Review of Girls Against Boys (2012) by Mike S — 12 Jun 2013

Austin Chick's GIRLS AGAINST BOYS is, on the surface at least, a fairly derivative horror film. In terms of the overall narrative of the film, it borrows from other horror films, such as I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE. What makes GIRLS AGAINST BOYS stand out, however, is the manner in which the story is told. Modern horror filmmakers seem to think that bombarding the screen with an endless supply of blood and gore is what makes a film scary. Chick avoids that now cliche of the genre and holds the gore to a minimum. Perhaps taking a page from the Ti West playbook, Chick's film is very much a slow-burn. Adding to this is the fact that everything in GIRLS AGAINST BOYS is presented as being so matter-of-fact that when the bad things start to happen, they're a bit more unsettling because of how mundane they are presented. For example, the character Lu (Nicole LaLiberte) shoots another character towards the middle of the film. There's no grand build up to this moment, there's no traditional Hollywood elements (such as swelling music, etc.) that lend the scene a chance to be this big grand moment in the film. Instead, she does so just as she would go about any normal daily activity, which makes it all the more chilling. The rest of the violence in GIRLS AGAINST BOYS is portrayed in a very similar fashion and really makes the viewer unsettled.

The performances by the two leads in this film are excellent. Danielle Panabaker portrays Shae, the film's main protagonist. Panabaker embodies a certain girl-next-door quality in Shae that paints a stark contrast to Lu (LaLiberte) whom is her companion in the film and the more aggressive of the two. It is Lu that leads Shae on a trail of revenge for the attack on Shae following a drunken night on the town, and the relationship between the two girls becomes more and more twisted as the film heads towards its climax, and Panabaker and LaLiberte do a fantastic job playing off of one another.