Friday, March 23, 2007

Wicked Little Things [After Dark Horrorfest Series]


Amongst the multitude of horror films using "creepy kids" as a plot device, only a handful have ever managed to do it successfully. While mediocre films like "The Others," "The Sixth Sense," and 2006's horrendous remake of "The Omen" cleaned up at the box office, they don't hold a candle to some of the truly "creepy kid" films that have been released since 1956's "The Bad Seed" created the genre. But for every rare gem like "Children of the Corn" or "Village of the Dammed," audiences are forced to sift through countless wastes of time and celluloid. The most recent offender is the snooze-inducing "Wicked Little Things," featuring a bunch of tykes that illicit as much fear as a viewing of "Sesame Street."

"Wicked Little Things" tells the tale of the recently widowed Karen Tunny (Lori Heuring) and her two daughters, Sarah (Scout Taylor-Compton) and Emma (Chloe Moretz), who have moved to a remote mountain home that Karen inherited from the family of her late husband. Unbeknownst to Karen, the three of them are not as alone as they thought. The home lies near an old mine that was abandoned almost a hundred years before, after a tragic cave-in killed a group of children who were forced to work there. Now their ghosts walk through the forest ready to bore the living hell out of anyone stupid enough to try and sit through this film.

Originally envisioned as a straightforward zombie flick helmed by "Texas Chainsaw Massacre's" Tobe Hooper, the project got passed on to the hands of writer-director-producer-constant disappointment J.S. Cardone. Cardone's contributions to cinema have been things like "The Covenant," "Alien Hunter," and the unwarranted direct-to-video sequels "Sniper 2," "8MM 2," and, of course, the much-needed "Sniper 3." Cardone's credentials are what made "Wicked Little Things" the only film I didn't see when it was released to theaters last year.

"Wicked Little Things" was part of the After Dark Horrorfest "8 Films to Die For" that were shown for one week in select theaters all over the country. It was a cool idea that garnered enough revenue for them to try it again this year. While I applaud anyone's attempt to try and get more people to see independent horror films (especially on the big screen), some of the movies just shouldn't have made the cut. "Wicked Little Things" was easily the worst of the eight and should have been passed over for a number of better films. "Feast," "Salvage," or the disturbing "Feed" would have all been better choices than this predictable waste of time.

Amongst the multitude of horror films using "creepy kids" as a plot device, only a handful have ever managed to do it successfully. While mediocre films like "The Others," "The Sixth Sense," and 2006's horrendous remake of "The Omen" cleaned up at the box office, they don't hold a candle to some of the truly "creepy kid" films that have been released since 1956's "The Bad Seed" created the genre. But for every rare gem like "Children of the Corn" or "Village of the Dammed," audiences are forced to sift through countless wastes of time and celluloid. The most recent offender is the snooze-inducing "Wicked Little Things," featuring a bunch of tykes that illicit as much fear as a viewing of "Sesame Street."

"Wicked Little Things" tells the tale of the recently widowed Karen Tunny (Lori Heuring) and her two daughters, Sarah (Scout Taylor-Compton) and Emma (Chloe Moretz), who have moved to a remote mountain home that Karen inherited from the family of her late husband. Unbeknownst to Karen, the three of them are not as alone as they thought. The home lies near an old mine that was abandoned almost a hundred years before, after a tragic cave-in killed a group of children who were forced to work there. Now their ghosts walk through the forest ready to bore the living hell out of anyone stupid enough to try and sit through this film.

Originally envisioned as a straightforward zombie flick helmed by "Texas Chainsaw Massacre's" Tobe Hooper, the project got passed on to the hands of writer-director-producer-constant disappointment J.S. Cardone. Cardone's contributions to cinema have been things like "The Covenant," "Alien Hunter," and the unwarranted direct-to-video sequels "Sniper 2," "8MM 2," and, of course, the much-needed "Sniper 3." Cardone's credentials are what made "Wicked Little Things" the only film I didn't see when it was released to theaters last year.

"Wicked Little Things" was part of the After Dark Horrorfest "8 Films to Die For" that were shown for one week in select theaters all over the country. It was a cool idea that garnered enough revenue for them to try it again this year. While I applaud anyone's attempt to try and get more people to see independent horror films (especially on the big screen), some of the movies just shouldn't have made the cut. "Wicked Little Things" was easily the worst of the eight and should have been passed over for a number of better films. "Feast," "Salvage," or the disturbing "Feed" would have all been better choices than this predictable waste of time.

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