Horror films such as Jennifer’s Body are films within the genre that are a rarity. Normally, a film such as this would be pawned off as another boring, horror flick that was made to entertain the mindless teenagers that fill movie theaters throughout the world every weekend and make the big studios a lot of money. Such is the case with Jennifer’s Body, yet the idea of the plot was unique. It’s just too bad the script was so cliché and catered to masses of mindless teenagers that would praise this film for its stylish swag and trendy soundtrack.
When two high school girl friends go out to the local watering hole to watch a local band play a show, they find themselves in the middle of a deadly fire which they barely escape from though a bathroom window. Jennifer (Megan Fox) is asked by the band (who also survived the fire) if she would like to ride with them and leave the place before things got out of hand. Leaving her friend Needy (Amanda Seyfried) behind, Jennifer goes off with the band. Later that evening while in her kitchen, Needy comes face to face with Jennifer covered in blood and experiences her do some odd things. Soon Needy discovers that Jen, is no longer herself and that a demon who needs to consume flesh to survive has taken over Jen’s body. Needy now must find a way to stop the demon inside of Jen from killing and eating more of the people in their small little town, all of which is still coping with tragedy that took place at the town’s bar and the string of murders that have been happening.
Here is where things get a bit crazy with this film. The story is out there, the dialogue is cheesy, cliché and even at times just plain horrorable, yet it creatively written by the screenwriters as to where as a member of the audience you know that the writers purposely wrote the dialogue that way as if they are laughing along with you. The reason why my feeling are so mixed about this film is because the story was original in its concept yet, it was so unoriginal in its display that I found myself shaking my head at some scene while enjoying others. I mean with lines like “Oww my tit!” and “I’m no longer a backdoor virgin thanks to so and so.” I had no choice but to roll my eyes. Then you have the whole lesbian make out scene between Megan Fox and Amanda Seyfried where Fox is wearing a skimpy shirt and sexy underwear that made thousands of teenage boys adjust their pants in theaters and most likely will be the ones that are responsible for the high sales of this film on DVD & Blu-ray because of this one scene. Albert, the film does have its entertainment value as well and a evenly paced story to go along with it, which kept me watching the film all the way though.
On the production side of the fence, the film had some decent acting for a script that was so far fetched I’m sure plenty of talent in this film had a great time with it as expressed in the gag reel on the disc. Megan Fox is not only a heart stopper with her good looks, but she does also have a talented ability to act. However, in this film I felt the standout performance belonged to that of her co-star Amanda Seyfried playing the anti-hero Needy. The rest of the cast was so-so in the film and we even get a surprise cameo at the end of the film by genre veteran Lance Hendrickson.
The films production value was surprisingly good with its great set design that bought the feel of the film right to you. It’s funny how the sets felt creepy, yet almost comical as if they were popping off the screen saying, “Yes we are trying to scare you, but make you laugh at the same time”. I also have to give the film credit for its use of more make-up effects than visual effects. Sure, the film did have a lot of visuals, but it also had its fair share of great make-up effects as well and is well worth being mentioned. Yet in terms of set design, one thing stood out that I felt was an insult to Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead. There was no need for an Evil Dead poster in the background of Needy’s room. Jennifer’s Body no where compares to the greatness in terms of scares and originality that Evil Dead produces, and the two shouldn’t even be mentioned in the same sentence together.
The Blu-ray disc comes with two discs. One disc contains the film in both its theatrical and uncut version along with a slew of special features such as audio commentary with Director Karyn Kusama and writer Diablo Cody on the films theatrical version on the disc, as well as Director Karyn Kusama commentary on the unrated version. Your typical deleted scenes and gag reel and two behind the scenes features such as Cast and Crew behind the scenes diaries and Jennifer’s Body: The Dead Pool a feature behind the films pool scene as well as some Megan Fox extras and more. The second disc contains a digital copy of the film for portable media players.
Jennifer’s Body is a film that I am mixed on. I admired it for its original story and concept behind the film, yet found the cliché characters and its comical dialogue to be a bit to much for me to look at it like a serious horror film. It is by no means scary at all. It’s laughable, yet it’s a fun film to watch. You honestly can’t take a film like this seriously. It was simply made for the drones of teenage children that plague movies theaters on the weekends and rainy nights to drown their hollow minds into some meaningless entertainment that is just there to entertain and maybe garnish a scream or two. It is no more a horror film than it is a comedy, so if you’re looking at this film as something that you think might scare the pants off of you; you will be sorely disappointed.
– Horror Bob
- Interview with J.R. Bookwalter - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Andrew J. Rausch - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Rick Popko and Dan West - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Director Stevan Mena (Malevolence) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Screenwriter Jeffery Reddick (Day of the Dead 2007) - January 22, 2015
- Teleconference interview with Mick Garris (Masters of Horror) - January 22, 2015
- A Day at the Morgue with Corri English (Unrest) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Writer/Director Nacho Cerda (The Abandoned, Aftermath) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actress Thora Birch (Dark Corners, The Hole, American Beauty) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actor Jason Behr, Plus Skinwalkers Press Coverage - January 22, 2015
