Despite being mauled by the majority of critics, I still believe that Cursed had potential. I also believe that any short comings are in no way the fault of Wes Craven.
The film starts out in ‘Lost Boys’ territory as Shannon Elizabeth and Mya visit a fortune teller at a boardwalk carnival before the continuity problems begin and we get right into the thick of things.
The film manages to be entertaining and certainly doesn’t outstay it’s welcome but it’s cracks are all too apparent, and it stumbles around until it’s not so dramatic anti-climax.
I have to say that I was very disappointed with Kevin Williamson as the dialogue was apalling, along with the majority of the story, but there were a few cool set pieces which, given a bit more effort, would have paid off big time.
I was also disappointed with the majority of the cast here, although they did the best that they could with the material, and you know you’re in trouble when Shannon Elizabeth manages to turn in one of the better performances whilst keeping her clothes on!! In the end however it is Milo Ventimiglia who manages to make an impact, as he plays the only character who goes through any kind of transformation, and considering there’s a few werewolves in this, that’s saying something!
The CG is atrocious, the humour is unfunny and Michael Rosenbaum’s wig is hideous.
Where they get it right is with the nightclub/wax museum setting, which allows for all manner of famous boogeymen to pop up, and in the parking garage which is the highlight of the movie, and would have been even better if they hadn’t cut the end of the scene. Why bother cutting out what everyone who reads Fango has already seen?
OVERALL SUMMARY
Nearly 10 years after the release of ‘Scream’, fans will be sorely disappointed by this hacked up carcass that at one time showed a hell of a lot of promise. Whether they got it wrong on paper or in the second round of shooting remains to be seen, but what we definitely know made it worse is those scissor happy Weinsteins…..again.
