April Fools Day review
horror movies&stuff
[April Fools Day]
Plot:A group of eight college friends gather together at an island mansion belonging to heiress Muffy St. John to celebrate their final year of school. They soon discover that each has a hidden secret from their past which is revealed, and soon after, they turn up dead. Yet, are they really dead? Or is it just part of some very real and cruel April Fool's jokes?
Cast:
Deborah Foreman,
Ken Olandt,
Amy Steel,
Jay Baker,
Deborah Goodrich,
Griffin O'Neal,
Leah Pinsent,
Clayton Rohner,
Thomas F. Wilson
My Thoughts:Since it's April Fools Day, I figured I'd review this entertaining piece of 80s nostalgia.
Review:Everyone pretty much knows what April Fools Day is all about. Playing cruel pranks on friends,family,co workers, practically anyone and everyone you know. But heres a thought, what if it was April Fools day,you were hanging out with your friends in a large mansion, when all of a sudden,they all started turning up dead? You know what they say, it's all fun and games,until someone gets found with their head lopped off. "April Fools Day" takes nine good looking teens, one of which being Amy Steele of "Friday the 13th 2" fame, and puts them in a typical slasher movie situation. Muffy the richest one of the bunch,has inherited a mansion from one of her relatives, so she invites all of her friends to spend the weekend there with her. Things are going fine,and everyones enjoying themselves until a few people start disappearing and some fatal accidents take place. The question is, are these really accidents? Or is someone out to get this group of kids? Or is this just one big April Fools joke?What I liked about "April Fools Day" was that the killer was kept a secret throughout most of the movie.We don't ever get a clear shot of who or what is slicing and dicing these kids. Most of the film is spent with Muffy (played brilliantly by Deborah Foreman) playing pranks on all of her unsuspecting friends. Who don't appreciate her twisted sense of humor. The film keeps a light-hearted and comedical pace with the pranks, while keeping the seriousness and suspense with a few kills here and there in between. Oddly enough as the film progresses, our hostess Muffy changes from a fun loving prankster, to a weird,oddball chick sporting a catholic school girl sweater. This is another reason why this movie is hilarious as a horror comedy, because no one seems to notice this total personality u-turn Muffy has made. Whats cool about it though is that this new Muffy in an odd, yet depressing sort of way, is just as entertaining and fun to watch as the old easy going prankster Muffy.
But one has to wonder...how could someone just make a total about face personality wise so quickly? This is a question that plagues the film as it enters it's final stanza,where our two main characters learn that Muffy had a twin sister named Buffy.Is this real? Or has someone intricately planted these clues as part of some sort of sick joke? Are their friends really dead? Is Muffy really Muffy? and If not, where is and what has happened to Muffy?The film continues to pile on question after question before setting us up for a disappointing climax. As much as I liked this movie and rank it right up there with the other gems of the 80s horror movie, the ending comes as a shock, and an angering one at that. Granted now, a plot involving a twin sister who wants to take the place of her much more popular sister based on envy would be cliche, but back then they really had a chance to create an awesome story and continue the films as a series. But all of this is dumped for an ending which hits us in the face with the reason this film carries it's title..."April Fools Day". Ha ha...the jokes on us. and After watching this movie, I'm sure you like I did,felt totally duped. Of course as if things aren't already bad enough with the *Gotcha* ending,were slapped in the face again with a glimmer of hope at the very end, that theres a real killer on the loose, which is quickly stomped out with another *Gotcha* gag.*Sigh*. The moral of the story? April Fools pranks aren't fun when you're the one being pranked.
Pros:Great chase sequences at the end,the Buffy character was awesome,and Deborah Foreman gave a great performance as Muffy and her evil alter ego Buffy.
Cons:That damn ending.
Overall:Great 80s slasher, if you don't mind getting hit in the face with a big let down at the end of your horror movies.
