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Wildthings (1998)


This movie has one or two more twists than you probably think it will have, and they all pretty much works. 

When I'm watching a "mystery thriller," I don't want to feel cheated, and withholding information or tricking the viewer in some fashion makes me feel cheated. I don't feel cheated watching Wildthings. The only "cheat" I can maybe point out is when the music "leads" you to think in a specific direction. If you watched the movie super close, you might be able to see a character act in a certain way when no one is looking that wouldn't make much sense if you thought about it, but I don't have any specific scenes in mind to point out. Overall, the coherence and integrity of the plot is good. The first hour is played straight, and then everything turns. As you watch the first hour, see if you can figure out the turn, and remember, it's going to be "turns," not just "turn."

I do wonder why Denise Richards isn't also given over-the-title billing. Was she just not a big enough star when the picture came out? But that's a minor observation. She's definitely as important as the three other main co-stars. 

What I like about the film is that, rather than "unpack" the explanation for how everything happened before the official ending, it waits until the credits to connect the dots. I mean, most of them you can figure out, but it's still nice to visualize some of the dots that aren't as apparent, or that might even feel like "plot stretches" until you see that yes, everything playing out in the film makes sense.

I've seen the film a few times now, but I still remember watching it the first time. I don't know if my jaw was on the floor or now when I finished the watching the film the first time, but I do remember being pleasantly surprised that this was actually a quality film. The bonus: Bill Murray as the shady lawyer about a decade before Saul Goodman. He does a great job in his role, and yes, you will catch him in an "after the official ending" scene. 

I never think of this as one of my "Top Movies," but it is one of my favorites, especially for the genre. 

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