‘Sorority Row’ Is the Perfect Horror Remake
A reboot should stand on its own. There is no good reason to make the same film twice. If you doubt the merit of that statement, just look at Psycho, The Omen, A Nightmare on Elm Street, or any other redux that clung too tightly to the source material and failed to make a case for its existence. Stewart Hendler’s Sorority Row is a motion picture that clearly understands that conceit. It’s not a perfect film. But it is a pretty perfect horror remake. The flick does exactly as a horror reboot should. It pays tribute to the original and then carves out its own path. Sorority Row never takes itself too seriously, working as a campy affair likely to delight anyone who enjoys a gruesome good time.
What’s Sorority Row About?
The film, which observes a release date anniversary today, follows the ladies of the Theta Pi sorority. They work hard in class and play even harder outside of school hours. When the gals plan what they think is a harmless prank to get revenge on an ex-boyfriend, the sisters inadvertently set the stage for a desperate act of violence. They make the fateful decision to cover up the crime to ensure each still has a future to look forward to.
Eight months later, it seems they’re all in the clear. But wait. They’re totally not in the clear. Someone knows what they did and that someone is pissed. Pissed enough that they are stalking the college campus and dispatching Thetas left and right. We watch as Theta sister Cassidy (Briana Evigan), who reluctantly participated in the cover-up, tries her best to make it to the end of the ordeal without losing her head.
Why Is It Such A Good Remake?
Much of my appreciation for Sorority Row stems from a pair of screenwriters who understood the assignment. Scribes Josh Stolberg and Pete Goldfinger capture what made The House on Sorority Row work as a campy slasher export of the ‘80s and imbue that energy into a completely different story.
I consider The House on Sorority Row so engaging because the brassy gals at the core of the narrative keep me entertained with their shallow one-liners and ruthless banter. Their shameless disregard for the consequences of their actions following a prank gone wrong fuels a twisty narrative that features a number of impressive kill sequences. Goldfinger and Stolberg pay just the right amount of tribute but deliver a standalone film that fans of the original and the uninducted alike can enjoy.
Great Characters Worth Watching
The characters at the core of Sorority Row are perfect fodder for a horror picture. They make selfish and ill-advised choices for which they must later atone. But some of the core characters gradually become more likable as we spend time with them. The idea that they made their beds makes their eventual demise justified. However, the way these young ladies become more palatable over the long haul makes the viewer far more likely to actually feel something when they kick off. An emotional investment from the audience (no matter how small) almost always makes for a better film.
Plenty of horror features place despicable characters at the forefront so the audience will rejoice as they fall prey to the killer. While that approach has merit, it has the very real potential to alienate the audience. The found footage horror film Unfriended is a good example of that. We need someone to keep us invested. Without that, what’s the point?
Stolberg and Goldfinger script the sisters with just enough depth and accessibility that we find reason to invest in their plight over time, but not so much that we’re terribly broken up when they meet the business end of a tire iron.
Three Cheers for Carrie Fisher
The screenwriters also seem to understand how important house mother Mrs. Slater (Lois Kelso Hunt) was to the 1982 original. They pay tribute to her with a very different type of house mother here. In both cases, the sorority matriarch stands as one of the most memorable aspects of the picture. Mrs. Slater was a true battleax and gave those ladies a run for their money. By giving Mrs. Crenshaw (Carrie Fisher) a pivotal role here, the redux pays homage to an iconic character from the source material. But to avoid retreading familiar ground, she’s a completely different type of character. Mrs. Crenshaw graces the viewer with a couple of epic one-liners and receives a memorable sendoff. She also serves as one of the few characters whose intentions are almost entirely altruistic and adds a counterbalance to the often-vapid antics of the sisters.
In addition to delivering memorable characters with just enough depth, Stolberg and Goldfinger also manage to preserve some of the campy energy from the original with their screenplay. The kills are outrageous and imaginative and the dialogue is deliberately shallow and crass. Hendler also clearly understands the type of movie he’s making and accordingly gives the core cast the chance to ham it up a bit.
Nothing is Perfect, Including Sorority Row
If I must lodge a criticism, it’s that the reveal of the killer in Sorority Row doesn’t pack the same punch as that of the original. The antagonist is revealed to be one of the least likely (but most obvious) suspects. Aren’t they always? I’m sure most would agree that The House on Sorority Row delivers a better final reveal than this reboot and offers up a more compelling killer. With that said, going for a more conventional reveal stands as one more way in which this reboot sets itself apart and does its own thing.
My only other negative critique is that Sorority Row doesn’t do a great deal to break from the standard stalk-and-slash formula and it’s not terribly scary. So, I can see why the flick may not be everyone’s cup of tea. However, anyone who digs horror camp paired with creative kills is likely to appreciate what the filmmakers were going for. Director Stewart Hendler brings the proceedings to life with a mixture of suspense and playful humor reminiscent of the original film. Though Sorority Row is not the type of slasher picture that will keep you up at night, it is absolutely a playful sendup of Greek culture with a clever sense of humor and a few good jump scares along the way.
Categorized:Editorials
