This is a movie I have an interesting relationship with. I'd seen bits and pieces of it when I was little, and I didn't really pay any attention to it. It wasn't until I was in high school that I actually sat down and watched it all the way through. I hated it. I only really cared about one of the characters. The rest were kind of unlikable. I watched it again now that I'm in college. The thing that surprised me was that watching it again, I kind of liked it. I kind of realized some of the acting was better than I had initially given it credit for in the past. While I personally hated Ryan Philippe's character in the movie. He was a giant douche bag. I'll give the actor himself credit. I think he did a good job playing the part. Johnny Galecki is pretty fun playing a smarmy creep. He's not in the movie very long, but I definitely think he leaves an impression, even if he slips in and out of a southern accent some of the time. One opinion I had the first time I watched the movie (and still have) is that Sarah Michelle Gellar is the best part of the movie. She's the best acted character in the movie, and the only character I really felt invested in. Plot-wise, I liked the mystery aspect of it more. I knew where the movie was going this time around, yes. What I did realize this time around was that there were about four or five characters that were given heavy suspicion throughout the movie. Because they were all such heavy-handed, it never really felt like one of them was a bigger red herring than any of the others. Just because I enjoyed it more this time around, that doesn't mean I think it's perfect by any means. There's still some major flaws in the movie. Jennifer Love Hewitt and Freddie Prinze, Jr. felt too flat compared to the rest of the cast. I honestly think I would've preferred it if the four main actors all switched roles. I say this because I think their performances were part of the reason their characters never drew me in. As much as I enjoyed the mystery, the final reveal of the fisherman almost felt underwhelming. It didn't make a ton of sense, and they didn't really explain it all that well. Overall, this is a movie I've really come around on recently. I still recognize a lot of flaws and problems, but I don't think it's anywhere near the piece of shit I used to think it was.
6 / 10
Nice review!
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