All Cheerleaders Die, 2013.
Written and Directed by Lucky McKee and Chris Sivertson.
Starring Caitlin Stasey, Sianoa Smit-McPhee, Brooke Butler, Amanda Grace Cooper and Reanin Johannink.
SYNOPSIS:
A rebellious girl signs up to her high school’s cheerleading squad with a mind to take down the captain of their high school football team, but a supernatural turn of events thrusts her and the rest of the squad into a very different battle.
First off, this is not your typical high school / cheerleader movie. This film is everything that Jennifer’s Body tried (and failed) to be – and then some.
The story starts off as most high school movies do: brief introductions to some of the characters, some funky music, a couple of stoners and a whole lot of bitchiness. Very abruptly though, we learn that this is very much its own beast as someone meets a most unfortunate end in the most delightfully sudden way.
Following on from the opening, and within the next ten or so minutes, the tone is very much set for this film – a dark, grisly and sleazy comedy seemingly straight out of the mind of Roger Corman.
I wasn’t sure what to expect as I watched it but I became a happy viewer in no time at all as the story raced along throwing out hysterical jokes and gruesome set pieces, while maintaining the sort of cattiness that you might find in Mean Girls – although these are some very mean girls (sorry about that, couldn’t help myself).
The direction throughout is superb and only adds to the fast pace by not wasting a single bit of screen time on anything frivolous, instead focussing only on scantily clad women and wonderfully bloody deaths.
You have to give a lot of credit to the entire cast for this movie as they all seem to be having the time of their lives on screen. Whether it’s the Wiccan casting spells or the cheerleader eating a friend’s neighbour, everything is done with enough gusto and self awareness that you just can’t help but be entertained. And if that isn’t enough, I can happily tell you that this film is one of the funniest I’ve seen this year.
This movie would be brilliant for anyone who has a dark sense of humour and enjoys watching rapscallions get their comeuppance, and would be especially appreciated by fans of films like Evil Dead 2.
Admittedly, the film does verge on going overboard on a few occasions and may not be to everyone’s liking but I honestly had such a good time watching it that I’ll happily ignore a lot of the small faults it has.
I don’t really want to ruin the story or the set pieces by telling you too much more so I’ll just say that if you’re in the mood for a teen-horror-comedy that is unashamedly ridiculous; this is the film for you.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Ozzy Armstrong is a Stargate and Rocky superfan. Follow him on Twitter.
Originally published October 11, 2013. Updated April 11, 2018.
