Rent Totally Killer on Amazon Video (paid link)
Written by: David Matalon & Sasha Perl-Raver and Jen D'Angelo (screenplay by), David Matalon & Sasha Perl-Raver (story by)
Directed by: Nahnatchka Khan
Starring: Kiernan Shipka, Olivia Holt, Charlie Gillespie, Randall Park, Julie Bowen.
Rated: R
Watch the trailer
Plot
When the infamous "Sweet Sixteen Killer" returns 35 years after his first murder spree to claim another victim, 17-year-old Jamie accidentally travels back in time to 1987 to stop the killer before he can start.
Verdict
The first fifteen minutes of this is rough, but after the time travel the movie finds its footing and just keeps getting better. It's a surprisingly coherent take on time travel while also managing to be an intriguing slasher. It's also a lot of fun as it compares the differences between the 80s and 20s, while also jumping into what your parents were like as teens. It's not a great movie, but it's definitely very enjoyable.
Watch It.
Review
Jamie (Kiernan Shipka) just wants to go to a concert despite her overbearing and protective parents who just want to keep their teen daughter safe. We discover part of that is due to a trio of murders in town when the parents were teens. This wastes very little time before we get an attack. The killer returns. I love the twist that this character has been preparing to be attacked for thirty years and isn't a helpless victim.
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| Kiernan Shipka plays Jamie |
The first fifteen minutes of this is cheesy and tropey. Why does the school have a science fair at a creepy abandoned amusement park? Then we get a time machine. I expect a bit of cheese and contrivance based on the plot, but it hadn't found the right tone up to that point. Once we jump to the 80s this movie knows exactly what it wants to do.
It's jokes a minute as Jamie is shocked at the differences of the 80s. There are fewer rules and regulations. We get stranger danger, problematic shirts, heavy smoking, and even a racist school mascot. This is where the movie starts to have some fun, parodying the 80s. Jamie is shocked to discover that her overprotective mom was quite mean as a teen. Her mom was part of a clique. Everyone in the clique but her mom were killed in 1987.
There are a lot of questions, chiefly who did it and why. I wondered if we would get answers, and the movie does a great job of answering everything without it being contrived. It even provides answers for the how and why of the Mandella effect. It does a great job with time travel, answering a lot of questions many movies ignore or stumble over.
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| Kiernan Shipka, Olivia Holt, Charlie Gillespie play Jamie Hughes, Pam Miller, Blake Hughes |
In the present day Jamie's mom is the caretaker and protector. In 1987 Jamie serves that role as she tries to stop the murders from happening. This also never misses a chance to point out how much culture has changed. The '80s were much less restrictive while also being much less emotionally intelligent.
As the movie progresses and reveals more and more of what could be the catalyst for the murder, we keep getting new suspects. It's astounding how clueless the clique was about how they bullied people. With each revelation, more suspects emerge. Jamie can't fathom how they didn't realize how their actions could affect others.
While this starts out rough, once the plot is established this gets better with every minute. It's certainly entertaining as it blends comedy and horror. It's not a great movie, but it's enjoyable. For a time travel slasher movie it's a surprisingly coherent explanation of how it all works.
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