matthew Lillard. He plays disturbed killer Tim who, with the help of his room mate Chris(michael vartan), plots to kill other room mate Rand(randall bakinkoff). The story gets even more intense however, when Chris' girlfriend finds out. Lillard gives a fantastic performance(as always). The rest of the cast though, trail behind. They're not terrible, but they're just not as watchable as Lillard who plays his psycho killer with acute accuracy. In my opinion, Lillard is one of Hollywood's best up and coming actors. He has a superb career ahead of him and this film is one huge stepping stone that will be remembered as his leap to success. Top film with a fun and twisted story that will keep you hypnotized throughout. Rating=5/5

Insane college student figures out a way to get his grades the easy way. Murder. Everything goes his way as he outwits the police, fools the university staff, and pins the rap on his dopey partner. However, all is not as it seems and some surprises are in store for the viewer. Interesting little thriller, with some black comedy thrown in the mix: makes a guy wonder if such a rule could exist in a university without causing just such an incident.

Pretty decent premise but poor execution in many ways. The benefit of ONE semester of A's is hardly enough to stake the whole story/elaborate plan on. Instead of telling a solid story, this movie gets caught up patting itself on the back, thinking it's just that clever. Clever is when a movie shows you everything but you still don't see whats right in your face. This movie shows you everything, as well as unnecessary filler that only exists to throw off the viewer. The use of flashbacks to explain things that can easily be figured out is insulting to viewers and really dumbs things down. It takes away from the movie.

I somehow missed this movie in the 90s, and just came across it. I would have loved it when I was young, as its in the same vein as Scream and Urban Legend-- though not a slasher. I was able to enjoy it but it was quite predictable.

Matthew Lillard was amazing. He always seems like such a genuine guy in interviews, and I can clearly see he showed up for this movie, and brought all of his energy to his performance.

As with many other late 90s movies, some parts aged horribly and were super uncomfortable.

I`m shocked to see all these people commenting on what a clever plot this movie has, with intelligent twists....have you people very short memory span ? There are countless of situations and dialogue in the movie prior to the last 5 minutes which completely rule out the logic behind the final twist. Maybe if they had made a 5 minute short...or if there were some sort of parallell univers theory..just kidding.

The movie is also a very bad mixture of several genres, thriller, horror, comedy, drama. It pokes fun of retards, canadians, stupid cops. Lilliards character is the most likeable in the whole movie, and thats hardly the directors intention. The generel good acting only makes the whole thing more provocative. They wanted to make a black comedy, but had no sense whatsoever.

Dead Man's Curve revolves around an urban legend that if your college roommate commits suicide, you get pass grades for the term to help ease your pain. Enter Chris {Michael Vartan} and Tim {Matthew Lillard} who decide to test this theory by offing their buddy Rand {Randall Batinkoff}. It's a deliciously evil premise that thankfully, in spite of the film's low reputation, makes for an enjoyable genre spliced viewing.

Directed and written by Dan Rosen, Dead Man's Curve has a clever plot at its core, our pair of rotters, tho Chris is a sheepish accomplice to the dominant Tim, set it up nicely by way of chatty concerns with the school psychologist and the shifty purchase of depressing music. Aided by some women troubles in the mix, the pair execute their plan, but all is not quite that simple as the plot unravels it twists and turns and delivers an ending that is as genius as it is unexpected. And that's in a good way as well.

The young cast, handsome and ebullient, do fine work here, particularly Lillard, who expands on his loony turn in Scream from two years earlier with much maniacal relish. The older actors, however, don't fair so well, courtesy of either being underwritten or merely for being plot fillers. But hey, if all lady psychologist's look like Dana Delaney then I'm going to sign myself up for a bit of therapy.

Naturally with a premise like this it's far from perfect and the implausibility factors are high, but Rosen has a wry observation on American dorm life. Be it the pressures of success or the need to be part of a group, Rosen and his on form cast have created a darkly comic piece of devilment. The soundtrack is excellent, and for sure it's laden with misery from the likes of The Smiths and Bauhaus, while the Elk Neck Lighthouse location work evokes memories of tidy creepers from days of yore.

A fine story told and executed well, give it a go and you may just be as pleasantly surprised as I was. 7/10

at first, the cinematography looks good, so at least it has that...but this movie slowly descends into the depths of Hollywood hell. it twists so many times you completely get lost, and by the end of the movie, you have no idea what just happened! i suppose if i subjected myself to watching it again, maybe i would pick up something i missed before. but to be perfectly honest, it was so bad, i don't think i CAN watch it again. this movie makes no sense to me. what's so bad is that i truly believe that i actually DO understand everything about it. its just so bad that i'm having trouble really BELIEVING that i'm really understanding. i just keep thinking "there has to be something more..." if there IS indeed something more to this film, its completely and hopelessly buried under the layers of crap that make this movie what it is. don't waste your time on this piece of crap. if you want to watch something that will twist and turn and challenge your brain...watch a David lynch film.

This movie started out showing a little promise with some clever in-jokes but any favorable response from me was dissipated as the unbelievable situations unfolded and I saw more of the thoroughly obnoxious and loathsome characters that populate the film. It's for people who like to see the bad guy win because ALL the characters here are bad.

I remember watching this quite a few years ago and enjoying it and decided to re-watch it again to see if I still did.

It's an interesting idea and one that is executed very well. The plot is easy to follow and the fast paced script keeps things moving along nicely. There is plenty of suspense as the student plot to get higher grades spins out of control. The acting is mainly just passable apart from the always excellent Matthew Lillard who always plays the slightly maniacal jerk role so brilliantly and and there is an early appearance for the gorgeous Keri Russell.

There is a great twist ending which along with Lillard's performance elevates this film above average for it's genre.

This is not a great film by any means but it is very entertaining and well worth watching if you're at a loose end.

It is not only the premise of this movie--that you get a 4.0 if your roommate commits suicide--that is stupid, it is the underlying and unquestioned correlation that a 4.0 GPA by itself will get you into Harvard Grad School: in business, law, drama (is there even a Harvard Drama School?), whatever. This is ridiculous. I have nothing against suspending disbelief if a story otherwise holds together, but the writing in this movie was really bad, the characters were uninteresting, and the direction was highly derivative and uninspired. This movie just doesn´t hold water.

One question, though. The credits say that it was shot at Towson University in Maryland, but I could SWEAR that the opening quad shots are at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, my alma mater. Does anyone have any info about this?

At first, I thought it was something like Heathers, which was completely unappealing. As the movie went on, I realized it was sure, in that Heathers fashion, but it has its own identity. The script was quite intelligent and the acting was superb, although Keri Russell was quite annoying. It was a wittingly fun movie which may start out slow, but becomes a bit gripping in the middle which totally leads you to the fun end. I'd give it 7/10.

As a horror fan, I can't say this movie ranks up there with the greats -- not by a long shot. But I found this to be a rather competent enough movie that is quintessential late 1990s horror in terms of its look and casting -- it has that slick and aware zeitgeist that permeated post-Scream movies.

I did not think the twists were overdone, it felt rather balanced and I was pleasantly surprised by how things ended. This is particularly true of the Dana Delaney character's response to everything -- no spoilers to what I mean, just that the ending was better than the movie overall (if that makes sense!).

It's definitely worth a watch, even if it's a one and done.

In another botched attempt to cash in on the teen age slasher revival that Scream started (which even with its two sequels hasn't been able to equal it self) this horrible film is a waste of time. Yes there is a twist at the end but ...big deal. It sucks. Please save your time and money doing more useful things. I wish I had. Or watch it just to appreciate its sheer suckiness.

I thought the title was referring to the fact that in college you are graded on the curve. Therefore if someone above you drops-off, it improves your grade.

When people are not sure what the title refers to, it is a bad sign...

I went in expecting nothing, and was very pleasantly surprised. Matthew Lillard's performance is quirky and very entertaining, but the single reason to see the film is for an early scene which can only be described as spoofing _The Deer Hunter_ with a popular college drinking game. This is a "thriller", but I was laughing for five minutes straight.

Ever heard about those movies that are totally misinterpreted or ignored? The Curve (aka Dead Man's Curve) is such one. It tells the story about some students how found out that once a roommate commit suicide that they are graduated, to survive the shock. I have no idea if these rules are actually existing but it's enough for some students to play the game anyway... What follows is a great movie in where the viewer is switched from one situation to an other (who is who, who is dead...) and they're all lead by the pervert performance from Matthew Lilard (Thirteen ghosts, Scream) who plays the role of his life. To give it a much more suicidal character, director Dan Rosen opts for suicidial music like Bauhaus and The Smiths. Also watch out for the moviegames the students are playing (the parody on the Russian roulette=scene in The Deer Hunter is superb). Totally ignored movie, what a shame....

The premise behind this movie is, how much is someone to compromise their morals in order to achieve academic gain? In the tradition of movies such as "The Perfect Score" and "Cheaters", but much, much darker, that question is answered...and then some. Matthew Lillard does an amazing job as a cunning, manipulative, and more than slightly psychotic college roommate willing to do anything to get ahead. The movie contains enough plot turns to make your head spin at times, but the acting is solid and the storyline was more than enough to keep me captivated throughout. Its an old question placed in a contemporary context, and it makes for a damn good horror film.

The "curve" in the title refers to a grading curve. At a college Chris (Michael Vartan) wants to get into Harvard--but isn't getting the grades. His roommate Tim (Matthew Lillard) wants the same but also doesn't have the grades. The they hear if you have a roommate who commits suicide you get an automatic 4.0 from the college. And they have a horribly obnoxious roommate (Randall Batinkoff)...

Not bad little thriller. It's well-made, moves quickly and has a good cast that were virtual unknowns when this was made. There are some problems--there was a plot twist an hour in that I just didn't buy and there were TOO many twists and turns at the end. Also Lillard and Batinkoffs' characters are SO cruel and unlikable that it's hard to give a damn about them...and also hard to believe that they are so popular around campus. And Dana Delaney is wasted as the school psychologist. Still it's easy to overlook these faults.

The acting is good--Lillard overacts (as always) but it fits the role; Batinkoff underacts nicely; Vartan is somber (but he's supposed to be) and Keri Russell (as Vartan's girlfriend) is very good. There's a nice soundtrack with some impressive visuals--I love the two candlelit vigils in this.

Some previous posters have complained about the ending being too confusing with too many loose ends. They're right--but this is just a nice quick little thriller--don't think about it TOO much. I give it a 7.

This is one of those self-satisfied movies where you're never really sure who's good and who's bad, but by the end you're quite sure you no longer care. The movie is clever at times and has some style, but it's so plot-twist happy, when the credits roll you have nothing to show for the emotional investments you've made and the sympathies you've built up for certain characters. It's like putting money in the bank, returning a week later, and finding out it's all gone. And that makes it, like the similarly constructed "Wild Things", a cheat. I don't mind being surprised, in fact, surprises are welcome, but I do mind getting blindsided by absurd twists that completely eradicate everything we thought we knew up to that point. (Unless it's done with an oblique faithfulness to character as in "The Sixth Sense".) Not to mention the fact that, evn though these are smart, high-achieving college kids, their machinations and manipulations are so needlessly labyrinthine and everything falls so perfectly in place for them - it's just laughably improbable.

Matthew Lillard from "Scream" has the juiciest part and, while he's not an uninteresting actor, he's always SO manic, SO over-the-top, you have to wonder about the guy. He might want to familiarize himself with the "Less Is More" theory of acting if he can find the time.