Review of The Good Son (1993) by Johnny T — 02 Dec 2012

Written by British novelist Ian McEwan, whose "The Cement Garden" and "The Comfort of Strangers" (both of which have been made into films) are darkly ambiguous stories of desire, deceptive appearances and hidden violence, The Good Son is a second-rate thriller with first-rate production values. On a lower budget and without the hottest child star in America in the cast, Ruben and McEwan might have made a meaner, tougher and more successful thriller. There's wonderful use made of a Maine port town, and Ruben gets a dizzying thrill or two out of overhead shots, but the conceptual overload finally prevents this from coming together. The movie is a creepy, unpleasant experience, made all the worse because it stars children too young to understand the horrible things we see them doing. I guarantee you this would have been 100% more effective if Wood and Culkin switched roles. This peculiar thriller doesn't deliver enough jolts to leave the audience screaming but the suspenseful ending that is quite literally gripping.

VERDICT: "Not So Hot" - [Negative Reaction] These films are truly terrible films. They are not the worst things ever made, but they are definitely awful and should not be seen by anyone. (Films that are rated 1.5 or 2 stars).