Movie Review for Crazy Eights (2007)



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Crazy Eights

Review #570 of 365
Movie Review of Crazy Eights (2007) [R] 80 minutes
WIP™ Scale: $9.50
Where Viewed: AMC Westminster Promenade 24, Westminster, CO
When 1st Seen: 18 November 2007
Time: 8:00 pm
DVD Release Date: 18 March 2008 (click date to purchase or pre-order)
Film's Official Website • Film's Trailer

Soundtrack: order the CD below

Directed by: James Koya Jones ("Psychic Detectives" )
Screenplay by: Dan DeLuca (The Jersey Devil) • James Koya Jones (debut) • Ji-un Kwon (debut)

Featured Cast (Where You Might Remember Him/Her From):
Traci Lords (Novel Romance) • Frank Whaley (Vacancy) • Dina Meyer (Saw IV) • Gabrielle Anwar ("The Tudors") • George Newbern ("Providence") • Dan DeLuca ("The Wire")

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Click to read the spoiler points for Crazy Eights
It's too bad that co-writer / director James Koya Jones didn't get some studio support because the core story for his Crazy Eights on a basal level works far better and is far more interesting than say, Eli Roth's Hostel I or II or even the more accomplished Wes Craven's The Hills Have Eyes films (not the remakes the originals). Truly it does. The film opens with an idea, true or not, that sometime in the middle of this century, families in the southern USA would turn over their children to government run experimentation facilities that would subject them to a battery of tests and studies for a stipend. Most of these children, according to the film, were never heard from again. Fast forward to the present, as a gang of old friends, late thirty-somethings, who are gathering at the funeral of one of their own named Brax. Once there together in his home, it turns out he's left them a map to a time capsule they made as kids. Also turns out that they've all been having recurring nightmares. The remaining friends include: Gina Conte (Traci Lords), Brent Sykes (Frank Whaley), Dina Meyer (Jennifer Jones), Beth Patterson (Gabrielle Anwar), Father Lyle Dey (George Newbern), and Wayne Morrison (Dan DeLuca—who also co-wrote the screenplay). They decide to carry out the dying wishes of their old friend and follow the map to the time capsule. When they find it in a rural barn, they can barely imagine how they ever moved the thing it's so heavy. After unsuccessfully trying to get at the contents, they lower to the ground on a pulley system that leads to it crashing to the ground. Inside, they find various trinkets of their youth and an unexpected addition, the skeleton of a young child. Freaked out by the entire experience, they leave the box behind, but the don't get too far as they become lost in a maze of rural roads and forests. They pass this same large house three times when they suddenly think they've seen a small child run by it. Hoping to find her and some adults with directions, they get out of the car to track her down.
"… far better than some of the huge budget films released in 2007 such as Rob Zombie's Halloween and the aforementioned Hostel II and The Hills Have Eyes II."
A couple of mishaps later, they find themselves trapped in a seemingly inescapable, underground maze that opens up into rooms and facilities that bear some resemblance to a long-abandoned mental institution and hospital. As time passes, details of their past bubble to the surface as if the hospital has much to teach them and they to learn. One thing they find before they start getting killed off one-by-one is an old photo of them dressed up as a baseball team called, The Crazy Eights. But, no more spoilers here. You'll have to read the spoiler if you want to know more about the plot.

While the story certainly does suffer some of the same drawbacks as films of a similar subgenre of horror films—some predictability, some things that don’t add up, some lack of common sense, etc.—it still manages to be genuinely more frightening than its colleagues. For maximum enjoyment of these kinds of films, suspension of disbelieve is a given, but less is required here. And, unlike Eli Roth who confuses spurting guts and human torture effects for devices that generate genuine horror, James Koya Jones has created a psychologically disturbing set of circumstances with a good little mystery thrown in. The net result is a far better film than surface inspection would reveal. How could it have reached the next level and joined the ranks of the blockbuster horror films? Well, first, it would have needed more work on the script closing some gaps, opening or just tightening others. Some work on the dialogue and logical progression would have helped as well. Too many illogical or coincidental occurrences would have needed to be cut back. A little more work on the characters to make them more real would have helped—a bit of back story on each, for example. The first 10 minutes could have been devoted to their current lives and how they managed to get this time off to go to Brax's funeral would have been great. More differentiation, in fact, between them, would have heightened both the connection to them and each other. It may seem trite, but actually the notion of the six archetypal characters to which almost every one will find one with whom to identify, would have been a good thing here. A scarier sound designer and musical score would have also been a great contributor toward achieving the next level. Take any really scary movie you like and mute the sound and see the difference. And, lastly, there might have had to be a couple of cast substitutions, though this cast is actually pretty good.

People might be too quick to dismiss this film as part of After Dark's HorrorFest 2007 when, in fact, it deserves a closer look. James K. Jones and Dan DeLuca have made a very valiant attempt to weave together the psychological mystery and horror film genres with more success than the film reveals at first glance. It's certainly far better than some of the huge budget films released in 2007 such as Rob Zombie's Halloween and the aforementioned Hostel II and The Hills Have Eyes II.

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Cast Members
Traci Lords • Frank Whaley • Dina Meyer
Gabrielle Anwar • George Newbern • Dan DeLuca
Director
James Koya Jones
Writers
Dan DeLuca • James Koya Jones • Ji-un Kwon
Review-lite Crazy Eights (2007) [max of 150 words]
Don't be too quick to dismiss Crazy Eights, part of After Dark's HorrorFest 2007 when, in fact, it deserves a closer look. James K. Jones and Dan DeLuca have made a very valiant attempt to weave together the psychological mystery and horror film genres with more success than the film reveals at first glance. It's certainly far better than some of the huge budget films released in 2007 such as Rob Zombie's Halloween and the aforementioned Hostel II and The Hills Have Eyes II.
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