Cast: Susan Ward, Lori Heuring, Matthew Settle, Ethan Erickson, Nathan Bexton, Kim Murphy, Laurie Fortier
Director: Mary Lambert
Producer: James G. Robinson
Screenplay: Mark Gibson & Philip Halprin
Cinematography: Tom Priestley Jr.
Music: Jeff Rona
U.S. Distributor: Warner Brothers
The In Crowd is one of those obscure features that a distributor sneaks into the summer marketplace when no one is looking, probably without any real expectation that it will succeed. It has all the ingredients of something that will be buried quickly and effectively in the crush of higher profile pictures: it has been poorly advertised, it features a low profile director (Mary Lambert, whose best-known offering to date has been the 1989 Steven King adaptation, Pet Sematary), and it stars a cast of unknowns. In addition, there were no advance or press screenings, indicating that Warner Brothers didn't want a bad word-of-mouth to get out. There's little doubt that if this film generates any buzz, it's going to be of the "stay away" sort.
Seen in the right frame of mind with suitably low expectations, exploitation thrillers can offer the opportunity for guilty fun. Bad acting, bare flesh, lots of screams, and copious quantities of fake blood all contribute to the overall effect. Names like Roger Corman and Russ Meyer, titans of the genre, leap to mind. The In Crowd has most of the components in place: a nonsensical plot, a bevy of sexy young things who exhibit no acting talent, a director who can't figure out where to place the camera, and a mounting body count. Unfortunately, the filmmakers, in going for a PG-13 rating, have neutered the production, reducing it from a potentially high-camp romp into a tedious, boring waste of time.
The In Crowd's plastic protagonist is a young woman named Adrien Williams (Lori Heuring), who is being released from a mental hospital under her doctor's supervision. There are four conditions for Adrien to remain on the outside: no drugs, no drinking, no crossing the county line, and no losing her job as a cabana girl at an exclusive beach resort. Before you can say "Baywatch", Adrien has been befriended by Brittany Foster (Susan Ward), the snobbish leader of a group of pampered, well-tanned young adults referred to fondly as the "royal swines." Under Brittany's nurturing wing, Adrien embarks upon a program to break all the constraints placed on her by the board of psychiatrists responsible for her parole. But Brittany is not motivated by altruism (actually, it's never clear what her purpose is), and it doesn't take long for the local undertaker's business to start booming. Adrien, in full Agatha Christie mode, begins an investigation that points to Brittany as being a murderess. (*GASP!*)
The In Crowd has a running time of 108 minutes, but, by applying the time dilation process that accompanies all bad films, it seems much longer. Frequent watch-checking will result in the conviction that you need a new battery. The movie plods along, accomplishing nothing and offering little to keep the viewer's attention beyond an occasional glimpse of a scantily-clad bathing beauty. There's nothing to break the tedium - no characters with more than one dimension, no coherent storyline, and no spice to tickle the visual or audio palate. The musical score sounds like it was rejected by a video game and the editing appears to have been accomplished using the pruning shears that the villainous Brittany wields as the film lurches to its overdue climax.
The In Crowd's high point is a catfight between Adrien and Brittany, but director Lambert can't even get that right. It occurs in almost complete darkness, so all we catch are glimpses of bodies rolling around in the gloom. Earlier, there's a lesbian kiss, but the PG-13 rating prevents things from going further. In a way, that scene is a metaphor for the entire movie - it teases, but fails to deliver. Then there are the performances... Admittedly, good acting could not have saved this movie, but a competent portrayal or two might have lent some credibility to The In Crowd's "dramatic" sequences. But the work of lead actresses Ward and Heuring is as stiff an unyielding as that of the fembots in Austin Powers. They have two modes: catatonic and over-the-top. It doesn't help that the script constantly puts them in ridiculous situations and saddles them with silly dialogue.
Having seen The In Crowd, it's easy for me to understand why Warner Brothers is using this release approach. When the movie reaches video - its true market - the filmmakers want to be able to claim that it played in theaters (thus not burdening it with a "direct to video" label), but, at the same time, they don't want it to be saddled with the awful reputation it will accrue if more than a handful of people see it. As a film critic, it's my duty to shed a little light on these "thief in the night" tactics. The In Crowd won't be any better at home than in a theater, although, in the likely event that the movie induces sleep, a nap on one's own sofa will be more comfortable than one in a multiplex chair.
© 2000 James Berardinelli