Rosewood Lane   Starring: Rose McGowan, Ray Wise and Bill Fagerbakke StudioCanal RRP: £12.99 OPTD2486 Certificate: 15 Available 15 October 2012

Sonny Blake is a radio psychologist with problems of her own which stem back to her childhood. When her vicious father is found dead, apparently from a fall down the cellar stairs, she moves, alone, into the family home. After a veiled warning from a neighbour about the paperboy, she begins to be terrorised by the youngster. He breaks into her house, appears threateningly wherever she goes, and even phones in to her radio show. The police are not prepared to take action without clear evidence of physical assault with proof of identity, as the boy is a minor. The neighbours are no help, either, as it would appear he can do things which should be impossible. So, is the paperboy a clever manipulating stalker, or is he something altogether different...?

Rosewood Lane is written and directed by Victor Salva, the brains behind the excellent horror flick Jeepers Creepers. Although he has tackled other genres (there are other genres?) since then, he has now returned to his roots with pretty much the same behind-the-camera crew. I would venture to say that this film falls much more into the realms of thriller than outright horror. It hints suggestively at horror, but could just as easily be a murder mystery police procedural. It cleverly sits on the fence, inviting followers of both genres to take an interest.

As I started to watch the plot unfold I couldn’t help thinking of Play Misty For Me. Psychology obviously plays a large part in movies of this ilk (or should I say, Id?), but psychologists are almost always portrayed with problems of their own. I was also reminded of John Carpenter’s In the Mouth of Madness, and in particular the scene wherein Sam Neil’s character drives past a furiously peddling boy on a bike, only to (impossibly) pass him twice more further along the road. I wonder if this was where Salva got the idea for the paperboy’s seemingly impossible feats. I wouldn’t be half surprised.

And talking of the paperboy, Daniel Ross Owens plays the role with an effectively quiet menace. Apparently, he was cast against type, to offer an attractive, homely look to his stalker-like appearances and sudden violent actions. However, even without the lenses which make his eyes look unfathomably dark, he pulls off this major role with much aplomb. Ray Wise returns to a role he must know inside-out by now - that of the police detective. The exception here is Sonny Marinelli, who in my opinion seems curiously miscast as the former boyfriend, Barrett Tanner.

In conclusion, Rosewood Lane is a taut little thriller which (for anyone paying attention) frustratingly gives the ending away. It doesn’t stop it achieving its purpose though. It just doesn’t reach the heights of originality of Jeepers Creepers.

8

Ty Power