April Fool's Day

Rating:
Summary: A PLEASANTLY SURPRISING THRILLER!
Review: I'll admit that I'm the person who watches a horror flick with my hands over my eyes, with my eyes peeking through. When I read the back of the box, I expected I would be doing this the whole way through. I was in for a surprise. April Fool's Day was more mystery than anything else. I found myself breathless with suspense at some moments, and with others I was giggling.This movie was better than expected. It is years ahead of the current copycat whodunnits around like Scream among others. And Deborah Foreman is a delight! I thought she was hilarious and sweet in Valley Girl(also a film to watch), and I liked her even more as an actress here. Anyway I definitely recommend this film to anyone who is tired of the pointless horror films around and enjoys intelligent, creative suspense. Check it out!

Rating:
Summary: Unexpected Good Movie
Review: I just happened to rent "April Fool's Day" with my friends in college. We had always commented on seeing the cover when we were children and how we were intrigued by the girl's hair, styled like a noose. Having watched many other B-horrow movies, we figured this one would be the same and we'd have a good laugh. What we got was something totally unexpected; "April Fool's Day" actually is a good movie!

The story centers around a group of friends who all decide to stay together at their friend's house. As soon as they arrive strange things start happening. All is good until their hostess begins a transformation into someone no one expected her to be. This is when people start dying. There is the typical running, crying, chasing, falling, and everything else that's obligatory to a horror film, but it's the ending that will really get you! It definitely had me and my friends shocked, so shocked we had to watch the movie all over again!!

I would highly recommend this film to horror lovers as well as people who want to watch a really cool and funny film!

Rating:
Summary: Wish there were extras...
Review: "April Fool's Day" is yet another one of those holiday themed slasher films that emerged in the wake of the "Halloween" and "Friday the 13th" successes. You know all about them if you follow the genre in any substantive way--movies with names like "Mother's Day," "Graduation Day," "My Bloody Valentine," and "Silent Night, Deadly Night." O.K., the last two don't specifically refer to dates, but it doesn't take a genius to infer that the two films play on Valentine's Day and Christmas. The slasher genre never died out thanks in large part to the billion plus sequels in the "Halloween" and "Friday the 13th" franchises, but their poorer cousins did fade into obscurity until DVD resurrected them. All I can say about that is thank goodness! I'm the first to admit that some of these films fail to rise above mediocrity, but several of them are quite good. "April Fool's Day" definitely falls into the latter category. The film doesn't contain a lot of gore we stalk and slash lovers have come to know and love, but the central plot of the film and its amazing twist ending makes the movie well worth watching. There is no other way to say it--"April Fool's Day" is actually a spoof of the entire slasher phenomena, and it spoofs the genre years before "Scream" appeared on the scene.

What makes "April Fool's Day" so different from the other slasher films? You won't notice anything amiss for most of the film. The plot is quite basic: a gang of college students accepts an invitation from a rich classmate to spend a few days at her opulent house on a remote island. The girl inviting all of her friends, Muffy Saint John (great name, eh?), is a bit of an oddball. She's rich, though, so all of her pals don't hesitate to accept the invite. Besides, who wouldn't like to spend some time rambling around a huge house out in the sticks? It could be fun. Trouble rears its ugly head from the start. An accident on the ferry trip out to the house, the result of a prank gone horribly wrong, seriously injures a local and causes some heavy guilt amongst Saint John's guests. The tension never lets down once the group arrives at the house, as Muffy shrewdly installed a series of April Fool's type gags in the various rooms of her guests. Even worse, subplots in the main story reveal relationship problems and uncertainties about the future among several of the visitors. The whole vacation teeters on the edge of total disaster before plunging into an abyss of murder, mayhem, and sheer insanity.

The next morning after the young adults arrive something sinister happens to Muffy. She appears to assume an entirely different personality by changing her dress, her mannerisms, and her relations with the guests. As if that's not bad enough, some of the youths start to disappear. It becomes obvious very quickly that a killer is on the loose in the house and on the grounds. No one is safe from this crazed wacko, not any of Muffy's friends or any of the locals unfortunate enough to venture onto the property. As people disappear one by one, two of the guests begin to uncover the madness behind Muffy Saint John's house and her private life. The picture isn't pretty; it appears that Muffy had a twin who went stark raving mad as a child, and now BUFFY Saint John has returned to wreak bloody havoc on her sister and her friends. It could very well end up that no one will escape the wrath of this warped sibling. As the surviving pair attempts to get away from the house, they finally come face to face with Muffy's alter ego in a conclusion that is sure to get your goat. Perhaps you will be one of those astute viewers who saw it all coming before it happened, but I didn't. Then again, I'm one of those sheep who blithely accepts nearly everything I see on the screen at face value. I did not see this ending coming at all, which is ridiculous considering the title of the film.

"April Fool's Day" is a fun movie even if you don't enjoy watching horror movies. The gore is mostly non-existent, the characters are lots of fun, and the conclusion will have you hitting yourself upside the head in "Gee, ain't I stupid" glee. I liked most of the actors, especially the always beautiful and enjoyable Deborah Foreman in the role of Muffy Saint John. Foreman has a real girl next door quality that I find irresistible. The movie plays on that quality to deliver a few shocks towards the end of the film as her character threatens her surviving guests. The look on her face--a look of cold, detached murder--was downright chilling to watch. The other actors and actresses did a good job as well. Look for Griffin O'Neal playing a troubled young man (what a stretch there!), Thomas F. Wilson as the group cut up (he played Biff in the "Back to the Future" trilogy), and B movie fave Ken Olandt as one of the survivors who battles Saint John in the end (he starred opposite Jennifer Aniston in the first "Leprechaun" film).

The only problem I had with the movie was the DVD version. The extras are non-existent. Too bad considering the price of the disc, but the film has such a neat ending it hardly mattered. I remember when this one came out and unfortunately I was not old enough to see it (and still hesitant to attempt a sneak in at the theater). At least the DVD gives us a nice widescreen picture transfer with good audio. Give this one a shot if you love slasher flicks. You'll like it!

Rating:
Summary: Finally!
Review: I'm so glad that Paramount is finally getting its act together and releasing some of their "classic" 80's horror films. I'm looking forward to getting these movies in widescreen transfers after years of dealing with fullscreen editions.
Let me start off by saying that I know this movie doesn't hold up on repeated viewings. I will, however, never forget the first time I saw it and how big of a shock the ending was. Everyone feels differently about it, you'll either love it or hate it.
This movie is high camp and almost has that pre-Scream tounge-in-cheek attitude about it. It is actually quite clever and reminds me a lot of Ten Little Indians and other "trapped with a killer" stories.
I'll also say that its NEVER a good idea to buy a movie you haven't seen before. So many reviews I read are from people who get angry when they buy a movie they haven't already experienced and then give it bad marks because they thought they wasted their money. DON'T BUY SOMETHING YOU HAVEN'T SEEN BEFORE! THEN YOU CAN'T BE DISAPPOINTED! I'll buy this because I like the movie and have good memories of watching it at parties...I know that Paramount won't put any extras on it because they seemingly have no vault where they keep goodies. They are still EONS behind in the DVD market...almost embarassingly so, but I'm not buying the DVD for extras...just to have it will be nice.

Rating:
Summary: Watch it. You Know You've Been Wanting To
Review: I'm willing to bet you've put this film off for years. I'm sure you've seen it at the video store numerous times throughout the years, and you may have been intrigued by the cover with the chick holding the knife behind her back with her hair in a noose. Well, it may not be worth all those years of putting it off, but you'd might as well take that plunge now that the film is out on dvd. Ya know, this movie is actually pretty good considering it's a slasher flick. Slasher flicks aren't exactly the mark of quality, but this one has some decent performances and a good script that actually conjures up a few scares. Don't get me wrong, this movie isn't gonna keep you up all night or anything, but with a formulatic genre like this, April Fool's Day manages to be kinda spooky. And it's actually funny too! Alot of slasher flicks can't quite pull off the humor thing, but this movie actually manages to be laugh out loud funny. The humor and scares can be put down to some very good performances by the young cast. Most slasher flicks have acting that leaves much to be desired, but I'd have to say this movie has the best acting of any slasher flick I've seen(and I've seen many). The ending of this film gets mixed opinions. Some people see it as a letdown, while others find it quite original. I'm in the latter category, but it's one of those endings that's only gonna work once. Similar to Primal Fear or The Sixth Sense, the twist is good for the first viewing only, but that doesn't mean you won't enjoy watching it again. Just make sure you watch it with someone who hasn't seen it before.

Rating:
Summary: April Fool's Day
Review: April Fool's Day [ Horror ]

MY CURRENT RATINGS:
7/10 Movie: April Fool's Day (1986)

An above average horror movie.This was definetly a better horror movie in the 80's.I would reccomend this movie to anyone.The ending is great!If for nothing else go to see the ending.It's really a who-dun-it film that doen't really much on gore which is good for some of you quesy people out there.

Rating:
Summary: I love this film.
Review: What can I say? It's not the best film ever made, but it is a lot of fun. It starts out as your basic slasher film; good looking young people on an isolated island get killed one by one. Then you get to the ending, which breaks out of the formula. A delightful movie. I just wish the DVD edition had some extras.

Rating:
Summary: April Fool's Day (1986)
Review: A suprise delight of a horror/mystery film, "April Fool's Day" is an enjoyable slasher romp that has some suspenseful scenes and a good cast. Muffy St. John (played by Deborah Foreman) invites a large group of college students to her mansion for a weekend party. Many of the students are surprised and suspicious about the invitation, for they do not like Muffy and do not understand such a selfless deed. Fun and games (which mainly consists of reading poetry and playing practical jokes) turns to terror when a killer prowls the mansion and starts knocking off the teens one by one.

Director Fred Walton uses a funny, yet haunting script to create a slasher film with a twist. Nothing too special, for it stills holds very true with the genre, "April Fool's Day" will greatly satisfy fans of a film that combines humor and violence, while others purely dedicated to the slice-and-dice theme might be turned off. All in all, this is a film for those who enjoy horror sprinkled with laughs.

Rating:
Summary: Wish there were extras...
Review: "April Fool's Day" is yet another one of those holiday themed slasher films that emerged in the wake of the "Halloween" and "Friday the 13th" successes. You know all about them if you follow the genre in any substantive way--movies with names like "Mother's Day," "Graduation Day," "My Bloody Valentine," and "Silent Night, Deadly Night." O.K., the last two don't specifically refer to dates, but it doesn't take a genius to infer that the two films play on Valentine's Day and Christmas. The slasher genre never died out thanks in large part to the billion plus sequels in the "Halloween" and "Friday the 13th" franchises, but their poorer cousins did fade into obscurity until DVD resurrected them. All I can say about that is thank goodness! I'm the first to admit that some of these films fail to rise above mediocrity, but several of them are quite good. "April Fool's Day" definitely falls into the latter category. The film doesn't contain a lot of gore we stalk and slash lovers have come to know and love, but the central plot of the film and its amazing twist ending makes the movie well worth watching. There is no other way to say it--"April Fool's Day" is actually a spoof of the entire slasher phenomena, and it spoofs the genre years before "Scream" appeared on the scene.

What makes "April Fool's Day" so different from the other slasher films? You won't notice anything amiss for most of the film. The plot is quite basic: a gang of college students accepts an invitation from a rich classmate to spend a few days at her opulent house on a remote island. The girl inviting all of her friends, Muffy Saint John (great name, eh?), is a bit of an oddball. She's rich, though, so all of her pals don't hesitate to accept the invite. Besides, who wouldn't like to spend some time rambling around a huge house out in the sticks? It could be fun. Trouble rears its ugly head from the start. An accident on the ferry trip out to the house, the result of a prank gone horribly wrong, seriously injures a local and causes some heavy guilt amongst Saint John's guests. The tension never lets down once the group arrives at the house, as Muffy shrewdly installed a series of April Fool's type gags in the various rooms of her guests. Even worse, subplots in the main story reveal relationship problems and uncertainties about the future among several of the visitors. The whole vacation teeters on the edge of total disaster before plunging into an abyss of murder, mayhem, and sheer insanity.

The next morning after the young adults arrive something sinister happens to Muffy. She appears to assume an entirely different personality by changing her dress, her mannerisms, and her relations with the guests. As if that's not bad enough, some of the youths start to disappear. It becomes obvious very quickly that a killer is on the loose in the house and on the grounds. No one is safe from this crazed wacko, not any of Muffy's friends or any of the locals unfortunate enough to venture onto the property. As people disappear one by one, two of the guests begin to uncover the madness behind Muffy Saint John's house and her private life. The picture isn't pretty; it appears that Muffy had a twin who went stark raving mad as a child, and now BUFFY Saint John has returned to wreak bloody havoc on her sister and her friends. It could very well end up that no one will escape the wrath of this warped sibling. As the surviving pair attempts to get away from the house, they finally come face to face with Muffy's alter ego in a conclusion that is sure to get your goat. Perhaps you will be one of those astute viewers who saw it all coming before it happened, but I didn't. Then again, I'm one of those sheep who blithely accepts nearly everything I see on the screen at face value. I did not see this ending coming at all, which is ridiculous considering the title of the film.

"April Fool's Day" is a fun movie even if you don't enjoy watching horror movies. The gore is mostly non-existent, the characters are lots of fun, and the conclusion will have you hitting yourself upside the head in "Gee, ain't I stupid" glee. I liked most of the actors, especially the always beautiful and enjoyable Deborah Foreman in the role of Muffy Saint John. Foreman has a real girl next door quality that I find irresistible. The movie plays on that quality to deliver a few shocks towards the end of the film as her character threatens her surviving guests. The look on her face--a look of cold, detached murder--was downright chilling to watch. The other actors and actresses did a good job as well. Look for Griffin O'Neal playing a troubled young man (what a stretch there!), Thomas F. Wilson as the group cut up (he played Biff in the "Back to the Future" trilogy), and B movie fave Ken Olandt as one of the survivors who battles Saint John in the end (he starred opposite Jennifer Aniston in the first "Leprechaun" film).

The only problem I had with the movie was the DVD version. The extras are non-existent. Too bad considering the price of the disc, but the film has such a neat ending it hardly mattered. I remember when this one came out and unfortunately I was not old enough to see it (and still hesitant to attempt a sneak in at the theater). At least the DVD gives us a nice widescreen picture transfer with good audio. Give this one a shot if you love slasher flicks. You'll like it!

Rating:
Summary: It's a Cut Above Many '80s Slasher Flicks. No Foolin'!
Review: Another teen horror film whose creators hoped to garner a few drops from the lucrative post-HALLOWEEN slasher-flick fount of the 1980s, APRIL FOOL'S DAY is surprisingly a cut above many of its contemporaries. The film contains relatively little graphic gore, no actual nudity, and some pretty good actors, thereby going against the cookie-cutter recipe and, instead, concentrating on the development of likable characters, eerie atmosphere, and some genuinely effective spook-show scares.

The plot unfolds at a sequestered island estate, familial home to wealthy college student Muffy St. John. Having the big house to herself the weekend of April 1st, Muffy has invited some of her fellow ivy-league students to spend a few days partying with her. Get a bunch of college kids together on April Fool's Day and, of course, the practical jokes abound. But this is a slasher flick, remember, so it isn't too long until the kiddos start turning up dead. But who's responsible for the bloodshed? Hostess Muffy? The boatman who ferried the group over to the island? One of Muffy's remaining guests? Or is there some other secret hiding behind the doors of the old family mansion?

APRIL FOOL'S DAY offers a successful combination of mystery, horror, and humor, and the talented young cast delivers both the suspense and the laughs without taking it too far over the top. The film's subtle scares and toned-down gore make it more akin to older psychological spook films like THE HAUNTING (1963) and THE LEGEND OF HELL HOUSE (1973) than to typical slasher fare, and this, combined with the good writing and good acting, make it stand out above many of the other teen horror flicks of the 1980s. Admittedly, the twist ending might be a letdown for some horror fans, and those gore hounds who watch slasher flicks solely for the blood and guts will probably find the entire film too tame. But true horror aficionados who enjoy the entire range and history of the genre should at least give APRIL FOOL'S DAY a once-over.

Avid filmgoers will enjoy seeing the film's familiar faces from the 1980s and 1990s. Deborah Foreman, who plays Muffy, is probably best known for her roles in comedies like 1983's VALLEY GIRL, 1985's REAL GENIUS, and 1986's MY CHAUFFER. Film fans will no doubt recognize Clayton Rohner from his appearance in the comedy JUST ONE OF THE GUYS (1985), as well as from genre films such as THE RELIC (1997) and SOMETIMES THEY COME BACK...FOR MORE (1999). Hardcore genre fans will be delighted to see Amy Steel, known for her appearances in some of the FRIDAY THE 13th films, and SF fans will get a kick out of spotting Thomas F. Wilson, who is probably better known as bully Biff Tannen in the BACK TO THE FUTURE film series.

As with many DVDs from Paramount, the disc is short on extras. However, it offers a beautifully crisp and clean digital transfer in anamorphic widescreen at the film's original aspect ratio of 2.35:1. And at the very reasonable amazon.com price, horror fans can easily afford to add this one to their growing DVD collections.