| Stupid Teenagers Must Die! | |
|---|---|
 Stupid Teenagers Must Die! movie poster | |
| Directed by | Jeff C. Smith |
| Written by | Curtis Andersen Jeff C. Smith |
| Produced by | Curtis Andersen Sara Parrell Wayne Watson |
| Starring | Jovan Meredith Ashley Schneider Devin Marble Lindsay Gareth Renee Dorian Cory Assink Jonathan Brett Will Deutsch Jamie Carson Christina DeRosa |
| Cinematography | Jeff C. Smith |
| Edited by | Jeff C. Smith |
| Music by | Randy Catiller Chris Dingman John Draisey |
Production companies | Wiggy VonSchtick, Off Set Pictures |
| Distributed by | Vanguard Cinema, Singa Home Entertainment |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 80 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Stupid Teenagers Must Die! is a 2006 spoof film directed by Jeff C. Smith and written by Smith and Curtis Andersen.[1][2] During production and initial festival screenings, the film was originally titled Blood & Guts, but was changed before being sent for distribution, as they thought the original title implied more carnage than the film supplied.[3]
Plot
The story revolves around a group of teens who meet in a haunted house to hold a seance. The characters include a hero (Jovan Meredith), a naive girlfriend (Ashley Schneider / Aurora Sta. Maria), a goth girl (Renee Dorian), a tough guy (Devin Marble), a ditzy blonde girl (Lindsay Gareth), a shy geek in love with the blonde (Matt Blashaw), two big nerds (Cory Assink & Jonathan Brett), and a pair of lipstick lesbians (Jamie Carson & Christina DeRosa). Strange things begin to occur as they enter the house, including nudity, pitfalls, and even deaths, while the hero works to save the group before every teenager is dead.
Development
In an early interview with Unbound, director Jeff C. Smith revealed that he and co-producers Sara Parrell and Curtis Andersen, as well as actor Jovan Meredith, all at one time worked together in the Entertainment division at Disneyland in Anaheim, California. Smith shared that it was during their employment at the park and collaboration on an earlier project that he learned that Meredith had acting skills he wished to include in a future project: the project which eventually became Stupid Teenagers Must Die.[4] Even before the film had entered post-production, the crew had optimistically scheduled its premiere as Blood & Guts at Cinespace in Hollywood, California for July 13, 2006. However, the film was not ready, and director Smith screened the incomplete rough-cut he did have as a test screening, which the audience panned, causing Smith to then spend the next several months finishing the film's editing in preparation for its subsequent screenings.[4]
Cast
- Jovan Meredith as Kane
- Ashley Schneider as Julie
- Devin Marble as Alfie
- Lindsay Gareth as Tiffany
- Renee Dorian as Madeline
- Cory Assink as Geek One
- Jonathan Brett as Geek Two
- Will Deutsch as Ryan
- Jamie Carson as Sissy
- Christina DeRosa as Jamie
- Matt Blashaw as Michael
- Aurora Sta. Maria as Soup
Reception
Intended by the director to appeal to "movie geeks",[3] the film has received mixed response from genre reviewers. Dorkgasm senior staff writer Kenneth Holm felt that, considering the film's low budget, he began his viewing with lowered expectations, but opined that he should have lowered them even more, concluding that he would recommend it only as an "exercise for other budding filmmakers to see what missteps to avoid when making their first movie."[5] Conversely, the reviewer for Dead Lantern found the film to be worth watching and great fun, remarking that he enjoyed the "back story" of the haunted house and feels that it would be a great prequel, and concludes by recommending it as a "comedy that will make even the most jaded horror elitists smile."[6] Fatally Yours called it a "film that knows how to have a good time!" in a review that acclaimed the film as "one of the most fun and enjoyable low-budget films I’ve seen in quite some time;"[7] however, a reviewer for The Movies Made Me Do It, decided that even for a film that touts itself as a low-budget spoof, the filmmakers lost track of the fact that they were making a spoof, resulting in them aiming for the wrong goals and taking the film too seriously, leading to them "basically creating a slasher film from the eighties minus the things that made those movies so appealing in the first place: massive body counts, T&A, and a neat villain for the heroes to contend with", concluding that "It's never even remotely scary", and "it's simply not funny either save for a couple of one-liners."[8] The film had a major write-up in the October 2007 issue of Fangoria magazine.[9]
Release
The completed film was first screened October 14, 2006 at the Movie Nation Festival and then shown at many additional festivals.[4][10] Most notable among the screenings was the Backseat Film Festival where the film won Best Film Title and actress Lindsay Gareth won the prestigious "Best Breasts" award.[4][11] It was offered for release on DVD in the US by Vanguard International Cinema[1][12] and internationally by Singa Home Entertainment on September 25, 2007. Three weeks prior to the DVD release, director Smith shared that the distributor allowed them a maximum of 125 minutes on the DVD, so he had chosen to include a 30-minute "making of" documentary titled Movies Are Bullshit! The Making Of Stupid Teenagers Must Die!, with commentary by director Jeff C. Smith and actor Jovan Meredith, an audience reaction track from the premiere, and an interview with cast member Will Deutsch.[4]
References
- 1 2 Thompson, Luke Y. (January 23, 2008). "Scared Stupid". OC Weekly. Archived from the original on September 23, 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-23.
- ↑ "Stupid Teenagers Must Die! (2006)". Turner Classic Movies. Archived from the original on August 10, 2011. Retrieved 2009-03-23.
- 1 2 "Interview with director Jeff C. Smith". Killer Reviews. Archived from the original on May 17, 2008. Retrieved 2009-03-21.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Interview with Jeff C. Smith". director interview. Unbound. Archived from the original on June 24, 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-23.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ↑ Holm, Kenneth. "Review: Stupid Teenagers Must Die". Dorkgasm. Dorkgasm. Archived from the original on July 22, 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-21.
- ↑ "Movie Review: Stupid Teenagers Must Die!". staff review. Dead Lantern. Archived from the original on October 6, 2011. Retrieved 2009-03-21.
- ↑ "Review of Stupid Teenagers Must Die!". film review. Fatally Yours. Archived from the original on November 9, 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-21.
- ↑ "Stupid Teenagers Must Die! (2006)". review. The Movies Made Me Do It. Retrieved 2009-03-21.
- ↑ "Stupid Teenagers Must Die!". scan of Fangoria writeup provided by director. Fangoria Magazine. Retrieved 2009-03-23.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "festival screening of Stupid Teenagers Must Die". Santa Fe Film Festival. Retrieved 2009-03-21.
- ↑ "5th annual Backseat Film Festival". Backseat Film Festival. pp. awards. Retrieved 2009-03-23.
- ↑ "Stupid Teenagers Must Die!". film review and production details. DVD Resurrection. Archived from the original on July 2, 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-21.