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Directed By
Mitchell Altieri, Phil Flores
Written By:
Danilo Bach, Mitchell Altieri, Phil Flores, Mikey Wigart
Cast:
Sabrina Aldridge, Michael Beasley, Samuel Child, Joe Egender, R. Keith Harris, Mark D. Headen, Josh Henderson, Christy Johnson, David Lowe, Joseph McKelheer, Alexa Motley, George Peroulas, Mark Scarboro, Jennifer Siebel, Scout Taylor-Compton, Edd Robinson, Taylor Cole, Eric Hollenbeck, Corinne Biazzo, Dave Blamy, Tiffany LeShai McMinn, Adam Melton, Robert Pineiro, Sara Platt, Mark Alton Rose, David Schifter, Paul Shaw, Marjorie Strauss, Tommy Allen Taylor
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April Fool's Day (2008)
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Movie Review by Zara 
April 16th, 2008
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I should start off by saying that I have not watched the first APRIL FOOL'S DAY, but that I do have it at home right now and plan to watch it soon. So my review of this movie is as a stand-alone, and not as a remake.
Some trivia about the movie? Well, it's directed by The Butcher Brothers, two men better known as Mitchell Altieri and Phil Flores. I've watched Altieri's movie LURKING IN SUBURBIA and really liked it. I've also watched their collaborative effort on THE HAMILTONS, a movie that really kick started their ability to make this flick.
THE HAMILTONS was doing so well in the film festivals and was one of the eight selections for the After Dark Horrorfest in 2006. When you get a chance, make sure to watch that. Executives quickly picked up on how good they were with creating a tightly directed story that didn't look as low budget as it actually was. So they enlisted the two to create a remake of APRIL FOOL'S DAY.
The movie was intended to have a much bigger budget than they would have previously worked with and the two went nuts creating their own version (reimagining, as they say) of the first flick. And considering what a great job they did with THE HAMILTONS, I'm sure their version would have been stellar.
However, the film company investing in the movie was 360 Studios, one that might not strike any bells with you, but once I mention that they're the company that funded I KNOW WHO KILLED ME, Lindsay Lohan's huge flop last year, I'm sure you'll catch on. That movie tanks, the execs get nervous and a HUGE chunk of their funding is revoked.
Not only that, a new script writer (Mikey Wigart) was brought in to decimate the original script and make it slightly more palatable for audiences. The film was pushed to a direct-to-DVD release instead of opening in theaters.
At the point that they did this, the film was in pre-production and much of the cast was already in place with the original script. So getting a different one with a HUGELY different storyline and supremely different ending didn't make anyone happy. While the co-directors pushed through with the project, it ultimately became the movie that the studio orchestrated and not the dream of the people behind it.
Knowing this (and more back end knowledge), I watched this movie with a light heart. I saw things that other people who don't know about the back story are never going to pick up on. And in those moments, both me and the AlphaMale had some good laughs.
This is an no rating movie that was never passed through the MPAA system, so it can't be defined as being either PG13 or R. There is some blood and a little bit of gore, but not to the clever extent that was contained in THE HAMILTONS. There is a good deal of cursing thrown around, but the big F word only happens a handful of times. (A PG 13 movie can have only ONE F word in it, any more and it's an R) Considering all of this, I'd say this is in between the two ratings. Not gory enough for the consumers looking for some bloodier thrills and chills and too over the top in brief portions for the younger crowd.
Is the film watchable? Absolutely. I've seen far worse in my day and despite all of the problems that came from behind the scenes, the actors are clearly professionals who take their jobs seriously. I was glad to see Samuel Child in this (he's in THE HAMILTONS) as well as Joseph McKelheer who has a boatload of fun with his homosexual gossip columnist role. (And he's also in THE HAMILTONS, but in a FAR different capacity, so seeing his range was great.)
If you're going to watch this film, it's probably best that you're not a fan of the original hoping for this to be a true remake. I'd say that if you liked the movie DISTURBIA, you'll probably LOVE this movie.
I'm also going to hope you take to heart the info I've given you and cut the film some slack. In Hollywood, things are not golden all the time, especially no matter how much you thought they loved you in the first few meetings. You never know what can happen when your back is turned. This was an excellent example of professionals playing the best damn hand that they were dealt. It's just too bad a pair of sevens doesn't hold up in the end.
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 | Tim
Apr 16, 2008 9:00 PM
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| My understanding is that they can say the "F" word more then one time in a PG-13 movie but if it is used for a meaning of a sexual act just once then it is automatically given an R rating. |
 | The Alpha Craig
Jun 24, 2009 3:45 PM
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This movie had Samuel Child hamming it up in it. That and Joe Egender trying to mock the Butcher Brothers' butchered script made it all the worth while.
"If this gets put on the inter-web, I'll have you raped by a wizard." With lines like that how can you lose? |
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Apr 16, 2008 9:37 PM