Amber Heard stars as Mandy Lane in this 70s style slasher that harks back to the good old days of grindhouse splatter flicks in a contemporary way.
When Mandy unexpectedly turns into a ‘hottie’ during summer vacation, she finds herself worshipped and lusted after by all the boys in school and popular with all the girls. When she is invited to join a group of kids for a weekend at a remote ranch house she somewhat reluctantly agrees and as all the boys try and score some time with Mandy, one person finds the ultimate way to get her alone…by killing off the competition.
The film looks amazing with bright sunlit landscapes and dark misty night shots each looking as creepy as the other. The colour palette is wonderful and the camera flares caused by the bright sunlight all add to the feel and style of the film.
The cast do great jobs (I actually liked Anson Mount here and he normally gets on my nerves) with Amber Heard proving that she’s officially hot property.
The script is well written, the characters are well constructed and the story fuses current ideas of infatuation, obsession and manipulation with 70s style aesthetics to good effect.
The death scenes are suitably gory with (spoilers) burst mouths, nasty gunshot wounds and slashed eyes and there are also some disgusting animal carcasses for the cast to roll around in.
The soundtrack is awesome and fits the film perfectly with Bobby Vinton’s Sealed With a Kiss being the signature tune here.
What was somewhat disappointing for me was the long build up and the decision to pretty much let you know who the killer was from the get go (and certainly to reveal their identity by the mid-point).
OVERALL SUMMARY
All the Boys Love Mandy Lane is a good film and a worthy addition to the genre, however, it is more psychological horror than slasher and I didn’t enjoy it as much as I expected to as the trailer made it look like a whodunit. Whilst it doesn’t live up to its trailer or the hype surrounding it, it’s a good film and one that I’m sure will grow on me over time. On first viewing however, something just didn’t sit right with me, hence the reason I’m not awarding it more than three stars.
