Brilliant and touching

The movie is wildly uneven but lively and timely - in its own surreal way

Not sure how, but this is easily one of the best movies all summer. Multiple levels of funny, never takes itself seriously, super colorful, and creative.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

Not long after watching Mikey & Daddy's Girl, I heard about this film, which just like the films mentioned, is a child psycho killer film!This time it's in the form of a 12 year old boy who kills Melissa's mum by smothering her with a plastic bag in order for her & her daughter to come back & move in! The film doesn't waste much time in story-line or kills though just like Mikey & Daddy's girl they were very few, & not much different or half as imaginative but were decent enough!Like I said, the film didn't waste time & within a minute & a half into the film the first kill ensues, & was abit more quicker than Mikey for the open death(s). Basically throughout the film the boy, named Johnny Mcfarley, gets involved with the lives of Melissa & her daughter Cammie, but the happiness quickly diminishes when they begin to see a very disturbed side to the smiley friendly face of Johnny! This is after a small misunderstanding assuming that he , Melissa & Cammie would have a barbecue dinner together, but instead Melissa is going out on date with her boyfriend Brian & has Brenda, his nemesis to babysit! He increasingly gets attached to the pair & does anything he can to make sure they are a family despite their being no relations except friends! He also gets annoyed when Brenda grasses on him & he ends up nearly killing her! The deaths were abit poor & too far apart for my tastes. There was lack of blood too, though there was some present in the film, it just wasn't good enough for me! The films got abit boring at parts but was OK & had a sinister feel to it!The ending was great too, Johnny gets arrested after nearly killing Melissa's boyfriend Brian by burning him alive while he was unconscious! Though he got away in the nick of time! The end part looked as though it would end where Melissa gets the blame as she had the pick axe in her hand after a struggle with Johnny who tries to pin the murder on her until Brian steps out & shows him up & Johnny gets put in a police car! Great ending! Not clichéd! Just great!I found the film to be OK, nothing to dissimilar to Mikey or Daddy's Girl! Though it lacked body count & blood! Overall a decent enough film! 6/10

This film, although intended to be a horror film, instead turns out to be a surprisingly dark and thought-provoking psychological thriller. Johnny McFarley seems like the perfect boy next door, but a closer examination reveals he has a very twisted psyche for a twelve-year-old. I liked this film because it has us feel pity for and be unnerved by Johnny at the same time. Unlike the Good Son, for example, you feel like this is a good kid who simply went through hell and snapped instead of a soulless demon-child portrayal. Although it may not seem scary, it touches the very ugly topics of child abuse and religion used badly well. The only real weak point I saw was the father figure, who could have been omitted entirely for the little he adds to the film. Though not the most bloody or shocking film, it hits all the right notes for a great thriller.

Bad movies come in different flavors. Some are fun and "good" in their own way, some are just unwatchable. And among the good bad movies, some, like those of Ed Wood are inept across the board - while some are well made on a technical level, but fail miserably in other aspects. THE PAPERBOY, falls into the latter category.There is nothing wrong with the production values of the film as far as made-for-cable movies go. The cinematography and such are all fine. However, the screenplay is quite simple minded and borrows from every other psycho-in-the-home movie from THE BAD SEED to THE HAND THAT ROCKS THE CRADLE. The dialog also includes a number of howler one-liners like, "Have you given Peaches his weenies?!" So the movie hasn't a chance to develop any real drama or tension.You do get a wonderful, energetic performance from Marc Marut as Johnny. I don't know if you could call his character likable, but I did find myself watching his shenanigans with interest. His character, aside from being violent, is a sad little underdog. He has no friends, poor social skills, and a douchebag golf-loving dad who leaves him to fend for himself most of the time. His character certainly garners more sympathy than the mother character he obsesses over. She is a teacher in what appears to be a school in a low-income neighborhood in Boston, so you would think she would have more sympathy for a kid with a disadvantaged background, treating him with more tact and sensitivity than she does. Not to mention that she should have thought to call a social worker LONG before she did.In all, as far as junk cable movies go, this one is well worth watching, if you like that sort of thing - like I do.

So this is suppose to be a horror movie. I laughed at it. It is corny, stupid, unrealistic, ridiculous, but yet I still love this movie. Johnny is entertaining. It's mere attempt to scare you is why this is funny. Anyway, I have not seen it in years, probably a good 15 years or so. But I want to watch it again, maybe I will try and find it on ebay or amazon. It is a good flick though. Johnny is an obsessed, psychotic little kid. He has a thing for a teacher who is about 3 or 4 times his age. He is not afraid to kill. He is annoying. It will make you laugh at times and you might hate me for recommending the movie after you watch it, cause it is cheesy, but I like it for some unknown reason.