J.P.'s Random Review: All the Boys Love Mandy Lane (2006)

"This is a cautionary tale about the bad things that happen to bullies, and those who cause those bad things. It isn't pretty." ~ Creepercast

“A group of high-schoolers invite Mandy Lane, 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.” (IMDB)

Director: Jonathan Levine; Writer: Jacob Forman; Stars: Amber Heard, Anson Mount, Whitney Able, and more.

Many of the best actors in Hollywood had humble, horror related, beginnings. The same holds true for Amber Heard and Anson Mount. One primary difference for these two was that their humble beginning, All the Boys Love Mandy Lane, was filmed in 2006 but didn't see an official DVD release until last year. Long after Amber and Anson had become well established in genre films. It's not All the Boys Love Mandy Lane would have done anything to affect their careers. It is a beautifully shot and edited film. All actors work well within the confines of the story and very little of the film actually looks and feels like an low budget independent horror. Unfortunately those confines previously mentioned left little opportunity for Heard and Anson to develop, leaving the story flat, self sustaining but relatively lifeless, relying almost entirely on the kills, the twist, and Michael Welch (of Twilight fame). Welch delivers, the kills are decent, the twist... predictable.

That is not to say All the Boys Love Many Lane is a film to skip over. Everyone has to appreciate a story unless the chubby girl from last year (although its hard to imagine Heard as ever being chubby) making good and the geek getting revenge. Its a great homage to films My Bloody Valentine, but lacks the 80's over the top feel instead choosing to tell the story in slow monotone rather than throwing it your face. Which is alright when you have a lazy couple hours to kill and want to see something different but familiar.

Currently on Netflix or Own it On Amazon!

Farewell from the beasts and I,

Jeff