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Overall Rating : 5/10
Directed By : Chris Sivertson
Marc Senter (Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever)
Shay Astar (3rd Rock from the Sun (TV) )
Ed Lauter (Not Another Teen Movie)
Dee Wallace Stone (Halloween (2007) )
Supplied By : Anchor Bay Entertainment
Film Reviewed By : Rick L. Blalock
Date Reviewed : April. 2, 2008
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| PLOT Once upon a time, a boy named Ray Pye put crushed beer cans in his boots to make himself taller. But this is no fairy tale: For suburban sociopath Ray and his friends, small-town life is a dead-end road of sex, drugs, liars and losers. And what begins with a sudden act of senseless violence will climax in a mind-blowing frenzy of depravity…with the worst still yet to come. |
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| THE REVIEW On an otherwise peaceful summer night, Ray Pye, his friend Tim and girlfriend Jennifer are all hanging out and a campground. Ray is a little "off" as they say, and when he sees two young women who are nearby, who give off the impression that they may be Lesbian, it offends Ray. Seemingly for no reason at all, Ray suddenly decides that he wants to kill the two, and he brutally does so. He then pressures Jennifer and Tim to keep quite about the event, and fearing for their own lives, they oblige. Four years since the incident passes and Ray feels that he is living the good life, taking drugs and getting anything and everything he wants from those around him. Ray gets so adjusted to the dominating lifestyle he leads, that he doesn't take to kindly to rejection, and faced with with it, that psychotic side of him begins to emerge. With Detective Charlie Schilling on his tail, a man who suspects Ray for the murders that Pye committed four years prior, and numerous events that cause psychological turmoil for the already damaged teen, Ray eventually snaps and is suddenly at his most dangerous. Not long ago, I reviewed another Jack Ketchum adaption, THE GIRL NEXT DOOR, in which I absolutely loved. My enjoyment of THE GIRL NEXT DOOR had me eagerly anticipating this, the next adaptation THE LOST. I was so impressed by THE GIRL NEXT DOOR, that after, I thought maybe that we were in for more film's like it, as long as Jack Ketchum's name was attached to them - but unfortunately, THE LOST doesn't exactly pick up where the last leads off. THE GIRL NEXT DOOR, had a time period feel and an authenticity feel of realism throughout, one that got a viewer really involved and interested. THE LOST in my opinion only half way succeeds in this area, as for the first half it starts out with a band but then declines into mediocrity, only to pick up at full speed near the end. During that first half, Ray Pye, a character that we are apparently supposed to be drawn to and interested in, is flat, and for the lack of a better word, boring. The one thing that I kept telling myself while watching this, was that the lead actor, Marc Senter just wasn't giving out enough intensity and awkwardness in his performance - when the character finally snaps, this improves, but it also has a level of humor, making the performace one that you just don't know whether to laugh at or take seriously. But one thing is for sure, is that just like THE GIRL NEXT DOOR, THE LOST does have some very shocking and disturbing moments that do become memorable. Although, THE LOST was released prior to Director Chris Sivertson's, I KNOW WHO KILLED ME, this film was actually his solo directing debut. With the time in between films, it seems as if Sivertson improved, the style and approach in I KNOW WHO KILLED ME were far better, but it's story, was another thing. I didn't really enjoy I KNOW WHO KILLED ME, at all and felt that it was a big disappointment. THE LOST on the other hand is slightly better, but still uneven on all accounts, and truly doesn't reach it's full potentially until the about the last 30 minutes of the film. |
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| GORE
METER 3/10 Multiple gunshots, a stabbing and a few more instances, not as gory as one would think. |
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| MUSICAL
SCORE 4.5/10 The soundtack is a strange but working blend of classic rock, modern rock, and hardcore metal sounding tunes. |
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| OVERALL
IMPRESSION OF THE FILM THE LOST was probably one of the most anticipated adaptations of any of Jack Ketchum's works, and has received lots of praise since it's release. I can't say that I agree that it is anything more than just mediocre really, it has the feel of a low budget serial killer bio-pic like the one's that have been made for both Gacy and Dahmer. With all of the praise, I expected, and wanted to fully enjoy this, but I was rather disappointed with it, and wondered where all the praise was coming from, I guess this is one of those "love it, or hate it" type of films. |
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