Rating: 
Summary: "Crime + Punishment" DVD Review
Review: Rob Schmidt's modern day take on Dostoyevsky is a promising film that is so drowned in glossy imagery and bleak characters that it never seems to generate the type of interest in story-telling that it should. Monica Keena is the beautiful head cheerleader who seems to have the perfect life but in reality is trapped in a suburban nightmare. Vincent Kartheiser ("Another Day In Paradise") is the token bright but misunderstood outcast who lusts for Keena but can't find a way to her heart. When she murders her abusive stepfather with the help of her jock boyfriend, the evidence ends up pointing to her mother. This leads to a cycle of events that never seem to be captured with the level of drama or intesity that you'd expect. "Crime + Punishment" is as dark and devoid of energy as Larry Clark's "Kids" or Darren Aronofsky's "Requeim For A Dream" but it doesn't stand out the way they did. There are some solid perfomances from Keena and the always-dependable Michael Ironside as her drunken stepdad but none of the characters ever seem to stand out. While the story bares a passing resemblance to "American Beauty" in some areas, Schmidt never seems to move past his love for visual flare and give us any type of intriguing character moments. Keena's closing narrative makes for a good way to end the film but it seems like a case of "too little, too late" in my opinion.
Rating: 
Summary: The best "Teen" movie yet.
Review: Some reviewers say this movie is a teen movie. It isn't. Some people say it's based on Crime and Punishment. It's not."Crime and Punishment in Suburbia" is a excellent film about being misunderstood. Vincent Kartheiser's portrayal of Vincent is truly excellent and very believable because we've all gone through our cynical goth phase at some point in our lives. I really can understand and identify with the silent anger and cynicism that he feels as he deals with the young woman that he loves and the other people around her. The writers, actors and the director of Crime and Punishment in Suburbia have really tapped into the angst of teenage/young adult angst and created a beautiful film that truly deserved more praise. Let's hope it grows as a cult classic over the years.
Rating:
Summary: The best "Teen" movie yet.
Review: Some reviewers say this movie is a teen movie. It isn't. Some people say it's based on Crime and Punishment. It's not. "Crime and Punishment in Suburbia" is a excellent film about being misunderstood. Vincent Kartheiser's portrayal of Vincent is truly excellent and very believable because we've all gone through our cynical goth phase at some point in our lives. I really can understand and identify with the silent anger and cynicism that he feels as he deals with the young woman that he loves and the other people around her. The writers, actors and the director of Crime and Punishment in Suburbia have really tapped into the angst of teenage/young adult angst and created a beautiful film that truly deserved more praise. Let's hope it grows as a cult classic over the years.
Rating: 
Summary: American Beauty Flashbacks
Review: The similarities I found between this film and American Beauty were incredible. Although entertaining in it's own right, I kept on getting dragged into the mindset of comparing every scene and ever action to A.B.
Where to begin? Firstly there's the stalker-like kid who has to photograph everything (except the budget for this film could only afford a still SLR camera, instead of a Sony DV Camcorder), then there's the honey, who becomes something of an object of infatuation for the stalker-kid. And, of course, in the manner of 99.9% of all american movies, the nerdy, stalker-kid gets the honey.
This may seem like a major generalisation, and only a small number of points at which comparisons can be drawn, however, the number of nuances in the film that will lead you to believe the same are incredible.
Rating:
Summary: Better Than Hunting
Review: There was something about this movie that drew me to it. I saw Monica Keena was in it and I had always thought her character 'Abby Morgan' in Dawson's Creek was interesting, so I hired it. At first I had no idea what to make of this movie, but as it progreesed I knew there was something between Roseanne (Monica Keena) and Vincent (Vincent Karthiser). Vincent was meant to be the kinda scary stalker type but he was actually sweet, caring and understanding to Roseanne, even though he knew her better than she thought. This movie was somewhat haunting and I could not stop thinking about it for days. I watched it about three times and each time I heard words I missed previous times. Roseanne's "Help me" to Vincent something I didn't catch at first because she was whispering but that scene was great. The end was my favourite part. I loved the song that was playing. I had definently fallen for Vincent as well. I would recommend you to see 'Crime and Punishment in Suburbia' because a picture of Vincent's face is worth more than 1000 words.
Rating: 
Summary: Quite an enigma
Review: There's no better way to put it, this film is an enigma, at least for me. At times it can be laughable because of how serious it takes itself and at other moments you get drawn into the obsessive tone of the film. It's hard to categorize this film when it simply wants to enjoy being anonymous and ellusive. The film would probably be a good cult movie if only it had a cult following. Though it could never live up to the competitors, including Donnie Darko (which had a better script, actors, and director). Though being a very loose adaptation of the classic novel, it might draw people to enquire about the novel. I would hope that would be one of the outcomes of people viewing this film. But if you're looking for a dark teen film watch Donnie Darko instead.
Rating:
Summary: Quite an enigma
Review: There's no better way to put it, this film is an enigma, at least for me. At times it can be laughable because of how serious it takes itself and at other moments you get drawn into the obsessive tone of the film. It's hard to categorize this film when it simply wants to enjoy being anonymous and ellusive. The film would probably be a good cult movie if only it had a cult following. Though it could never live up to the competitors, including Donnie Darko (which had a better script, actors, and director). Though being a very loose adaptation of the classic novel, it might draw people to enquire about the novel. I would hope that would be one of the outcomes of people viewing this film. But if you're looking for a dark teen film watch Donnie Darko instead.
Rating:
Summary: Become absorbed in the beauty of premeditated murder...
Review: This film blends colorful film-making with the macabre tale of a teen beauty who can not bear the abuse of her step-father any longer. She takes matters into her own hands by joining with her jock boyfriend to attack and murder him. The thing that makes this film stand above the rest is the manner in which the story unfolds. The film illustrates how a good director can turn such a classic story as "Crime and Punishment" into an modern work of genius. Watching the story unfold makes you feel like you're right in the middle of it.
Rating:
Summary: Wow
Review: This film wowed me. I truly wasn't expecting the kind of film I saw. I expected more of a _gee lets get naked and show our lusty teen bodies then kill people and listen to MTV friendly music!_ kind of film but that's not quite what I got. Instead I got a rather pleasant viewing experience, Monica Keena, an actress I had never seen, nor heard of before watching this movie, really got to me with this weighted eyes and a crying in the shower scene that looked to be straight out of Leaving Las Vegas. Also this film had the dumb jock boyfriend but a new take on the dumb jock boyfriend that most teen movies seem to have. The dumb jock boyfriend was more or less pretty sensitive, he loved Keena's character enough to kill for her. And of course, this movie featured your typical teen film, freaky, dressed in black, messed up haricutted (yeah double negative, so what?) outsider kid, with, yes, a camera. This all jumbled together some how made a nice film that I enjoyed a lot. I give this film a 4 because I had a big problem believing that Rosanna (Keena) wouldn't have just let her mother go to jail. Her mother, played by Ellen Barkin, left with her new boyfriend and left poor Rosanna alone in a house with an obviously abusive, alcoholic, stepfather that was clearly disturbed. Then she calls and gets the guy all set off, leading to the eventual... well, watch the movie and find out what the little call from mom did to help out Rosanna's day. If it were me I would have let mom go to jail and I would have gotten away with the perfect crime. But hey, that's just me.
Rating:
Summary: A solid cast and story, destroyed by the pretentious styling
Review: This movie is an example of how badly an interesting and solid story can be squandered due to a directors ridiculous excesses. The plot follows a teenage girl who is tormented by her family situation, and she commits a rather brutal crime and she eventually can't live with whats happened as a result of it, and she gives in. That's a rather generic plot outline, but I don't like giving away plot-lines in my review. I think a general outline should suffice. Rob Schmidt, the director, has decided to let his presence be known at every place he can, from the ridiculous chapter slides at the beginning of each section of the film, to the style of the film itself. It is so self-consciously arty, its like he can't let the story simply unfold. The voiceovers from the angelic faced stalker are the most troubling aspect, I hate voiceovers in general, but these are the most pretentious ones I have heard in a long time. Note to future filmmakers: NO PHILOSOPHY IN VOICEOVERS. The reason I give it three stars, is basically because of the acting. Monica Keena gives a very convincing performance, and shows that talent lurks underneath the very enticing exterior. Michael Ironside gives an outstanding performance as the abusive father, his spontaneous explosions of fury are very convincing. Ellen Barkin and others all flourish in supporting roles. This movie could have been great, very very easily. The story was there, but the Director had to become an artist at the expense of the film, which I think will turn a lot of people off.
| 
