It's hard to tell what to think of this film. First dismissed as trashy titillation, and now revered as an underrated classic of the 2000s, which impression is more accurate? To be honest, it's somehow both at once. The film's strengths and weaknesses follow a "spiky" profile with very strong points and very negative points at the the same time.
Let's start with the positives. Megan Fox was surprisingly adept in her performance as Jennifer, the high school queen turned seductive succubus, with every glance and smile showing her powers of manipulation over the other characters. In other scenes, she expresses fear, insecurity and love, demonstrating Fox's range beyond the shallow first impression many had of her in the 2000s. The other side of the coin is Amanda Seyfried's performance as the bookish and attached "Needy", who goes through her own transformation into a fierce demon slayer. The dynamic between these two characters is the real heart of the film, which is about Needy outgrowing her attachment to Jennifer and her self-centred ways.
Then to the negatives. Unfortunately, the critics are right about much of the film being by-the-numbers slasher fare. The deaths of many characters seemed like the same repeated scenes of idiotic horror film characters walking into their own demise. The film may have been trying to do something original by reversing the genders, but it barely goes beyond the trashy exploitation of Species (1995), and never really made any "empowering" statement to me. The aftermath of those deaths are also handled badly, as the film doesn't really know whether the audience is supposed to hear funny quips and laugh at what's happening, or see traumatised teenagers and feel deeply impacted by what's happening. This whiplash between comedy and horror muddles the emotional stakes of the film, as the protagonist is fuelled by avenging these deaths.
All in all, it's a fun film, it just didn't live up to its potential. It's a real shame that this 6/10 film was not "fully cooked", because the ingredients of a strong 8/10 film clearly lurk underneath and reveal themselves at times - but only for brief moments.
Let's start with the positives. Megan Fox was surprisingly adept in her performance as Jennifer, the high school queen turned seductive succubus, with every glance and smile showing her powers of manipulation over the other characters. In other scenes, she expresses fear, insecurity and love, demonstrating Fox's range beyond the shallow first impression many had of her in the 2000s. The other side of the coin is Amanda Seyfried's performance as the bookish and attached "Needy", who goes through her own transformation into a fierce demon slayer. The dynamic between these two characters is the real heart of the film, which is about Needy outgrowing her attachment to Jennifer and her self-centred ways.
Then to the negatives. Unfortunately, the critics are right about much of the film being by-the-numbers slasher fare. The deaths of many characters seemed like the same repeated scenes of idiotic horror film characters walking into their own demise. The film may have been trying to do something original by reversing the genders, but it barely goes beyond the trashy exploitation of Species (1995), and never really made any "empowering" statement to me. The aftermath of those deaths are also handled badly, as the film doesn't really know whether the audience is supposed to hear funny quips and laugh at what's happening, or see traumatised teenagers and feel deeply impacted by what's happening. This whiplash between comedy and horror muddles the emotional stakes of the film, as the protagonist is fuelled by avenging these deaths.
All in all, it's a fun film, it just didn't live up to its potential. It's a real shame that this 6/10 film was not "fully cooked", because the ingredients of a strong 8/10 film clearly lurk underneath and reveal themselves at times - but only for brief moments.