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5 STAR FAB - 1 STAR RUBBISH

Amusement
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Slumdog Millionaire

Directed by John Simpson. Staring Jessica Lucas, Tad Hilgenbrink, Keir O'Donnell, Katheryn Winnick, Reid Scott, Kevin Gage, Laura Breckenridge, Rena Owen and Preston Bailey. Horror, USA, 85 min. Web site

Director John Simpson’s follow-up to his impressive feature debut FREEZE FRAME is a real disappointment. Based on my favourable review of that Big Brother nightmare, starring comedian Lee Evans, I was invited to the set of AMUSEMENT in Budapest two years ago. Trivia lovers may like to know that it was filmed on the exact same soundstage at Fot Studios as Dario Argento’s THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. On paper AMUSEMENT sounded great – Jake Wade Wall’s spec screenplay had got him THE HITCHER remake writing assignment - but on screen the eccentric conceit simply doesn’t work. Must be careful here as I don’t want to ruin what little puzzle enjoyment the plot contains. Suffice it to say a disturbing childhood incident links the fate of three women, Katheryn Winnick (FAILURE TO LAUNCH), Laura Breckenridge (THE FAVOR) and Jessica Lucas (THE COVENANT), being terrorized in staged ordeals. So these three worst-case scenarios, involving motorway convoys, killer clowns and hotel mattresses, eventually become bound by the connective tissue of Winnick’s middle clown story leading to a sub SAW fourth tying everything gruesomely, and ludicrously, together. Resembling a failed Amicus anthology for the most part, Simpson’s oddly structured shocker resolutely fails to engage due to over reliance on a confusing mix of double bluffs, sleight-of-hand visuals and shifts in reality. Reasonable suspense is mustered in the creepy clown section thanks to Winnick’s terrific playing and the glass-mounted human specimen Crystal Dungeon finale does contain some striking imagery keying into the wonky plot’s distorted display concepts. But Keir (WEDDING CRASHERS) O’Donnell’s central performance is way too arch, and his quintessentially Victorian melodrama laugh so theatrical, it dooms any mystery as to who the multi-disguised deranged maniac is forcing others to share his twisted sense of humour. The bad joke here is unfortunately on anyone watching such a curious misfire from the producers of THE RING remake.

Alan Jones

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