Wicked
(1998)
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Residing within a wealthy, green, gated community in California, the Christiansens are not your usual nuclear family. Ben Christiansen (William R. Moses) and his wife Karen (Chelsea Field) have two daughters, an open marriage, and a handful of lovers apiece. When Karen announces that she wants a divorce, she winds up dead, and there are several suspects. Their 15-year-old daughter, daddy's girl Ellie (Julia Stiles, SAVE THE LAST DANCE), never cared much for her mother, anyway. She quickly steps into her mothers role, cooking all the meals, wearing her mother's clothes, and sharing a bed with her father. Meanwhile, the murder investigation is gaining momentum. Karen had her share of enemies. Is Ellie too obvious a suspect |
Julia Stiles — the feisty star of 10 Things I Hate about You and Save the Last Dance — plays a mature teenager who tries to take the place of her murdered mother in this mediocre domestic thriller. Director Michael Steinberg — best known for The Waterdance — employs some expressive camerawork to try and pep things up, but fails to make the telegraphed twists feel anything more than second-hand, particularly in the climactic stages. Given little to play with, Stiles brings a reasonable air of menace to her role of shrewd manipulator, but she is capable of far more interesting work than this tame teen tosh.