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Urban Legend (1998) DVD Review
Urban Legend (1998) DVD Credits:
Urban Legend (1998) Directed by:
Not available at this time
Urban Legend (1998) Written by:
Not available at this time
Urban Legend (1998) Cast:
Loretta Devine, Danielle Harris, Joshua Jackson, John Neville, Natasha Gregson Wagner
Urban Legend (1998) Released by:
Not available at this time
Region:
1
Urban Legend (1998) DVD Release Date:
21st July 2008
Our Rating: Extras Rating:

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Urban Legend (1998) Synopsis:

Product Description When New England college student Natalie finds herself at the center of a series of sadistic murders seemingly inspired by urban legends she resolves to find the truth about Pendleton's own legend a twenty-five-year-old story of a student massacre at the hands of an Abnormal Psych professor. As the fraternities prepare to celebrate the macabre anniversary Natalie discovers that she is the focus of the crazed killer's intentions in the ultimate urban legend-- the story of her own horrific murder

Urban Legend (1998) DVD Review:


Coming from his smash success writing the screenplay for Wes Craven’s successful comeback film, Scream, Kevin Williamson suddenly found himself the king of horror in Hollywood at the end of the 1990s. He went from the teen-scene sensation with Dawson’s Creek and suddenly the graphic horror of the semi-spoof allowed him to pursue more bloody goals on the big screen, and I Know What You Did Last Summer only helped to initiate a whole slew of similar teen slasher films. Urban Legends is a perfect example of what Williamson created. Although it isn’t a Williamson film, it still feels that way because of the trends in cinema at the time. There are even a few Dawson’s Creek reference thanks to co-star Joshua Jackson, who was trying to make the leap to the big screen from his role as Pacey on the television show.

If nothing else the Williamson influence brought smarter premises to the slasher films of the 1990s. Whereas today slasher films are far more interested in the creative ways of killing people in disgusting ways, Urban Legends killed people creatively without the need for excessive blood and gore. The killer in Urban Legends is killing students from a New England University that teaches a course on modern myths otherwise known as urban legends. The deaths all resemble those from the class, which is taught by horror icon Robert Englund. The opening sequence, and probably the most terrifying in the film, involves a young girl and a creepy gas station and further deaths also begin to resemble the scary stories we have often heard told dozens of times around the camp fire. Even in I Know What You Did Last Summer the characters sit around a camp fire and tell one of the stories which is portrayed in Urban Legends, involving a couple parked in the middle of nowhere.

Natalie Simon (Alicia Witt) seems to be targeted by the killer, always allowed to see things that others don’t leading to the inevitable twist in which few believe what she has seen. Only her best friend Brenda (Rebecca Gayheart) and aspiring journalist Paul (Jared Leto) believe that there is danger while the rest of the school continues with their routines, all leading to the anniversary of a legendary slaughter that took place on-campus.

If only the creative way that the killer chooses to murder his victims had been enough to create a lasting memorable experience Urban Legends would be more than a marker on the ever-expanding road of horror film trends, but alas it is not so. Instead the film seems even more dated than I Know What You Did Last Summer, which was released a year earlier. The high definition presentation is also somewhat unflattering at times. The sound, however, is what saves the film during some of the axe-thudding horror scenes. The special features include a director’s commentary, easily enabled without ever leaving the film, and a featurette which is presented in standard format.


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Urban Legend (1998) DVD review written by: Ryan Izay

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