"CURSED" Trailer

[Deaddevilman]

The trailer for Wes Craven's Cursed is up at
http://www.apple.com/trailers/miramax/cursed.html

I've read nothing but bad news about this and have put Craven in the has beens group, next to Romero, for some time. However, I must say that this trailer peaked my interest and looks a lot better then what I was expecting.

[Grim]

Not too enthusiastic about all the CGI, but I'll give it a shot. Atleast it's not another remake.

[Anthropophagus]

Agreed, it is refreshing to see a horror film that is not a remake or a rehash, but the trailer looks like Dawnson's Creek with lycanthropes in it. Not too thrilled about this one. Eager to see Boogeyman though!!

[fceurich39]

i will probably give this one a chance

[Grim]

Agreed, it is refreshing to see a horror film that is not a remake or a rehash, but the trailer looks like Dawnson's Creek with lycanthropes in it. Not too thrilled about this one. Eager to see Boogeyman though!!

Well. Boogeyman stars that guy from Seventh Heaven, so we lose either way. :p

[Trout]

From the makers of Scream...doesn't fill me with high hopes.

[X-human]

Wow, that was some really bad CGI. I've never thought Craven good enough to even be considered a "has been." He just sort of goes with that flow, now watering down and copying Ginger Snaps.

[krugerkid13]

Damn Craven, damn cgi, and damn the bastard trying to rip off my beloved ginger snaps. I will not nor do i condone viewing this film. I really hate to see cravens career go farther down the drain but after making another film with whatever the hell that guys name is it looks like it has. Not to mention the cast could it be any worse (and yes i do see this as being an uncredited ginger snaps remake). Not to mention this film will probably get credit where credit isnt do

[Anthropophagus]

Well. Boogeyman stars that guy from Seventh Heaven, so we lose either way. :p

Pardon my ignorance, but what the heck is seventh heaven??

[Grim]

Pardon my ignorance, but what the heck is seventh heaven??

Some crappy show that used to be on the WB, or still is. I don't know. Anywho, the main guy in Boogeyman played the oldest child (or young man, whatever) in the show.

[speanroc]

whats up with alot of horrorfilms these days gettin PG-13 ratings

[Grim]

whats up with alot of horrorfilms these days gettin PG-13 ratings

Money.

[17thJuggalo]

whats up with alot of horrorfilms these days gettin PG-13 ratings

To me, seeing a PG-13 rating for a horror flick is a fine indication that the movie is going to be terrible, and 99% of the time I'm correct.

[Dave]

I'd love to see a new werewolf movie come out, but I'm not expecting much from this. Maybe an Unrated DVD will hit that will be a bit better. But if it's just a few gore scenes that were trimmed or cut to get the PG-13 rating, that shouldn't effect too much whether the movie is good or bad.

[moogong]

Ehh...I'm kinda leary of anything with Kevin Williamson's name attached to it. Portia De Rossi is refreshing though. She is my favorite non-porn lesbian.

[geeare]

hmmm, I will givew it a chance.

[shift]

So, UMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM who's gonna check it out this weekend? I have a candy eye to see this one :D

[BloodMan]

I don't know if I will see this now. I kind of want to... but not really. That CG werewolf shit is really turning me off of this... Rick Baker probably had some awesome puppets and whatnot before it got scrapped. Will probably wait and see how everyone else digs this or hates it before I decide. I heard all advanced screenings for critics et al were cancelled too... so that says something right there as well. :)

[Grim]

At one point this film sounded promising, but now it just seems like a jumbled, chopped up, CGI-ridden mess.

[mutleyhyde]

I agree that it would have been way more promising with Baker-wolves, but I still gotta see it for Ms. Ricci. :evil:

[John Gargo]

This looks absolutely awful... It looks like SCREAM's cousin, once-removed. The scene with the kid jumping over the back of the bleachers and landing on the other side has got to be the lamest thing I've ever seen.

[Agent Z]

Arrow's review: http://www.joblo.com/arrow/reviews.php?id=933

[Myron Breck]

Arrow's review: http://www.joblo.com/arrow/reviews.php?id=933

No surprise there. Craven is a has-been and, to me anyway, Kevin Williamson is a never-has-been.

[Latency]

:nervous:

I ador Scream, so I will see this in hopes it will be as refreshing and campy. I dunno, I just adored the characters in Scream, especially David Arquette and Matt Lillard. The characters made the movie for me, and some of the atmosphere was suprisingly good too.

Now don't everyone gang-bang me at once :nervous:.

EDIT: Even if Cursed sucks, I will enjoy seeing Ricci ..... :drool:

[Grim]

*braces for the punches and kicks to the head*

I ador Scream

As do I. Everything that followed it was utter shit, though.

[Latency]

As do I. Everything that followed it was utter shit, though.

agreed

[Agent Z]

Well, you requested kicks and punches initially, so....

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v676/MissionCodeZ/kick.bmp

[Latency]

haha, I took that out, but yeah, funny :).

[rhett]

I'll be seeing this opening night. Craven rarely disappoints, and Kevin Williamson is one of the most underrated Hollywood screenwriters. Everyone is quick to dismiss him because his work, mainly the SCREAM films and DAWSON'S CREEK, has been embraced by the teen demographic, but that doesn't make it any less original. Compared to most of the teen oriented film and television released today, Williamson's post-modern stories are still more clever, original and even more emotional than virtually anything else on the market. He knows his characters, and he knows how to twist the conventions of the films he loves into something fresh.

Regardless of whether CURSED is shit or not, it will unfortunately be the victim of the post-SCREAM backlash that has been fostering for years. It is a shame, because honestly, this movie never even had a chance. At least after this one gets torn to shreds, the two will be able to start with a cleaner slate.

[Agent Z]

......and Kevin Williamson is one of the most underrated Hollywood screenwriters. Everyone is quick to dismiss him because his work, mainly the SCREAM films and DAWSON'S CREEK, has been embraced by the teen demographic, but that doesn't make it any less original.

Sure it does. We've seen it all before. Scream had its moments, but it was woefully predictable (even the "twist" ending).

Oh, and how can we forget his revolutionary I Know What You Did Last Summer? :sleepy:

[Mok]

Guys, this looks really bad. The werewolf looks like he could be Skooby Doo's cousin. Just admit that you're all into it because Christina Ricci looks freakin' smokin' in this one.

[mcchrist]

Well, the first time I go to the theater this year and I have to see this crap. I have to see this for a class assignment (Exhibition Management), we were assigned specific coming attractions and wouldn't you know it, for me it would be this shitter.

I am not looking forward to it, at all.

[Katatonia]

I don't know how this one will turn out, but it looks to be average at best. That article in the newest Fangoria was quite interesting. Craven is glad to be done with the film and has washed his hands of it all, and from all of the production woes and struggles I can easily see why. If there is ever a sequel, he sure won't be doing it.

[rhett]

Sure it does. We've seen it all before. Scream had its moments, but it was woefully predictable (even the "twist" ending).

Oh, and how can we forget his revolutionary I Know What You Did Last Summer? :sleepy:
This isn't THE SIXTH SENSE. The slasher sub-genre is probably the most cliche-ridden and predictable genre, so if you are evaluating these films based on the twists, well, then you're missing the point. SCREAM is not original because of its unpredictability, it is original because of its ability to create empathetic characters who are aware of the cliches of the genre of which they are apart. The movie geek Randy character was especially well done, and for me at least was one of the most identifiable character in all slasher films. A slasher fan for slasher fans. Love or hate the film, it is pretty tough to deny the intensity of the opening scene. A fusion of SUSPIRIA, WHEN A STRANGER CALLS and HALLOWEEN, the opening is a great example of how familiar concepts are brought together in a synthesis to create something different. It may seem old hat today, but ten years ago you hadn't seen that sort of thing done before, at least not that well.

Revolutionary I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER wasn't, but it was nonetheless an effective throwback to the dirty little secret slashers like PROM NIGHT and THE HOUSE ON SORORITY ROW. Certainly better than most of the post-SCREAM slashers. It too had some tense scenes, like the beauty pagent murder, which is kind of a riff on the idea that Williamson's characters always seem to know way more than the audience. Instead of knowing the cliches of slasher films, this time Gellar actually sees the killer murdering while the audience watches unsuspectingly. He at least proved with IKWYDLS and the equally acceptable THE FACULTY that he could do more than just talk about genre cliches and actually make standard genre efforts as well.

Everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but the Williamson backlash is getting pretty tired.

[mcchrist]

I repent, rhett! I see the light!

:bs:

It may seem old hat today, but ten years ago you hadn't seen that sort of thing done before, at least not that well.

Using bits and pieces of old shit to make something new isn't originality, it's cinematic necrophilia or worse.

A professor from a couple semesters back had us watch the movie SCRATCH and stated in plain words that in this day and age, the only way to make original music is to dig up some old records and become a DJ. Such optimism for such a pessimistic ideal.

[BloodMan]

I was reading at joblo... and The Arrow posted that Canada got the R Rated version of this, and the US got the PG 13 rated version. Don't know if this is true and all... but its joblo... and The Arrow.

[maskull]

I have no desire to see it. the only way i'll watch it is for "free" on The Movie Network. yeah, i'll watch it for free if I don't have to travel anywhere or expend anymore energy than clicking my remote. but Christina Ricci sure is hot!

[mutleyhyde]

I was reading at joblo... and The Arrow posted that Canada got the R Rated version of this, and the US got the PG 13 rated version. Don't know if this is true and all... but its joblo... and The Arrow.

A quick search for a random Canadian movie listing page (link (http://jam.canoe.ca/Movies/Listings/home.html)) turned up a Toronto paper which lists the movie as being 100 minutes. My local Cinemark lists it as 96 minutes.

Damn this bullshit.

The problem today is that more and more young people (high schoolers) have more and more money and freedom to do what the fuck they want. Sure, that in and of itself may or may not be so terrible, but in regard to Hollywood, there is just no room for mature, hard R or NC-17 movies when such a substantial portion of the paying public, that wasn't there in the past, would be barred from seeing it. So now all we get are primarily MTV soap dramas with hints of horror or violence, as opposed to mature theses on violence or horror, such as The French Connection or The Exorcist, etc.

Think about it... how many high school kids actually had enough money to wholly support the cinema industry back in the 70s, when R rated movies were plenty? When hardcore films with serious themes and plots which included violence and, ooooohh, naughty language (and yes, even gratuitous nekkidness! Oh my!) were commonplace? It was college students and adults that Hollywood focused on then. There's been a shift in the financial structure of American society now though, and if an institution can't tap into the youth dollar, they're fucked. Hell, the MPAA is even allowing yet more previously barred language in PG-13 movies these days. Why? Simply and undeniably, for that youth dollar. So why is it then that the FCC rails against half-time boobage on TV, yet the MPAA gets aways with this kind of stuff? Because - kids don't directly pay into the TV industry, advertisers do.

Okay, so maybe I'm nostalgiac for the heyday of '70s American film, but I tell you what, they sure didn't concern theirselves with what rating was on the bill back then, which allowed filmmakers to make the Goddamned movies they wanted to make.

Nostalgia or not, that's the fucking truth.

Now I'm not saying that I want to see power taken away from today's youth (okay, I don't think kids should have cell phones and shit while on school grounds and stuff like that, but that's a topic for a whole 'nother time - I'm talking about general financial and movement power here), don't allow yourself to be mislead. I'm only explaining what I see as part of the issue here, a major reason as to why we can't get a movie without it being chopped down to the high school level anymore.

[indiephantom]

I'm in Canada, and seeing it tonight.

[Anthropophagus]

To hell with this, think I'll stay home and watch Dog Soldiers on DVD, just picked it up at Best Buy for 6.99$.

[indiephantom]

To hell with this, think I'll stay home and watch Dog Soldiers on DVD, just picked it up at Best Buy for 6.99$.

You made a wise choice. I bought it for a similar choice recently. CURSED really blew...R rated and all.

[shift]

I want to hear your reviews on this movie. Please post as soon as you get back from your local theater :D ?!?!?!?! ;)

[dmeister]

...it is original because of its ability to create empathetic characters who are aware of the cliches of the genre of which they are apart. The movie geek Randy character was especially well done...

It was even more original in There's Nothing Out There.

dmeister

[rhett]

The Canadian cut is definitely R, and there are some good gore bits. A head gets chopped, a torso thrown, and plenty of blood spilled. Still though, the Weinstein's raped this movie. Over half the film was reshot, and it shows, because the resulting plot is a total mess. Characters come and go, and the film does not spend any time introducing the characters. It is as if the film was changed in order to provide a quota of shocks-per-minute rather than presenting a cohesive story. It is a shame, because there are some really good ideas in the film that seemed to have been totally lost in the reshoots.

Williamson creates some nice metaphors with the whole CURSED theme, lampooning high school life as well as masculinity and homosexuality. There is a really funny bit with the homophobic jock who is forced to rethink his sexuality. Early allusions to Little Red Riding Hood are abandonned after the first few minutes, which is puzzling. But even amidst all the cuts, Williamson does some clever bits of poking fun at Hollywood, sending in some jabs at Ashton Kutcher as well as using several allusions to the original THE WOLF MAN. Like in SCREAM, the opening murder is probably the high point, very well done and actually pretty scary. I suspect the PG-13 version of this scene is cut to shit though, so beware.

You can really see where the reshoots come in though, as Ricci's weight seems to change between the old and new footage. Rick Baker's wolf effects are basically overshadowed by the new CGI, creating an off-putting blend of computer and prosthetic imagery. Even in the R version, there are a lot of cuts that seem to come too quickly, although there is still a fair bit shown.

What comes through clearest though, is how the Weinstein's have just been hacking away at horror films these days. Their Dimension line has just been butchered lately, with many movies not even getting theatrical distribution. Just as many have been hacked apart to get the teen friendly PG-13, and the movies are really suffering as a result. The same company that was started on films like FROM DUSK TILL DAWN and SCREAM has really lost it, letting down it's talented creators in favor of bone-headed studio decisions. It is really tough to review a movie like CURSED, because it is clear it has been tinkered with to a point where the initial creative vision has been totally hacked away. There are pieces of goodness left over, but for the most part, its just a mess. Proof positive that some studios just don't have a clue.

[bigwes15]

I had the displeasure of seeing the PG-13 version today, and I can confirm that there is pretty much no gore in it. There is nothing seen whatsoever in the opening murder, the elevator scene fades completely to black before anything is shown, and hte only other murder we see is a fleeting shot at mid-distance of a severed head near the end. Thanks again, Dimension! (and by thanks, of course I mean FUCK YOU.)

[rxfiend]

yeah, the cuts were very noticeable. another symptom of pg-13 is having to sit in a crowd with a bunch of loud mouthed teenagers. there was some in front of us last night that would not shut up. fucking annoying. at any rate, the movie was entertaining, but would have been better if they kept the R rating. the movie felt very Scream-ish, IMO.

on a side note, Christina Ricci was smoking hot in this one! :D

[Dave]

b

[rhett]

b
I'd disagree. C+ at best.

[dmeister]

* Possible Spoilers *

I don't think an R rating could have helped this movie much. An extra shot or two of gore wasn't going to save this flick. The plot revolves around two siblings: The brother is living in some sort of John Hughes sequel to Teen Wolf, while the sister is living in some sort of strange version of a Danielle Steele love triangle as adapted for the screen by Anne Rice with seductive werewolves standing in for her cliche vampires. It was the kind of plot you might see on Lifetime, if they ever played horror movies.

I didn't care for any of the characters, and pretty much wanted them all to die. Well, except for that guy from Poolhall Junkies, who was one of the few non-trivial characters who did die (just to add insult to injury). They also managed to make the whole "curse of the werewolf" or "mark of the beast" angle come across as silly and juvenile.

I enjoyed Scream (Yes, I'll admit it). And I really like werewolf movies. But this flick just dropped the ball every change it got, as far as I'm concerned. There were about 15-20 minutes of entertaining footage, with a lot of substandard filler in between.

dmeister

[DeepDownTraumaHound]

* Possible Spoilers *

The plot revolves around two siblings: The brother is living in some sort of John Hughes sequel to Teen Wolf, while the sister is living in some sort of strange version of a Danielle Steele love triangle as adapted for the screen by Anne Rice with seductive werewolves standing in for her cliche vampires. It was the kind of plot you might see on Lifetime, if they ever played horror movies.
dmeister

Oh my god, dmeister, you rock!

I agree - though on some absurd level, I was entertained throughout most.
Agree with Rhett, C+.
The CGI f'ing SUCKED!

[dmeister]

Oh my god, dmeister, you rock!

I do what I can. ;)

dmeister

[fceurich39]

cursed will be pg-13 and unrated on dvd on june 21st

[Grim]

I might rent the unrated just to see how much was actually cut. I like how the movie ends and they act like nothing even happened. "yeah I just stabbed and decapitated some guy in my kitchen, but sure I'll walk you home!"

[tobaccoman]

I rented this the other night, the pg-13 version since the uncut wasn't there. I thought it was a decent popcorn horror flick. I liked a couple of nods that it had to other Craven films, too bad those films are better than this though. I didn't really like the Hollywood setting, but it was used in an alright manner I suppose. Much better than the un-needed Jay & Silent Bob cameo in Scream 3. The cg was as bad as it's reported to be. I don't know really what else to say about it, I just spent the $1.79 for the seven day rental and I'd have to say it was worth it. Just go into it knowing what you're getting into... Scream with a werewolf premise instead of a slasher one.

[maybrick]

Okay, okay. I finally bent over and kissed my own ass. I swore up and down, left and right that I wouldn't see this, but tonight I went down to the local mom and pop store and they just started renting DVDs rather than just VHS. I was up for some stupid fun like DOOM but I couldn't bring myself to watch it in full screen (which is the only version they had) CURSED was the only 'stupid fun' movie they had that came close.
And you know what?
It was alright.
I enjoyed it fair enough. Only the last scene with Jackson as the heavy felt tacked on. I'm sure as I dwell upon it a bit more the discrepencies will begin to weigh in, but seeing as how I have 5 beers under my belt and 15 minutes have elapsed since I finished watching it, I'd have to say "it was fun".

[_pi_]

Watched this again last night and, well, I liked it even more this time.

It's so over-the-top and so lightweight that it is very hard not to be entertained. Sure, the knowledge of a "better" version possibly having seen the light of day at some point makes it a somewhat bitter viewing experience, but what do we know? The original version might have been worse.

I like the characters, I like the atmosphere, I like the humor and I really like how the film looks. And the unrated cut is definitely the way to see this! Thumbs up from me! :D