Search - Wicked on DVD

Kerry H. (haasker) from OREGON CITY, OR
Reviewed on 5/2/2017...

I wanted to see Julia Stiles to see what she was like as an actress before the Bourne films. All in all, a pleasant surprise. This one is not an Oscar worthy performance, by any of the characters, but it is worth watching. My only quibble with the film was the lack of realistic police behavior. My guess is the filmmakers had a low budget, so they could not hire any extras. But there was just not enough presence of crime scene investigators, or any behind the scenes activity going on that you would expect taking into account what took place on that quiet neighborhood street. I can't say anymore cuz I don't want to spoil the movie, but the lack of additional characters and locations (like a school for instance, or visiting friends, kids playing in the street) made the film seem unnecessarily claustrophobic to me.

Great Soap Opera feel.

Ryan | Greenport, New York United States | 11/24/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"OK, so it has Julia Stiles in it. That may turn a lot of people off. Or maybe on. This was one of her first rolls and it was a direct-to-video semi-hit back in 1998. It's an amazing film and watching it last night, I had to write this review. WICKED is a movie where nothing is what it seems. 14-year-old Ellie Christianson (Julia Stiles) lives to run away. In fact, she has a suitcase just for that. She never does, always giving up her fight. She always fights with her mother Karen Christianson (Chelsea Field) who's having an affair with deadbeat loser neighbor Lawson Smith (Patrick Muldoon). She seems to only get along with her dad, Ben (Billy Moses) and little sister, Inger (Vanessa Zima). One day, Karen is bludgen to death with a mask (part of the comedy and tragety masks) in her own home, in a gated community. All fingers point to Ellie who never liked her mother much and is always getting into trouble. Ellie was always the Daddy's Girl and a confessed favorite of her father's. So she decides to take over where her mother left off, wearing her clothes and cooking for her family. After she seduces her father, she thinks that they will be together forever. But when former maid Lena Anderson (Louise Myrback) decides marry Ben to get her green card, Ellie gets the idea that she should try to run away again.... The review seems short but I can't write much without giving anything away. WICKED is a very visual movie. Spetacular colors are used in several scenes. Before the murder, everything around the house is completly white. Making the viewing of blood a lot more shocking and graphic. RECCOMENDED TO FANS OF:
Dressed To Kill (1980)
Wild Things (1998)
Poison Ivy (1992) CAST
Julia Stiles..............Ellie Christianson
Louise Myrback..........Lena Anderson
Billy Moses..............Ben Christianson
Chelsea Field.......Karen Christianson
Vanessa Zima.......Inger Christianson
Patrick Muldoon............Lawson Smith Linda Hart.........................Mrs. Potter THE MOVIE: 3.5/4 THE PICTURE QUALITY is a 9.5/10. There are some specks that appear briefly. However it's in 1.85:1 Anamorphic Widescreen which drags in an extra point for the rebounds. THE AUDIO QUALITY is Dolby Surround 2 channel while the box states there is a 5.1 channel on the package as well. 8/10 THE SPECIAL FEATURES are trailers for several movies including this one and filmographies (no doubt to show off what Stiles has been in) SUBTITLES: English, French, Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Thai."

Reviews are too harsh from what I've seen so far

meddle969 | Norman, OK | 10/03/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"When I went to the video store there was only 1 copy to rent on DVD. No tapes whatsoever. Obviously we're not talking about an A class movie here. Anyhow, it took me about 3 weeks to catch before it was in. Me being a Julia Stiles fan as well as enjoying dark/disturbing films I was fairly enthusiastic about seeing it. When I put the DVD in the machine i wasn't surprised there were little or no special features (filmographies and a few trailers). The movie itself is about a dysfunctional family in which both parents are committing adultery and the eldest daughter, Ellie (played by Stiles), has much tension between her and her mother, Lena. She turns to her father, Ben, for affection, in turn, creating a power struggle with Lena for control over him. The marriage then begins to fall apart. In a heated argument Lena threatens to run off with their two daughters. The next morning while Ben is at work and the daughters at school she is murdered. At this point a detective is introduced and starts a murder/mystery plot; although when I was watching it my attention was more closely tied with the control between Stiles' relationship with her father. She tries to fill the motherly role that's missing from the household. As her father pulls away she acts more and more like his wife. Of course he realizes their relationship can't continue as is and begins seeing his lover (whom he had been with during his marriage) again. As the movie continues you'll find out who killed Lena and add to that a delightful twist in the end. I think most people watch the movie and see a B thriller with poor taste. I'm not surprised as there are a few very controversial elements to it. Even still, I found the cringing moments gutsy and Ellie's development entertaining. You get to watch Ellie start as "daddy's little girl" and turn into an insecure control freak much like her mother was. ..."

Surreal and twisted dark comedy

Maek | 09/03/2001

(2 out of 5 stars)

"This movie features Julia Stiles playing a posessive teenager who turns into a domineering young woman with the Electra-complex after her mother's death. She is posessive of her father which whom she becomes obsessed with later on in the movie. As far as the plot, it takes on many facets which do not fit right for the theme of the movie. Through the protagonist's eyes, you can see how far away reality becomes, and eventually how she is corrupted through the events following her mother's death. At times, the incestual overtones made me queasy, and the end was sort of expected due to the lack of definition to the characters. Sometimes during the movie, one could get the feeling that it was more of a who-dun-it film than anything else. Although disturbing and dark to watch, there are not any scenes of nudity, just the adult situation, language, and violence content. Hope this helps."