Urban Legend – Film Review

A university is beset by a rash of gruesome murders that resemble old urban legends. When her friend Michelle (Natasha Gregson Wagner) is killed by someone hiding in her car, Natalie (Alicia Witt) begins to notice the pattern. Her suspicions grow stronger when her own roommate is strangled to death. Soon the quiet college campus is transformed into hunting grounds for a maniac, and Natalie struggles to find the killer and stop the bloodshed before she becomes the next victim.

What is it about urban legends that fascinate almost all of us? Ask one hundred people that question and you’re sure to get a wide variety of answers, but most people will agree that there is just something so indescribably intriguing about urban legends and it’s oddly fun to discuss them with other people, whether you want to get a scare out of them or if you just simply want to spread spooky information around.

And although Jamie Blanks‘ Urban Legend sadly doesn’t dive deep into this philosophical question as it should’ve, it is nevertheless a highly entertaining 90s slasher that boasts a chilling atmosphere, solid performances, and a great sense of self-awareness that you don’t really see today. Last February, it was announced that this film would be getting a remake, and while it will definitely be interesting to see how they are going to adapt this story for the modern era, I worry that it’s not going to have that self-aware quality to it.

Ever since this film came out back in 1998, many people have called this a terribly uninspired rehash of Scream in more ways than one. Does it share lots of qualities with the iconic horror film? Yes, it does. But even though they both feel so similar, Urban Legend has enough distinctions to make it its own thing. Just because a horror film is self-aware and pokes fun at different tropes displayed too often in the genre doesn’t mean it’s a complete replica of Scream.

The whole fun of Urban Legend comes from piecing together bits of information to find out who this killer is and what his modus-operandi is. On top of that, it’s also oddly comforting to watch this group of teens band together to try to prove the existence of this urban legend killer. It actually sort of reminds me of a more bloody and mature version of the wildly popular Are You Afraid of the Dark? series.

This is a film that doesn’t really take itself too seriously, but at the same time, it’s not campy necessarily. It’s one of those films that’s absolutely perfect for a cold, October night watch which is exactly how I watched it. Jared Leto is actually terrific here in the role of Paul Gardner, a journalist who quickly finds himself caught up in the story in ways that he doesn’t expect. Alicia Witt is decent for the most part here. As Natalie Simon, she definitely does show the fear that’s needed to be depicted, but sometimes, her line delivery is extremely wooden and it is apparent that she’s acting. When you watch an amazing film, you should forget that you are watching actors.

But I really can’t express how much I love the cinematography by James Chressanthis in this film. Not only is this an incredibly dark and atmospheric movie, but it’s also filled with plenty of beautiful wide shots that could be turned into paintings. There are so many strangely charming qualities to Urban Legend that make it such a boldly entertaining film even if it doesn’t delve too deep into philosophical questions.