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CS Weekly Archive> DVD > 4/04/08
The Joke's On Us
by scott castle
April Fool's Day (Unrated)
Screenplay by Michael Wiggart
Based on a screenplay by Danilo Bach and the Butcher Brothers
Story by Danilo Bach
 
Upon viewing this direct-to-DVD remake of the 1986 Paramount horror flick April Fool’s Day, one would think someone was playing a particularly bad prank on the audience. The dialogue is stilted to the point that it almost seems intentionally bad and the characters seem like ill-developed archetypes escaped from a failed CW pilot. The plot chronicles the days leading up to the one-year anniversary of a mean-spirited April Fool’s gag that led to the death of a young socialite. Characterized as “the Kennedys of the Carolinas,” protagonist Desiree Cartier (Taylor Cole) and her brother Blaine (Josh Henderson) must discover which of the tragic gag’s witnesses is killing the other participants before they themselves fall prey to the killer. One uninspired plot point follows another as the narrative meanders to a predictable conclusion capped off by one actual surprise that might have made an impact if the 85 minutes preceding it had not already induced a catatonic state.
April Fool’s Day (Unrated)
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Unrated; 91 min.
$24.96
Buy it now
Scott Castle
is one thesis shy of a master’s degree in film. He’s written two short films, four television scripts, and a handful of short stories. He lives in Los Angeles.
April Fool's Day (Unrated)
courtesy Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
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