Boogeyman

Boo who?: Boogeyman kills itself with fright-flick clichés

By Mike Prevatt

Finally, someone said it. "Audiences are going to make a decision from the marketing standpoint more than from what critics say," Sony Pictures distribution head Rory Bruer told the L.A. Times recently. Translation: The movie studio knows what's good for its audience--especially in regard to its latest horror flick Boogeyman, which Sony did not offer pre-release media screenings for because, regardless of its promotional prowess, it knew critics would butcher the movie. Either way, its strategists were right--Boogeyman made around $20 million the past weekend without any press.

Now that the slasher-flick fiends have bum-rushed the megaplexes for the film, perhaps it, like some of its characters, will die a quick death. Boogeyman does nothing for the ever-popular horror genre except carry on the tradition of cheaply made films that pander to teenagers who like to watch actors meet their maker in grisly and disturbing ways, and squirm in anticipation of such violence.

The main character of Boogeyman, Tim (Barry Watson, from TV's "7th Heaven"), does his fair share of twitching himself, as someone still struggling with childhood fears of that bad, shadowy man behind closet doors and under the bed. He blames his lifelong tormentor for the disappearance of his father, and after the death of his mother, Tim returns to the old--and now abandoned--family house, where his nemesis is waiting.

This is hardly worth bristling over, if only because, like most modern teen thrillers, Boogeyman relies on the same clichés--sudden explosions of sound, heavy breathing, creaking doors open ajar, ominous lighting--to cue the so-called scary parts. With every money shot prepped, there's no surprise factor. But what do I know? After all, the ads make it look scary, right?