Review of Urban Legend (1998) by David L — 08 Nov 2015

This film feels very cheap, very predictable, and very much like a spin off from the Scream / I Know What You Did Last Summer era, but it's basically got all the characteristics of a good teen slasher - Broad range of characters, multiple suspects, plenty of over the top deaths, and a bit of cheap humour thrown in for good measure.

Rather than the usual knife or hook killings though, it adds its own degree of originality by spicing the murder scenes up through the use of Urban Legends, some of which are quite inventive. Only problem is that despite beginning well, the tales begin to peter out the more we delve into the story, with what started off as credible drawn out deaths, soon being turned into quick stab and go killings.

There are some familiar faces, many of whom are not new to this genre of movie, so they are all fairly accomplished at mastering the art of the 'oh god I'm gonna die soon' scream, but don't assume that all the famous ones live as this version mixes the rules up a bit.

If I had to be critical of it, It would just be to reiterate that some of the Urban Legends are far too lame, and as mentioned earlier, it's almost like they forget to continue the trend that could have made this movie a tad innovative.

We even get to the point where dead bodies turn up without even seeing them killed - that's a huge faux pas in a horror fans eyes! Continuity issues aside though, I've watched this flick a good few times to know that it has become quite a personal favourite.

I'd definitely recommend this movie, as it's like the 90's cult classic that was seemingly overlooked, an appetiser for the more famous horrors, or just a poor mans alternative. No matter how you view it, it is still credible in its own right and had it been released in any other era, would have no doubt come to the forefront a little more than it has done here.