The Loved Ones Directed by: Sean Byrne Starring: Xavier Samuel, Robin McLeavy, Juhn Brumpton Rating: NR Release Date: September 30, 2010
TRAILER SCORE: 8/10
MY THOUGHTS: What we have here is yet another case of what I like to call Misery- lite, the same basic story but half the substance. Lucky for Mr. Byrne, I'm not looking for substance on this one. The basic premise of "girl who has been rebuffed by hunky male lead, and goes crazy over him" is nothing new and sad to say, this little sub-genre (if you can even call it that) has seen better days. I lost my appetite for this kind of film not only as a feminist who's sick of women getting the bad wrap, but also, Swimfan is enough to make anyone sick of this kind of movie. Still, judging from this trailer, it's got a certain edge over its American counterparts. Although it isn't officially rated, it's hard to imagine them shying away from an R rating (especially with any scene involving a drill to the forehead) so that's good news for horror fans. The crazy chick in question has a certain Carrie quality to her, judging from the trailer, so I'm actually interested to see the performances in this one. Still, the question of "Is the trailer giving too much away?" is nagging at me. Then again, the only way to find out is by seeing it. In the end, The Loved Ones isn't exactly fresh territory, but well-executed scares, the promise of gore, and hopefully some stand-out performances may be able to redeem this flick.