Review of River's Edge (1986) by Jim H — 08 Oct 2011

A high schooler kills his girlfriend, and his friends have varied reactions, some attempting to help him escape, others apathetic, and others telling the police.

I've read the many reviews that describe this film as an exploration of the then-contemporary distance between action and morality and stimulus and morality, but this theme isn't explored; it's shown in the characters' actions then interpreted for us by the one of the adult characters. And how can Crispin Glover's performance be called anything except over-acting at its worse. Glover's characteristic dorky, halting delivery is accentuated to the nth degree, and Layne is so ridiculous that it is unbelievable that even John would hang out with him. What's worse, because Canoehead hasn't an original, creative bone in his body, he picks up Glover's mannerisms, and the scenes between Layne and Matt become so obnoxiously entrenched in a cliched surfer culture that I felt myself get stupider.

In the story, there is no suspense or mystery. We know early on who tells the cops, and though it's structured like In Cold Blood, where the gory details of the murder provide the story's climax, by the time the killer's reasons are revealed, I had already lost interest.

Overall, there are people who see profundity in River's Edge, but I'm not one of them.