SYNOPSIS:
In this terrifying supernatural thriller, a troubled teenager sets out on a grisly path to discover the disturbing truth behind a well-known urban legend. Haunted for fifty years by the horrifying tale of a train colliding with a school bus, killing all the children aboard, the small town left behind continues to suffer as a stomach-churning chain of murders claims victim after victim. Brought to life by a stand-out cast including Kristin Cavallari (Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County), Leah Pipes (Malcolm in the Middle), Josh Henderson (Desperate Housewives) and Lou Diamond Phillips (Courage Under Fire), Fingerprints will leave its mark on your nightmares!
MOVIE REVIEW:
There is something about small towns that just seems to attract slashers for some strange reason- just think “A Nightmare on Elm Street”, “Halloween”, “Scream” or “My Bloody Valentine” and you’ll know what I mean. “Fingerprints” is no different- it is set in a small Texas town called Emerald and has its main villain a slasher dressed up as a train conductor who goes around spilling copious amounts of blood and guts.
The difference is that “Fingerprints” tries to add to its mix a distinct supernatural element by way of the ghosts of some dead children. In fact, it begins with a horrific collision between a school bus and a train that apparently took the lives of several children. Thanks to that incident, the urban legend goes around that if stop your car just before the train tracks and put it in neutral, the dead children will lend you a hand and push your car across, thereby leaving their fingerprints behind.
Apparently there is really such a legend going around in America- just so you know that writers Jason and Brian Cleveland did not come up with this inventive premise all by themselves. What they did however was to construct an entirely fictional story around it that- you guessed it- is really a slasher flick in disguise. But you’ll only realise this about the halfway mark, when people start falling victim to a masked killer who goes around with a very sharp knife and removes his bodies after. Say what you may, but I believe a ghost can only kill, not move bodies around.
Of course, the supernatural element quickly morphs into a mystery as one is left trying to figure out just what happened to the children 50 years ago. To his credit, though this is only his sophomore feature film, director Harry Basil does a decent job maintaining an air of tension and suspense throughout the film. Thanks to some nice plotting, Basil actually builds up the story quite well right up to the big reveal, which turns out surprisingly logical and convincing.
What also proves surprising are the credible performances by its teenage stars. Too often, slasher flicks get teenage actors/actresses who only look good but can’t act for nuts. Thus, it comes as a welcome relief that Leah Pipes (in the lead role as Melanie) actually manages to be pretty engaging, giving her character a nice spunk that differentiates her from the rest of the forgettable heroines left in the scrap heap of slasher movies.
I’m not saying it’s a classic but “Fingerprints” is a more than decent direct to DVD movie that is solidly entertaining from start to end. It does take a while to set itself up, but when it’s ready, it packs enough scares and thrills to satisfy your craving for horror movies. So don’t let the tacky poster turn you away, for “Fingerprints” will leave its mark on you.
SPECIAL FEATURES :
This Code 3 DVD contains no extra features.
AUDIO/VISUAL:
The Dolby Digital 2.0 audio is surprisingly strong during the frightening scenes. Visuals are clean and slightly washed out as befitting the look of the town.
MOVIE RATING:
DVD
RATING :
Review
by Gabriel Chong
Posted on 18 January 2010
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