The Geek Address

Michelle rounds a corner, wipers thumping furiously, headlights illuminating the rain swept road. Yawning, she grabs a cassette, slams it into the stereo. The car is filled with music. Anything to say awake. Singing to herself, she doesn’t notice the fuel gauge. The car begins to cough and splutter. In the distance, she sees a small service station: an old, decrepit place. Michelle rolls up to the pumps. Rain pours across the windscreen, everything seems blurred, indistinct. Impatiently, she hits the horn. The attendant bursts onto the screen (giving the audience a collective fright). Michelle opens the window, hands the attendant her credit card: ‘Fill it up.’ The attendant seems slightly distressed. When he lures her into the shop, Michelle panics, jumps in the car and speeds off. As her car disappears into the night, the attendant screams: “There’s a man hiding in the back seat!” It’s not hard to imagine what happens next. Needless to say, it ain’t pretty.

Urban Legend was the first feature-film directed by Australian Jamie Blanks. The film’s opening sequence is a visually stunning, genuinely spooky piece of cinema. After a slew of post-Scream slasher flicks, Urban Legend was a welcome addition to the genre despite an obviously flawed screenplay.

The screenplay sticks to the standard slasher flick formula: an axe-wielding psychopath, who’s face is conveniently concealed by a bulky raincoat, is offing people in the style of urban legends (proving that Hollywood scriptwriters are not the only ones lacking originality).

Although the film is a reasonably entertaining slasher flick, I’ve got one big criticism: the movie is noticeably devoid of interesting characters. The movie takes place at a university where everyone is cool, beautiful amd ultra-smart. These students are so intelligent they don’t need to study - which leaves plenty of time to goof off in lectures, attend wild frat parties and read about sex in the library. The film’s main characters - with the possible exception of Alicia Witt - are extremely irritating. I had to suppress the urge to cheer when they were slaughtered by the aforementioned psychopath. On a positive note, horror fans will be pleased to note that Robert Englund (aka Freddy Kruger) makes a memorable appearance as Professor Wexler, the university’s foremost expert on urban legends.

Urban Legend is a visually atmospheric thriller with some half-decent scares, particularly if you’re feeling like a Jamie Blanks marathon. Head down to Blockbuster, borrow Urban Legend and Valentine for some good, scary fun.