Simply Perfect

Fresh and Exciting

To all those who have watched it: I hope you enjoyed it as much as I do.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Things look pretty good for groom to be John Stockwell, where his mates hold him a surprise stag party. His guests are an assortment of characters, some oldies types, that have you questioning, how exactly are these guys related, without never really knowing much about 'em. They are soon wishing it was just a stag party instead of a shag party, when one of two hookers, the prettier, younger one, ends up taking a really bad fall, while being tossed around on a blanket, where she falls face flat on the floor, instantly dead. This is what happens when things get a little too crazy, where alcohol and drugs can really make you do stupid s..t. Too, prior to her death, she had politely asked them to stop, to no avail, and now our men have a situation, where this party has really died. The other hooker, rock singer, Taylor Dane, who in some close ups, horribly resembles a girl I went to acting class with, is kept hostage by this group, who we appallingly discover, with the exclusion of one, are all out to save their own skin. They don't give two hoots about the dead girl, including one promising actor, who doesn't want to throw his career down the toilet on account of a whore. They have plans for the surviving sister too. The rest of the film, impressively intense, at times, deals with the shared conflict between the men, and how they all must agree to do away with the other girl, only we have a greater conflict. Kevin Dillon is the only one not on board. One line of dialogue he uses to describe his friends, and this gutless act, I totally agree with, but really what would you do, if faced with this situation? Would you tell the truth, and risk jail? What if you had everything in front of you, and everything to lose? What if you were that promising actor? Stag, silently raises these questions, and what you would really do in this predicament, where these kind of (before and after) circumstances, could happen tomorrow. That's what I got from this movie, of being any of those guys. They were all in a inescapable dilemma, fate and karma paying one of em, with a heart attack. After all, only earlier was he bonking the deceased. Andrew Mccarthy plays sleaze great here, as a real piece of s..t drug dealer, in probably one of his best performances, the less caring of them all. It was great to see him get his just desserts. Not helping the situation or the men's paranoia, we have some little interruptions by a lonely and annoying old neighbor, guess you can't guess who? Stag eventuates with a realistic, if disillusioned ending, I totally bought, where sometimes, truth can pay off. Good on ya Kev. Stag is one of those better b movies, and when you got a jazzy Tom Jones's number to open it up, you know you're in for something good. A mainstream movie copy followed, Very Bad Things.

..Actually think about a hidden meaning at the title. (Stag) is obviously the party for a single man who is getting married which is exclusively for men only (and no problem if there are some strippers too !). But on the other hand the same word (Stag) could mean : betray, deceive, or something for men only ! And what a banquet of successive reciprocal treachery we had among a bunch of men who represented the degeneration's ugliest degree, the most evil trends and the vilest unity at all whether as men, friends, or creatures of lamentable contemporary bourgeois ! It's about some men of the American middle class having a hard time with an accident they never plan whom eventually didn't ever make the right ideal choice to end up as true criminals like their own truth from the start which is hiding behind old masks without a bloody chance everyday ! That same situation made other movies like (Very Bad Things – 1998) and (100 Mile Rule - 2002), but at (Stag – 1997) it had a reasonable treatment as a fine studying for that terrifying weakness in such a class, a solid atmosphere (one place in just one night), along with thrilling time too. The acting was sober (for example it's the best performance of Jerry Stiller yet), and the event's panic was cinematically well expressed. Here the social commentary was outstanding compared to the other 2 movies. Let alone a few smart touches (Jerry Stiller raises the American flag as the carnage ends in the morning !, Tom Jones sings "Let me love you tonight" at the opining credit ! ..etc). But it had of course its own flaws..Yes, it got the best analysis for its characters and their hidden past (one of them killed before and he got away with it ! As all of them are hidden killers in a way !). Though the script resorted to nasty phrases on screen to speak about every character ! Like it was hard to present them out of the stag, yet maybe they were too many to present which leads us to the logical question : Why are they 10 characters ?! That's numerous ! Especially when the script didn't make the stage as an epitome for the American society cleverly with balanced concentration on them all.Moreover, I felt some rashness at the third act. For sure I loved that bloody massacre at the end (and by the most poor character as the lower class against the unjust higher one) nevertheless, it's just an ending where the bad guys went to prison easily by the tape of the video camera ! I thought that this complete nightmare must end in a harmonious hideousness when all, or most, of them get away with it having the enduring concealed pain, as ordinary killers living among us dressed like usual humans but they are all beasts inside. However the movie selected a regular happy end ! Bloody but with all our emotions had been vaporized with all of those sick culprits under a suitable punishment ! It could be satisfying for the viewers, but not that satisfying for the case of the story.Anyway, it was all good well-meaning as a cinematic social incubus which is too annoying, and not that forgettable as its counterparts of the same satire at the same time.

I thought the movie was very professionally executed, although I didn't care for all the violence. Enjoyed some of the performances, including Taylor Dayne & Lawrence Leritz as the cop....I recognized him from TV shows.

This film was great. If you've ever been to a bachelor party or heard stories about bachelor parties, this movie is for you. I'm a married woman and have heard scores of stag party anecdotes, both funny and lewd. This movie shows what can happen to perfectly normal, decent, middle to upper-middle class guys when things go terribly wrong and spiral out of control. As the movie progressed I just kept thinking: "I KNOW these guys, this could happen to people I KNOW." Basically, it shows how bad things happen to average, normal people and how we all have a dark side that can come out when pushed to the wall. Watch this movie, with an honest, open mind, and see if there's someone you know up on screen. By the way, is it just me or is the new movie Very Bad Things a rip-off of this one? I've only seen the trailers, but it looks like the same movie. We'll see...