Dir. Jonathan Levine, US, 2006, 88 mins
Cast: Amber Heard, Anson Mount, Whitney Able, Michael Welch
Review by Miles Paulley
A group of high schoolers invite Mandy Lane (Heard), a good girl who became quite hot over the summer, to a weekend party on a secluded ranch. While the festivities rage on, the number of revelers begins to drop quite mysteriously.
Jonathan Levine’s first feature is not exactly a must see, nor is it particularly original, however it does have a few things to recommend a viewing. For instance, writer Jacob Foreman’s accurate portrayal of current teen relationships, their desires and their self-image. This honest portrayal of teenage social hierarchies feels authentic but also allows the film to have some enjoyable and humorous scenes. In particular scenes involving sex, pubic hair, and male attempts to get Mandy Lane alone. The tone of these sequences seem more suited to a teen comedy, rather than a slasher teen movie and is good set up for later scenes as the blissfully unaware teenagers inside the ranch don’t realise the danger that faces them outside.
All the Boys Love Mandy Lane also introduces us to a new group of young acting talents and it’s these relatively unknown faces that help make them seem believable as group of friends.
Aside from this, and more to the point, we see some brutal killings. The first is fierce and one expects Levine to keep the killer anonymous until the end. Instead, Levine reveals his antagonist shortly after. However, whilst the director tries to confound us with this plotline, it is one of the weaker elements of the film and is by turn predictable and unsatisfying. However, one must bear in mind some of the successful teen slasher movies which created the genre are very hard to trump, and the genre plays straight towards what the audience wants, with many – and there are exceptions – not meant to be seen as more than something to enjoy with a pinch of salt. Therefore, it can be quite difficult for directors moving onto this genre to make something original and unpredictable.
All The Boys Love Mandy Lane is certainly a solid film, but nothing in particular to write home about. It’s awash with similarities of its predecessors but having said that it does carry some good sequences, good performances and excellent cinematography by Darren Genet.
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