This review considers this movie as a movie alone, not its relationship to the book. And as a movie it's rather dull.
The story is told from the perspective of a loner/loser kid who wears all-black and looks like a young version of Christopher Walken's Lucifer in Propecy. This kid's life is taking photos. He's a voyeur obsessed with a girl and follows her around everywhere and documents her every move in pictures. He is also the narrator who breaks the movie down into several "chapters." The girl is a virgin cheerleader whose boyfriend is a dumb football player. She lives in what I'm not sure can even be called suburbia: a lone giant house at the foot of a mountain and high above the city.
Her life is a mess: her mother cheats on her father with a black bartender- how shocking! Her stepfather is an alcoholic who senses that his wife isn't truthful. The entire movie centers on this crisis, thus making all the characters completely one-dimensional. No one ever works or studies- they are all on crisis mode. While our loner attempts to not draw attention to himself eventually he and the girl will meet and talk. She thinks he is weird and always talk down to him. He just takes it, being to good guy, and offers cryptic advice while being completely unemotional about everything. One thing we learn about him is that he is all about "the truth." Eventually the crisis boils over. The stepdad catches the wife and she leaves to live with the black guy. In a drunken stupor stepdad rapes girl. She decides to kill him with the help of her boyfriend. The mom finds the body and is brought to trial: she had the weapon in her hand, had motive, and there's circumstantial evidence. Black guy overhears a conversation the young couple has because the boyfriend can't take the guilt anymore. Black guy tries to talk to the girl and ends up shooting the boyfriend. So he has to go to jail.
The voyeur talks the girls into turning herself in. It's only when she leaves jail years later and is received by the voyeur that she comes to her senses. She also says at some point that she wants to be like him.
This movie is dark and nasty in its theme. It's about semi-attractive people (Monica Keena as always wears tight tops but doesn't show any skin) in ugly situations. Hence it's not particularly entertaining. The R-rating makes little sense, especially since it's for non-existent "brutal violence, strong sexuality".
So what is the deal with this movie? In a twist at the end that is hinted at throughout the movie, it turns out it's all about Jesus! The stepdad often watches TV- mostly newreports about the devastating California fires years ago. But at some point there's some Christian channel on that tells the story of people in need rejected the help that God sends them. And finally at the end of the movie the voyeur turns not out to be a Luciferian but wears a white shirt with a a giant figure of Jesus on it. Hence, his claim that he is all about the truth. And now we know what gives him so much apathy/tranquility in life, either his belief or he represents Jesus/god.
Despite the twist at the end, there's just too much ugliness in this movie that's just not enjoyable. Even the "hopeful" ending can't make up for the 120 minutes one just spent watching this boring mess.
The story is told from the perspective of a loner/loser kid who wears all-black and looks like a young version of Christopher Walken's Lucifer in Propecy. This kid's life is taking photos. He's a voyeur obsessed with a girl and follows her around everywhere and documents her every move in pictures. He is also the narrator who breaks the movie down into several "chapters." The girl is a virgin cheerleader whose boyfriend is a dumb football player. She lives in what I'm not sure can even be called suburbia: a lone giant house at the foot of a mountain and high above the city.
Her life is a mess: her mother cheats on her father with a black bartender- how shocking! Her stepfather is an alcoholic who senses that his wife isn't truthful. The entire movie centers on this crisis, thus making all the characters completely one-dimensional. No one ever works or studies- they are all on crisis mode. While our loner attempts to not draw attention to himself eventually he and the girl will meet and talk. She thinks he is weird and always talk down to him. He just takes it, being to good guy, and offers cryptic advice while being completely unemotional about everything. One thing we learn about him is that he is all about "the truth." Eventually the crisis boils over. The stepdad catches the wife and she leaves to live with the black guy. In a drunken stupor stepdad rapes girl. She decides to kill him with the help of her boyfriend. The mom finds the body and is brought to trial: she had the weapon in her hand, had motive, and there's circumstantial evidence. Black guy overhears a conversation the young couple has because the boyfriend can't take the guilt anymore. Black guy tries to talk to the girl and ends up shooting the boyfriend. So he has to go to jail.
The voyeur talks the girls into turning herself in. It's only when she leaves jail years later and is received by the voyeur that she comes to her senses. She also says at some point that she wants to be like him.
This movie is dark and nasty in its theme. It's about semi-attractive people (Monica Keena as always wears tight tops but doesn't show any skin) in ugly situations. Hence it's not particularly entertaining. The R-rating makes little sense, especially since it's for non-existent "brutal violence, strong sexuality".
So what is the deal with this movie? In a twist at the end that is hinted at throughout the movie, it turns out it's all about Jesus! The stepdad often watches TV- mostly newreports about the devastating California fires years ago. But at some point there's some Christian channel on that tells the story of people in need rejected the help that God sends them. And finally at the end of the movie the voyeur turns not out to be a Luciferian but wears a white shirt with a a giant figure of Jesus on it. Hence, his claim that he is all about the truth. And now we know what gives him so much apathy/tranquility in life, either his belief or he represents Jesus/god.
Despite the twist at the end, there's just too much ugliness in this movie that's just not enjoyable. Even the "hopeful" ending can't make up for the 120 minutes one just spent watching this boring mess.