Urban Legend 
                                   (1998)
                                      review by Head Cheeze

When Urban Legend first came out in theaters I dragged my ass over there expecting a huge teen crapfest and, well, I was pleasantly surprised that, instead, I found a somewhat creepy and effective slasher that was pretty tongue in cheek thus negating the self-referential bits that I so despise!

At a northeastern university, a group of college students are studying the "Urban Legend", little tales that have become so ingrained in the public conscious that many people believe them to be true, and more often than not, knows someone who knows someone who actually lived the tale. This all proves to be great fun for the hunks and hotties who attend Professor Wexler's (Englund) class, until some of the "legends" become reality and the student bodies pile up faster than the obligatory red herrings can appear on screen.

Urban Legend is a solidly entertaining, albeit oftentimes daft and formulaic, slasher film. The method of killing off people in the form of the urban legend motif is pretty novel and director Blanks, shows a good eye for the genre with some genuine jump out of your seat moments, nice stalking scenes and just an all around fun little ride.

The Columbia Tristar DVD offers a commentary by Blanks, a short making of docco and a the obligatory reading materials, so it's a better than average affair (however the film's sequel has a better assortment of goodies, which is a shame since this is the better film).

Okay, this film is not Citizen Kane, hell, it's not even Citizen Toxie, but it is worth a look if you're a fan of the 80's slasher genre and don't mind an occasional wink and a nudge.