itwaits

THE SYNOPSIS

Two months after the DWI-related death of her best friend, Forest Ranger Danielle St. Claire (Vincent) can’t get it together. Stationed on a tower up in the mountains by her boss Rick (Kean), she keeps reliving the awful night under the influence of vodka and in the company of her pet parrot.

Elsewhere in the park, several archeology students break into a cave to study ancient human drawings when they are attacked and killed by a large creature. It is the Wakinyah--an ancient creature from Native Indian folklore that happens to be quite real.

Danielle is visited by her fellow ranger and lover Justin (Zamprogna) and they make love. Soon after, they’re attacked by the Wakinyah. Daybreak comes with the relevation that something has destroyed his jeep and the satellite. Several hikers are devoured as well.

Justin joins their ranks as he tries to hunt the creature. Danielle runs through the forest and comes across the cave...and Dr. Riverwind (Schweig)--a university Professor of Native Anthropolgy who seems to know plenty about the Wakinyah. Not enough, obviously--as he’s killed the next day.

Rick rescues Danielle, but he gets killed in the process. The resourceful rangerette destroys the creature and absolves her own sins in the end. The parrot survives, too.

THE CRITIQUE

You gotta love these horror movies that steal from other (usually better) genre movies. IT WAITS is an easily-identifiable hybrid of the superior Jeepers Creepers and Predator. I’m serious.

Starring Cabin Fever alum Cerina Vincent in the lead role, I do have to say that she’s very sexy and very well-endowed and...a decent actress. It’s quite funny to watch these kinds of horror movies where the female lead is running around with her shirt wide-open (and thus almost-revealing the goods) when it’s freezing cold outside!

Believe me, I’m not complaining--she’s got ‘em going on--but they do distract from the movie and its potential as a scary movie. Everyone else in the cast is just fodder for the creature to maul. So no mention of them is needed.

As touted in the marketing of the movie, IT WAITS, was produced by Stephen J. Cannell. For those of you to young to remember, SJC was one of the biggest writers & producers on TV back in the day (some of his show included such classics as The Rockford Files, The A-Team and 21 Jump Street). Now he’s dipping his lethal-looking goatee into the horror movie inkwell--as producer and co-screenwriter.

Competently directed by genre filmmaker Steven R. Monroe (Sasquatch Mountain/Left In Darkness/House Of 9), it was written by Richard Christian Mathison (prolific screenwriter & author and son of legendary author Richard Mathison --best known for classics like I Am Legend) and Thomas Szollosi (another prolific TV & movie writer).

Sadly, the script bites like the demon in the movie! With such literary pedigree behind the proceedings, you would have thought that a better script would be evident.

Much better, however, is the handsome cinematography of the British Colombia locations by veteran TV lenser Jon Joffin (TV stuff like Masters Of Horror & The X-Files) and some sharp cutting by TV editor, Kevin D. Ross (Blade: The Series).

Must also reference the creature, as it does look rather horrifying. At least I think that it does...because we never really get a perfectly-clear look at it. Either it is cloaked in darkness or hanging around in the corner of the frame.

The demon must have Bruce The Shark syndrome (where the mechanical shark in the original JAWS didn’t work properly--so the filmmakers shot around the dilemma and caused the fear-factor to ratchet itself up by hinting that a shark was about). In this movie, it’s just annoying (and hence, the downside of that sharp editing that I just praised).

There’s some solid talent behind this movie, but unfortunately...it’s TV pedigree sticks out like a pre-amputated sore thumb. No really frights to be found here--but still has some entertainment value if you like your horror movies formulaic and gory. At least we can look at Cerina Vincent--since she and her talents carry the movie. To quote Max Bialystock: “If ya got it, flaunt it baby!” Indubitably.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Low-budget horror affair that features hardly any real scares, a hot lead actress, nice cinematography and...a hot lead actress. I wish that I could say more, but--after all--it is a straight-to-DVD title!

CAST: Cerina Vincent, Dominic Zamprogna, Greg Kean & Eric Schweig

CREDITS: Director: Steven R. Monroe; Producers: Stephen J. Cannell & Michael Dubelko; Screenwriters: Richard Christian Mathison & Tom Szollosi and Stephen J. Cannell; Director of Photography: Jon Joffin; Production Designer: Bob Bottieri; Editor: Kevin D. Ross; Costume Designer: Angelina Kekich; Music: Corey A. Jackson

AC/AL/SV 2005 88m English