Cherry Falls - Il paese del male

This movie rocks. I loved every second of it. Very scary and funny, with some great performances and a clever script. The killer is a great addition to the scream psycho pantheon. Britany Murphy is very good in this, as is Jay More and Candy Clarke. The movie is well paced and never boring. There is gore for the hounds, sex for the horns, and some cool twists along the way. The story is much more interesting then typical slasher fare, and would have played well to a theatrical audience. They should have sent it out instead of dumping it on video.

I highly recommend this as the best in the post Scream neo slashers of the 1990's.

This movie is great, and quite underrated. I am a huge horror fan and also a fan of the recent "teen slasher movies" and Cherry Falls deserves to be up there with the Screams of this world. The whole "killing virgins" thing is totally original in this genre, as the great Randy Meeks said "sex equals death" so Cherry Falls goes totally against the rules. All in all I would give this a 9 rating because the acting is fresh and the script is sharp. Long live the Teen Slasher Flick!!!!!

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.

Maybe I should start by saying I'm not the biggest slasher fan around here. Sure I can appreciate the classics like Halloween and the original Friday the 13th but they were never top of my list. And the post-Scream era has blown it all. Since this movie, everybody thinks they can make a horror film. The only thing they need is a few good looking girls who can yell very loud and a stupid outfit to give to the killer. This is kinda also the big idea behind CHERRY FALLS but, compared to most others, there are several good aspects and twists in this one. The story for starters... The killer's targets are exclusively virgins. This of course give a lot of opportunities to insert all sorts of humor. (shy girls, computer geeks who never get laid, slutty girls) It's all pretty predictable but it works. For example, I laughed pretty loud when some character said about another : " She thinks Fellatio is a characters in a Shakespeare play" As most films in the genre, the film tries to be as violent as possible, I was one of the lucky ones who saw the uncut version. If you're planning to see it, try to get your hands on this version.

The story develops pretty well. The killer's background gets revealed bit by bit and it's scary enough to keep you interested. A few good twists too, I may say. Cherry Falls stars a few very decent actors. Michael Biehn ( always one of the most underrated actors in Hollywood, IMO ) is very convincing as the sheriff who discovers the truth behind the gore murders. His teenage ( virgin, of course ) daughter is played by Brittany Murphy. She gained fame and fortune lately by starring in that stupid Eminem film and a few others. She wasn't that famous yet when she did Cherry Falls, so I could enjoy her part. Her boyfriend ( named Kenny ) looks a lot like a young James Spader. So if they wanna do a remake of Secretary withing 15 years, they know who to cast... I also recognized a dumb looking DJ Qualls ( Road Trip, The New Guy, The Core) I think this guy is doomed to play the nerd for the rest of his life. Oh well... In general: Of the thousand stupid slashers who got released over the past 8 years, this certainly is one of the best. You'll forget about it pretty soon, but it'll sure give you 90 minutes of fun and violence.