Very Bad Things (1998)

User Rating:

6.0/10   

Director:

Peter Berg

Writer (WGA):

Peter Berg (written by)

Release Date:

25 November 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime | Thriller

Tagline:

A very savage comedy. This fall. Tell no one.

Plot:

A prostitute is killed during a bachelor party and the attendees turn on each other as the wedding approaches.

Plot Keywords:

Friend | Bachelor Party | Prostitute | Wedding | Best Man

Awards:

2 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Jon Favreau	...	Kyle Fisher
Leland Orser	...	Charles Moore
Cameron Diaz	...	Laura Garrety
Christian Slater	...	Robert Boyd
Rob Brownstein	...	Man
Jeremy Piven	...	Michael Berkow
Daniel Stern	...	Adam Berkow
Jeanne Tripplehorn	...	Lois Berkow
Joey Zimmerman	...	Adam Berkow Jr.
Tyler Cole Malinger	...	Timmy Berkow (as Tyler Malinger)
Kobé Tai	...	Tina (as Carla Scott)
Russell B. McKenzie	...	Security Guard
Pancho Demmings	...	Cop (as Pancho Demings)
Blake Gibbons	...	Suit
Angelo Di Mascio Jr.	...	Clerk

MPAA:

Rated R for strong, grisly violence, sexuality, drug use and language.

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:16 | USA:R (certificate #35972) | USA:TV-MA (TV rating) | Philippines:R-18 | Argentina:18 | Australia:MA | Belgium:KNT | Chile:18 | Finland:K-16 | France:-12 | Germany:16 (re-rating) (2004) | Germany:18 (original rating) | Hong Kong:IIB | Israel:18 | Italy:VM14 | Japan:R-15 | Netherlands:16 | Norway:18 | Portugal:M/16 | South Korea:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | Switzerland:18 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:18 (canton of Vaud) | UK:18 | Austria:16 (DVD rating) | Canada:18A | Canada:16+ (Quebec)

Filming Locations:

Johnie's Coffee Shop - 6101 Wilshire Boulevard, Fairfax, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Initial Entertainment Group (IEG)

Trivia:

The policeman in the hospital is named Randone. Peter Berg, the writer/director, played a policeman named Randone in Cop Land (1997).

Goofs:

Continuity: Laura's right arm jumps from Kyle's shoulder to being around his body as they kiss at their wedding.

Quotes:

Mike: Your kid is one crutch short of a telethon.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in 100 Mile Rule (2002)

Soundtrack:

Como Ves

Very Good Movie

I guess this is a movie you either love or hate; I belong in the first category.

This movie shows what happens when people shed the moral constraints which normally control their conduct and give free rein to their vicious urges. It is a morality lesson and reason(if you need one) never to kill - or at least if you do not to burden yourselves with accomplices.

The reactions of those involved range from complete horror and remorse (Stern) to pure psychopathy (Slater) - who is able to dehumanise the first victim immediately, demeaning her to the mere status of an inconvenience to be disposed of (this is how many serial killers think)

This film gives lots of other valuable insights - and if you only come away from it certain that morality is not a democratic process but a matter of absolute right and wrong, then this movie has done what few achieve; it has educated you morally - following the majority blindly is one of mankinds greatest follies.

Slater is brilliant in his runaway amorality, as is Stern in his bouts of tortured guilt (the scene in the gas station when his kids demand 'Whizzers' is excruciatingly funny and at the same time so poignant that you may experience guilt yourself at finding the mental collapse of the most decent character in the film so hilarious)

Cameron Diaz plays the bride from hell with assuredness and gusto - if this movie puts you off murder it may well also put you off marriage. Her eventual fate, revealed in the closing scenes - is one of the most satisfying payoffs of a loathsome character in the history of film.

Comedy at its darkest - movie making at its best 9 out of 10