THE CRAZIES FIRST 10 MINUTES Who the hell decided that The Crazies was a good movie title? It ranks right up there with other classic horror movie titles such as The Happening and (the worst ever) Jeepers Creepers. These names inspire chuckles instead of chills. They suck. Or maybe the name is so bad that it's good? What do I know? That said, I really like the first ten minutes of this movie. I like the baseball scene where we meet the first "crazy." As seen in the trailer, a man walks onto a baseball field while a game is in progress. He seems out of it, maybe drunk, he's brandishing a shotgun, and the local sheriff is forced to shoot him dead. It's a good, compelling, uncomfortable scene that leaves us intrigued as to what the hell is going on and what the hell is going to happen. Screw Shutter Island. In this movie, not only do I get to be crazy, but I get to roam free and kill people! Bonus! Though I do miss Leo ever so much... Then, at exactly the ten-minute mark, we meet "crazy" number two, just sitting in the ballpark bleachers, and it too has just the right amount of creepiness to it. If the rest of the movie lives up to the opening couple of scenes, I think I'm gonna like this flick. Despite the title. So far, the only thing that really bothers me about The Crazies is the woman who plays the town doctor, who is also the sheriff's wife. She seems to have a stick up her ass in a Téa Leoni sort of way. Maybe it's just me. FOLLOW-UP Well, the movie kinda takes a turn for the cheesy as it gets rolling, but that was expected. It's called The Crazies. And it's filled with holes and clichés (cell phones with big "NO SIGNAL" displays, camera pans to reveal lurking "crazies," countles noise-music-jolts, etc.). And it's certainly not good in an Oscar contender sorta way. But then, it's not striving to be. The fact is that for the type of movie it is, it's pretty damned entertaining, and it never fucking lets up. So I'm still giving it a pretty high rating for accomplishing what it sets out to accomplish. But the best thing about this flick is that it has opened up a world of new ways for me to fuck with Jess. It's gonna be fun to think of different ways to make her believe I've caught "the crazy." FIRST 10 MINUTES First of all, I really find the trend of titles that call it like it is refreshing. First "Snakes on a Plane," now "The Crazies." I do wish more titles would do this, it would tell you so much more about the film. For instance, if "Dreamgirls" was called "Average Motown Musical," I would have understood that I should not see it in theaters. Better yet, I would have known it was a musical. So for this, Crazies, I thank you. I'm wishing there wasn't the time stamp scene at the beginning of the film. It would be a bit more compelling if the picture of normalcy was suddenly thrown off. Other than that, I am liking this film. When crazy number one walks on the field, it grabs you, in the same stressy way that 28 Days Later grabs you immediately. My only problem is that this feels like one of those stress films where my entire body will tense up the entire time. Thanks again Crazies, I'm already wicked paranoid about everything, irrational borderline OCD paranoia, and now I get to worry all the time that I am just going to suddenly get struck with "The Crazy." Also, just a quick observation/question: Why is it that films based in podunk towns always have the protagonist aggressively cutting or chopping wood? I guess whittling wouldn't look right, and making beef jerky doesn't read well on film either. Anyhow, this movie has grabbed my attention and I am impressed by the first ten minutes, I am ready to keep watching. JESS SLEEP METER (Bri: She may never sleep again. Looks like we're in for a couple episodes of Jersey Shore before bed tonight. Or maybe Sober House. That goofy Tom Sizemore always cracks us up!) FOLLOW-UP Two stars. And the only reason that I stayed awake to watch this was because I was so freaked out. Terrifying.