Stag

Things look pretty good for groom to be John Stockwell, where his mates hold him a surprise stag party. His guests are an assortment of characters, some oldies types, that have you questioning, how exactly are these guys related, without never really knowing much about 'em. They are soon wishing it was just a stag party instead of a shag party, when one of two hookers, the prettier, younger one, ends up taking a really bad fall, while being tossed around on a blanket, where she falls face flat on the floor, instantly dead. This is what happens when things get a little too crazy, where alcohol and drugs can really make you do stupid s..t. Too, prior to her death, she had politely asked them to stop, to no avail, and now our men have a situation, where this party has really died. The other hooker, rock singer, Taylor Dane, who in some close ups, horribly resembles a girl I went to acting class with, is kept hostage by this group, who we appallingly discover, with the exclusion of one, are all out to save their own skin. They don't give two hoots about the dead girl, including one promising actor, who doesn't want to throw his career down the toilet on account of a whore. They have plans for the surviving sister too. The rest of the film, impressively intense, at times, deals with the shared conflict between the men, and how they all must agree to do away with the other girl, only we have a greater conflict. Kevin Dillon is the only one not on board. One line of dialogue he uses to describe his friends, and this gutless act, I totally agree with, but really what would you do, if faced with this situation? Would you tell the truth, and risk jail? What if you had everything in front of you, and everything to lose? What if you were that promising actor? Stag, silently raises these questions, and what you would really do in this predicament, where these kind of (before and after) circumstances, could happen tomorrow. That's what I got from this movie, of being any of those guys. They were all in a inescapable dilemma, fate and karma paying one of em, with a heart attack. After all, only earlier was he bonking the deceased. Andrew Mccarthy plays sleaze great here, as a real piece of s..t drug dealer, in probably one of his best performances, the less caring of them all. It was great to see him get his just desserts. Not helping the situation or the men's paranoia, we have some little interruptions by a lonely and annoying old neighbor, guess you can't guess who? Stag eventuates with a realistic, if disillusioned ending, I totally bought, where sometimes, truth can pay off. Good on ya Kev. Stag is one of those better b movies, and when you got a jazzy Tom Jones's number to open it up, you know you're in for something good. A mainstream movie copy followed, Very Bad Things.

What I think is most interesting about the movie "Stag" is that it shares a plot and action line almost indentically with a very bad movie entitled "Very Bad Things". Even more of note is the fact that while "Stag" does not have the power of an well known ensemble, it more than makes up for it in sheer entertainment value. With the star power of Cameron Diaz and Christian Slater, it was expected that "Very Bad Things" would be a very funny movie. On the other hand I believe "Stag" is pleasantly surprising in the fact that it is actually quite funny in a dark twisted sort of way without blowing its budget on big name actors that were not able to pull off the comedic timing. Instead virtual no names (aside from Stiller) were utilized to produce a shadowly comic tale.

This film was great. If you've ever been to a bachelor party or heard stories about bachelor parties, this movie is for you. I'm a married woman and have heard scores of stag party anecdotes, both funny and lewd. This movie shows what can happen to perfectly normal, decent, middle to upper-middle class guys when things go terribly wrong and spiral out of control. As the movie progressed I just kept thinking: "I KNOW these guys, this could happen to people I KNOW." Basically, it shows how bad things happen to average, normal people and how we all have a dark side that can come out when pushed to the wall. Watch this movie, with an honest, open mind, and see if there's someone you know up on screen. By the way, is it just me or is the new movie Very Bad Things a rip-off of this one? I've only seen the trailers, but it looks like the same movie. We'll see...

I like both of these films! They're probably a 'genre', although I don't know any other "stag party disaster" films.

I have to say, I also saw a little bit of 'Shallow Grave', especially in 'Very Bad Things' where it was necessary to dissect and dispose of all those inconvenient bodies.

Hello 'Goodfellas'.

Certainly not for everyone...but you know who you are.

Take time to watch both. I don't think you'll be disappointed with either of them.

Kevin McCarthy and Christian Slater are the bad guys. Good choice and they do a good job.

Second rate story about a stag party that goes array when a woman is accidentally killed. Because of the status of some of the male party members, they need to cover their tracks and protect themselves. Poor material delivered by a mostly unsatisfying cast.