Vilaine

Though this thriller (about a teenage girl who develops a dangerous crush on her father when her mom dies) has the feel of a cable movie, with few characters and most of the scenes shot in a couple of locations, it was well-acted and had a plot that kept my interest. The characters develop quite effectively and you're never quite sure whodunnit and why, until the end. Worth renting.

1st watched 12/28/02 - 5 out of 10(Dir-Michael Steinberg): Ridiculously unsupported ending blows what for the most part was a very stylish, well acted, well-done horror/thriller movie. Julia Stiles does a superb job with her role of a tortured child with violent tendencies and the direction is sly and cunning, but for some reason the filmmakers decided to throw a curve in the last half hour that works for some movies but for this one destroyed all that had been built up to this point. To tell you much of the story wouldn't really matter because, just remember, the end isn't what is expected or should be unless the actors & actresses are lying to you throughout it. This is basically about a mother who becomes killed apparently by a break-in but through the twists and turns of the story-telling we are being led to believe that one of the children has something to do with it. That actress is then put through the paces and shown to be a definite possibility to the murder even to the point of imitating her mother after her death and definetly wanting to take her place. The movie should have been more about why she wanted to do this but we only get small hints about this. Then, all of a sudden, instead of exploring what I mentioned in the last sentence the aforementioned `stupid' & `meaningless' ending was thrown at us from left field. I think I've said enough, Yes I'm upset.(but I'll get by). Hopefully Steinberg will as well.

I'm not sure what kind of person would write the screenplay for this movie. It's very disturbing, having to do with love (not paternal) between daughters and fathers, with a twist of mystery. If you ever wanted to marry your father, DO NOT WATCH THIS MOVIE. Also, I would advise, if you are a female, don't watch this movie with your father.

If you're going to make a picture centering on a seductive nymphette with a fixation on keeping daddy all to herself, then do it with some courage and conviction. All you get here is slick innuendo for what's at the center of a routine murder mystery. If you're going to tackle this kind of subject matter, then TACKLE IT! On the plus side, Julia Stiles has the pouty, child-as-sex-symbol look nailed; and the rest of the cast also give some personality to their routinely drawn characters. All the ingredients for a good sleazy thriller are here, but sadly, it's all aimed at shocking only the most adolescent of sensibilities. Tasteful trash.

Julia Stiles was the main draw for me to see this film, which genuinely lives up to its title (and then some). WICKED is a sneaky little twist on the let-me-be-your-wife-and-I-will-love-you-better-than-mom-ever-did genre, with great performances and excellently fleshed-out (NO pun intended) characters. Highly recommended for that late-night cable guilty pleasure.