Title: Movie Review: The Curse Of Downers Grove (DVD)
Author: Desolation Morris
Recovered Author: Desolation Morris
Published Date: 2016-08-25
Original URL: https://geeknode.co.za/2016/08/movie-review-the-curse-of-downers-grove-dvd
Wayback URL: https://web.archive.org/web/20170707034700id_/http://www.geeknode.co.za/2016/08/movie-review-the-curse-of-downers-grove-dvd/
Recovery Confidence: high
Categories: Movie Review
Tags: Bella Heathcote, Film Review, Geek Node, Helen Slater, Lucas Till, Movie Review, The Curse Of Downers Grove

- Genre Thriller
- Director Derick Martini
- Producer Jason Dubin, Oren Segal
- Actors Bella Heathcote, Lucas Till, Helen Slater
- Where we got our copy Ster Kinekor Entertainment
- Reviewed on DVD
- Available on DVD, Bluray

- Desolation Morris

- 11 months ago

- 0 0

What It’s About

A teen angst thriller at a high school gripped by an apparent curse that claims the life of a senior every year. Story follows a senior, Chrissie, who is skeptical, and another, Tracy, who believes that she may be the next victim.

What I Thought

If you’re genuinely interested in a bit of a romp through locations the characters in the film clearly never visited then buckle down for an adventure rather reminiscent of an age long past.

Regardless of taste for the finer things like an absolutely shocking ending nobody saw coming or some more expansive explanations of certain story elements, this film features a kind of nostalgic simplicity that reaches back to a time before CGI became the norm. The Curse Of Downers Grove is a straightforward story with not much to it that isn’t hard to figure out, even at the early stages you could successfully guess the plot twists or certain character aspects.

It tries very hard to be clever and original but loses it’s way at some point. It had tons of potential on paper but somehow this film ended up being nothing more than a forgettable tale about some young people and a curse nobody really cares about.

Perhaps the biggest letdown of this film is that it so proudly boasts the fact that it’s from the author of the novel ‘American Psycho’, This has got to be one of the most shameless displays of coasting on the name of another far more successful film I’ve seen in recent months as the only relation to the cult classic, American Psycho would be that both these films take place in America and were written by the same guy.

The Curse Of Downers Grove is a no brainer, perfect as part of a cheesy little festival among older gems such as Scream, I Know What You Did Last Summer and Final Destination.

–

DVD Special Features:

• Cast Biographies

• Behind The Scenes

• Facts About The Film – Illustrated by Still Photos

Related Article Storks (DVD Review)

–

What Other People Thought

The entire “curse” hook proves nothing more than a red herring — or perhaps something to be developed later, as the forlorn parting promise of an unlikely sequel suggests. Chrissie has waking visions and nightmares of a predictive nature, yet this paranormal aspect is never really integrated into the narrative. Worse, the flashy, repetitive montages they occasion are extended into a 10-minute final sequence (encompassing closing credits) so utterly pointless it feels like a DVD-extra deleted scene accidentally tacked onto the completed feature. – Dennis Harvey

The Curse Of Downer’s Grove is very impressed with its own cleverness, which it flaunts with flourishes like the always-distressing omniscient voice-over; dream sequences that wouldn’t be out of place in a mid-’90s VH1 rock block; a sentimental slideshow of our leads that, like most of the film’s male characters, is creepily fixated on Heathcote; and a wholly unnecessary minute-and-a-half long post-credits stinger. Like the most popular student at a suburban high school, it thinks it’s something special. But it won’t make it in the big city. – Katie Rife

My guess is that those who make it to the end will come away from it annoyed by the film as a whole, amused by the numerous ways in which it demonstrates that it clearly was not filmed in the area and wishing that they had just set the damn thing in Hinsdale. – Peter Sobczynski

What It's About A teen angst thriller at a high school gripped by an apparent curse that claims the life of a senior every year. Story follows a senior, Chrissie, who is skeptical, and another, Tracy, who believes that she may be the next victim. What I Thought If you're genuinely interested in a bit of a romp through locations the characters in the film clearly never visited then buckle down for an adventure rather reminiscent of an age long past. Regardless of taste for the finer things like an absolutely shocking ending nobody saw coming or some more expansive explanations of certain story elements, this film features a kind of nostalgic simplicity that reaches back to a time before CGI became the norm. The Curse Of Downers Grove is a straightforward story with not much to it that isn't hard to figure out, even at the early stages you could successfully guess the plot twists or certain character aspects. It tries very hard to be clever and original but loses it's way at some point. It had tons of potential on paper but somehow this film ended up being nothing more than a forgettable tale about some young people and a curse nobody really cares about. Perhaps the biggest letdown of this film is that it so proudly boasts the fact that it's from the author of the novel 'American Psycho', This has got to be one of the most shameless displays of coasting on the name of another far more successful film I've seen in recent months as the only relation to the cult classic, American Psycho would be that both these films take place in America and were written by the same guy. The Curse Of Downers Grove is a no brainer, perfect as part of a cheesy little festival among older gems such as Scream, I Know What You Did Last Summer and Final Destination. - DVD Special Features: • Cast Biographies • Behind The Scenes • Facts About The Film - Illustrated by Still Photos - What Other People Thought The entire “curse” hook proves nothing more than a red herring — or perhaps something to be developed later, as the forlorn parting promise of an unlikely sequel suggests. Chrissie has waking visions and nightmares of a predictive nature, yet this paranormal aspect is never really integrated into the narrative. Worse, the flashy, repetitive montages they occasion are extended into a 10-minute final sequence (encompassing closing credits) so utterly pointless it feels like a DVD-extra deleted scene accidentally tacked onto the completed feature. - Dennis Harvey The Curse Of Downer’s Grove is very impressed with its own cleverness, which it flaunts with flourishes like the always-distressing omniscient voice-over; dream sequences that wouldn’t be out of place in a mid-’90s VH1 rock block; a sentimental slideshow of our leads that, like most of the film’s male characters, is creepily fixated on Heathcote; and a wholly unnecessary minute-and-a-half long post-credits stinger. Like the most popular student at a suburban high…

Movie Review: The Curse Of Downers Grove (DVD)

Movie Review: The Curse Of Downers Grove (DVD)

2016-08-25

Desolation Morris

One to avoid!

Total - 4.5

45
4.5

Total

If you take the time to see this film do it while doing something constructive at the same time because you’ll surely regret the time wasted on this demoralizing little snooze fest.

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The Curse Of Downers Grove is currently available for purchase on DVD at all major retailers country-wide.

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Desolation Morris

Guest Contributor - Entertainment

Werner is a strange one...he quotes a lot of things...incoherently I might add, also he reviews stuff from time to time. We still don't truly understand what he is or where he came from.

To quote him verbatim:

Make sure they see my twitter handle so I can get hookers and drugs.

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Article Tags:
Bella Heathcote · Film Review · Geek Node · Helen Slater · Lucas Till · Movie Review · The Curse Of Downers Grove

Article Categories:
Movie Review · Movies
