Death of a Cheerleader (UK Title)(also known as "A Friend To Die For")
1994; USA; 87 min.
Director: William A. Graham
Screenplay: Randall Sullivan, Dan Bronson
Music: Chris Boardman
Cast:
Angela Delvecchio - Kellie Martin
Stacy Lockwood - Tori Spelling
Agent Gilwood - James Avery
Priest - Eugene Roche
Mr. Delvecchio - Andy Romano
Jill Anderson - Margaret Langrick
I ended up watching "Death of a Cheerleader," because I was bored, sick, and flipped the channel to ABC Family. Why I kept watching the movie - I don't know. I guess I wanted to see what kind of an actress Tori Spelling was, considering I've seen her on her reality TV show. Many people consider her to be a prime example of nepotism, due to the fact that her father is the late Aaron Spelling. The plot of this movie happened to be somewhat interesting. The plot begins with queen bee, Stacy Lockwood (Tori Spelling), knocking on a woman's door to ask if she can use her phone. Stacy, the quintessential example of "the most popular girl at school," says that her friend that she was with has been acting really "weird" and wants to try and call for someone to pick her up. When her parents don't answer the phone at her house, Stacy is offered a ride home from the woman's husband. What is interesting about this scene is that I thought that the man was the killer, however, I was wrong. Stacy arrives home and is assaulted and fatally stabbed. The movie then continues with a flashback to one of the first days of high school. We see many teenagers sitting in the auditorium, and the camera focuses on a stereotypical goth, depressed Monica Whitley (Kathryn Morris). The camera then pans over to Angela Delvecchio (Kellie Martin), who is sitting with one of her friends. After an inspiring speech by the Principal, Angela tells her friend that this year will be the "best year ever." Angela wants to become the editor of the yearbook, to be a cheerleader on the school's team, and to be part of the Larks, a service group of popular teen girls. Angela doesn't get selected for neither the yearbook nor the cheerleading team. However, all of the girls that Angela aspires to be, especially Stacy Lockwood, do. The rest of the plot unfolds as Angela tries to fit in with the catty, obnoxious Stacy and the popular crowd.
This movie (I don't even think it can be called a film) is extremely predictable. The movie wants you to think that a certain person committed the crime, however, personally I thought that the killer was obvious from the first moment we see the person. Throughout the whole film, the blame is put on one person. This person's character then develops in such a way that her act appears to be believable. However, this person doesn't turn out to be the victim. I'm sure that the confession of the killing is supposed to be shocking, although, it was definitely not surprising whatsoever. This movie is definitely not of the best quality. Maybe it's the cheesy 90s over-exaggerated high school scene that takes away from the success of the movie. One thing that I actually find clever about the movie is the way that the director shows perspectives. At first, you see the crime through the victim's eyes, and later, through the criminal's. This helps to connect the story and convince the audience that the killer really was who it was. Otherwise, the cinematography and effects in this movie were pretty bad.
What I find most upsetting about this movie is that it's based on a real event. I'm absolutely horrified to think that this actually happened. This movie actually happens to be extremely upsetting when you look past the fake blood and awful acting. After seeing the movie, I was quite disturbed and found the movie hard to stomach. This movie is not light-hearted. I guess the movie aims to show the effect of bullying, and in that respect, it does, although to an extreme extent. I wouldn't recommend this movie unless you're willing to deal with the possibly upsetting elements of it.
iRate: 0.5/5 cheerleaders
Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9P1_mlwXYcQ&feature=related
*SPOILER ALERT: For some reason, the trailer happens to show who committed the murder, so if you want to be "shocked," don't watch it.
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