IDLE HANDS (1999)

Cast: Devon Sawa, Eldon Henson, Seth Green, Jessica Alba, Fred Willard, Jack Noseworthy, Vivica A. Fox, Connie Ray, Timothy Stack, Kelly Monaco, Joey Slotnick, Mindy Sterling, Katie Wright, The Offspring

Director: Rodman Flender
Written by: Terri Hughes & Ron Milbauer
Cinematography: Christopher Balla
Casting By: John Papsidera
Edited By: Stephen E. Rivkin
Production Design: Greg Melton


The only thing that saves this film is Jessica Alba. Not her acting ability of which there is little but for the most obvious reason she was cast her attractiveness. So if you have a huge thing (Crush Please!) for her this is your film. This film is a let down becasue of the numerous opportunities this film had to be good. If not great. i mean look at the premise a teenager whose lest hand only is posessed. he is haunted by his best friends who were too lazy to go up the stairs to heaven (shades of an american werewolf in london)

The jokes and situations could have written themselves. but i guess the people behind this project had little money and few ideas. you know other then throw jessica alba into as many low cut outfits as possible. Not that i'm complaining too much about that. If that is all you have it's pretty sad (Don't get me started on the film "Honey" but she's put to better use in this. In that film they actually expect her to act!!!)

The 2 main problems with this film is it can't decide wether it wants to be a comedy or a horror film. I am a fan of comedy/Horror when they co-exist harmoniously but in this film they seem to be battling each other to the death for supreme leadership. Though neither is the victor. The film will have a purely comedic scene the end it in a very dark place. Which comes out of nowhere.

The other problem is the director. Rodman Flender wants to pay homage to other classic horror directors like dario argento, John Carpenter and wes craven but the thing is those directors know what they are doing they were original and have talent. I'm not saying he doesn't but in what i have no idea. Maybe he's an excellent cameraman or basket waever maybe with this little film he was in over his head. Maybe a good tv-movie was more up his alley. with this film he also seems to not only be able to decide if it's a comedy or horror but then he also tried to make a teen movie here but he wasn't sure what he could get away with in terms of sex and/or violence.

Since this came on the heels of "Scream". It seemed to be a testing ground of ideas. where in some scenes there is little violence then all of a sudden gore galore. This film just seems to have an identity crisis. It wants to be all things to all people. but they seemed to stay away. I'm still trying to figure out how a single hand with no weapon or sharp objects kills someone and massacres them so bad there is splattered blood. the film may have been saved also if instead of this film going so fast to the end with practical non-stop action. if they would hae padded out the story with more details and victims. it would seem like te film had more substance. As it is now it's like a highlight reel where there are few highlights to actually show. The only person who comes away from the film unscathed is seth green and his partner in crime eldon henson. they are hilarious and seem to be having fun.

There were rumors when this film was being developed it was going to be a musical with songs by danny elfman and directed by his brother Cult director Richard Elfman (Shrunken Heads, Forbidden Zone, Modern Vampires) Now that would have been a film worth seeing that would be different not necessarily good but i guarantee it would have been a cult film if it bombed.

GRADE: D-