Movies-TV

THE worst movie I have EVER seen.

It's not bad enough that John Waters shackled us with this horrid plot-line, the directing also stunk to high heaven. Absurdity can be coped with if it has any other redeeming value. This movie has NONE. I am a worse person for having seen this movie.On a good note, Ricki Lake is featured. She can be seen squealing and annoying her way through the whole ordeal.

"He killed people, mom". " We all have our bad days".

Black comedy can be a difficult genre to get right, in the cinema as well as in the theatre. We can, I am sure, all think of films which were intended to be gross but hilarious and ended up as simply gross. There are too many examples to list them all, but high on my personal list of offenders in this regard must be "The Sweetest Thing", "Beautiful Creatures" and "Drop Dead Gorgeous". On the other hand, when black comedy succeeds, the result can be superb. Two of my favourites are Kubrick's "Dr Strangelove" and Scorsese's "King of Comedy", both of which derive humour from serious subjects (nuclear war and crime) but do so with a brilliant satirical wit.John Waters's "Serial Mom" is not quite in the same class as those two films, but is one of the better black comedies of recent years. The main character is Beverley Sutphin, a middle-aged, middle-class Middle American housewife. Beverley, happily married to dentist Eugene with two teenage children, Chip and Misty, lives in an affluent, idyllic suburb which looks as though it has been taken from a fifties sit-com. (Like most of Waters's films, this one is set in his home town of Baltimore). There is only one thing which disturbs the peace and tranquillity of the area. Beverley combines her role as a housewife and mother with a part-time career as a serial killer. Her first victim is Paul Stubbins, a teacher who makes some unkind remarks about her son at a PTA meeting, and she progresses to her daughter's unfaithful boyfriend, a couple who are rude about Eugene's dental practice and various people who commit minor social gaffes such as failing to rewind rented video tapes (the film predates the coming of DVD), failing to recycle their garbage, and wearing white shoes after Labor day. (This last is, apparently, regarded as a major fashion crime in America). Eventually she is arrested and put on trial.Waters has the reputation of being a director to whom the notion of good taste is quite alien, and, with a plot like this, "Serial Mom" could have ended up as nothing more than horribly tasteless garbage. It is, of course, horribly tasteless and not a film to see if you are at all squeamish- Waters does not spare us sight of plenty of blood and gore- but is saved from ending up as garbage by two things. The first is an often very witty script, displaying a refreshingly cynical sense of humour, which includes some great lines such as "He killed people, mom- We all have our bad days". and "Jesus said nothing to condemn capital punishment as he hung on the cross, did he"? (the local priest is preaching a pro-death penalty sermon).The second is Kathleen Turner's manically over-the-top performance as Beverley, alternating between a model of bourgeois domestic virtue and a bloodthirsty maniac, and playing both with equal relish. My favourite parts were the courtroom scene where Beverley conducts her own defence with great brilliance and the scenes where she makes obscene phone calls to her neighbour Dottie, a woman who can be shocked by a phrase as seemingly innocuous as "Are those pussy willows?" Turner is an actress who has somewhat disappeared from view in recent years, but in the eighties and nineties she was one of Hollywood's best known leading ladies and gave some excellent performances in films like the neo-noir thriller "Body Heat" and "The War of the Roses", another very good black comedy.Like most good black comedies, "Serial Mom" has some serious points to make. The mores of suburbia have been fair game for satirists ever since the first suburbs were built, and here Waters is sending up the culture of middle-class conformity which all too often attaches to such places. Beverley is far from being the only all-American soccer mom who looks with horrified disfavour on her neighbours' minor deviations from accepted norms; all that distinguishes her from millions of others is the extreme lengths to which she will go to punish such deviations. The satire, however, is not just aimed at Beverley, but also at her victims, some of whom are such obnoxious individuals that it is impossible to have any sympathy for them, despite their horrific fates. There is one grotesque scene where Emma Lou Jensen (she who fails to rewind her videos) sings loudly and tunelessly along to "Tomorrow" from the musical "Annie" while allowing her dog to lick her feet all over suggesting she is, to say the least, a somewhat strange person. Stubbins, who suggests that Chip is in need of "therapy" because of his love of horror films, is the sort of arrogant, self-important teacher who thinks that he is paid not just to teach maths but also to control every aspect of his students' lives, down to their taste in films."Serial Mom" may not be the best cinematic satire on suburbia of recent years (that must be Sam Mendes's "American Beauty"), but it is, for all its lapses of taste, a witty and entertaining black comedy. 8/10

What actors will do for a buck!

Sorry,for those of you who actually liked this movie...... but my husband and I share the same opinion on this one e,,,i had taped it and we sailed thru it in record time hoping to see her get her 'just desserts' at the end...it just went from bad to worse,and we personally feel the whole subject matter was in bad taste. i guess the catagory for this film should be "Dark Humor"...sorry Kathryn Turner,but this is not your best movie....

Fashion has changed! NO IT HAS NOT!!!!!

SERIAL MOM is John Waters at his delightfully darkest. Kathleen Turner plays a soccer mom who harbors secret psychopathic longings and begins acting them out in the most bizarre ways. Ever seen anyone killed with a turkey leg while singing a song from ANNIE? If you've seen SERIAL MOM you have! Wow! Kathleen does a great job, but also look for Ricki Lake, Traci Lords, and a before he was famous Matthew Lillard throwing in great support. Oh, and who can forget Suzanne Sommers? She's awesome too! Waters regular Mink Stole steals her pussy willow scene as well. This is a great one!

The DVD contains a commentary with John Waters, and as usual his track is every bit as entertaining as the movie. There are featurettes with all the leads talking about making this farce! It's a great package. DVD presentation is striking - good picture and sound of one of John's highest budget features.

Great DVD of a great movie

First off, this is- in my opinion- John Waters' best film. No, it doesn't have the same extreme shock value of his early work but it is a very well-written film. And the cast is absolutely perfect. For the price, this DVD is a great value-- and never mind the description found here, the film IS presented in letterbox-format. The director's commentary track makes this a must-have for Waters' fans. Plus-- not listed on the package-- there are a number of bonus goodies including interview clips and behind-the-scenes footage. These extras are quite brief, but I love finding little added tidbits on DVDs. This is one of the funniest films released in the '90s. And as a darkly humorous look at America's obsession with making celebrities out of violent criminals, it is far more effective than more celebrated films like "Natural Born Killers."

"Give 'er a happy face!And then recycle her!"

Ever have that day when someone gets on your nerves and you feel like pulling the axe on them?That's exactly what John Waters demonstates in his dark comedy Serial Mom.After starring in the cheesy family movie "House of Cards", Kathleen Turner has created one of the best performances in her life as the beautiful, heroic, misunderstood, law-obeying serial killer Beverly Sutphin.Eversince six murders, she has been placed with some "terribly untrue charges" and the only 'serial' she knows "anything about is Rice Krispies!".But she has good reason for butchering six people: they all commited a crime that no one understands, like dumping her daughter, eating poultry (because Beverly loves birds),smart-alacing about her dentist husband, refusing to rewind a rental tape, critisizing about her family skills, and witnessing one of the other five crimes.You may think she's insane, but really, she's just expressing things we'd rather hide inside of us.Like, say you work in a store and someone wants to return something but they don't have the recipt.It can't be returned without the recipt, so you tell them "No can do".Then they start cursing you out like you're worthless.Wouldn't you get the urge to shove a bullet in their brain?Well then, you now know how Beverly Sutphin feels when someone decides to be a wise guy.This movie is perfect for anyone who loves to laugh.Plus, the DVD contains the theatrical trailer, a behind-the-scenes featurette, several TV spots, four interview clips, and extra behind the scenes footage.I give this one a 10/10!

lollollollollollollol :-|

This movie stunk and there is not much more to say about this piece of garbage...not worth the time.

true murder story from baltmore

yep,its all true!if you watch it,youll laugh hystericly.its about this super- mom who goes around wasting people for very small social flaws like not rewinding thier videos before returning them and not wearing thier seatbelts.o kid should view this under 15.the humor is good natured.there is a good deal of blood.a chick goes topless for a short while towards the end.thats always a plus!riki lake is in it as the serial moms fat little whiny daughter.the message is that everyone has skeletons in thier closet.if you watch closely,everyone in this movie has a wierd flaw.as far as rikki lake goes,this one is far far better than that 50s movie she did.very funny indeed!check it out!

With a woman like this there is only one thing to do. Sell T-shirts! First Class film and actors, bringing a well assembled script to life.

Serial Mom was witty funny and extremely exciting and suspenseful, along with being thoroughly entertaining. I expected to enjoy the film for many different reasons.; But after the opening 15 minutes of the film and breakfast seen. I knew this would end up being a film of high quality and laughter. The camera styles of the breakfast scenario made the scene go beyond capturing the reality millions of families experience in real time. just excellent.I found Kathleen Turner portraying the innocent, harmless killer, perfectly. The character came to life and seemed real. One of the best scenes thought, even I have to admit, was the very end scenario and expressions given between Kathleen Turner and Susan Summers for the closing scene which included Patricia Hearst; which only goes to show that even the most elegant and ravishing can not escape from bad fashion critics. Also Looking forward to seeing Patricia Hearst in longer more involved roles. A natural getting polished and learning to fly.I know I will receive many hours of pleasure from this film for I will see it again.D.A.T.

Disturbing!

Waters once again skewers the American psyche and culture with pin-point accuracy.Turner was a genuinely scary lady as the mom who seemed so angelic on the outside but had something very horrific going on inside. She was the crazy lady incarnate. Turner's performance was something indeed to behold. She was exactly the right choice for the role.Yea! Like a fine wine, Mink Stole aged very well and was quite a hoot as the poor neighbor who unfortunately was on the receiving end of serial mom's attention.The production values were much, much better than Waters' previous movies. Almost too much better as the movie teeters on the edge of becoming a little too cutesy. But Turner's stunning acting keeps the movie right on course as a disturbing horror movie and a ridiculous satire.A very funny movie that at the same time is also very creepy.

my favorite movie

I saw this movie and it was the funniest/scariest movie ever! It's funny when Kathleen Turner sneezes and a big booger falls on a baby's head. It was scary when a bloody crumb of apple pie falls from the math teacher's mouth. A funny part of the movie is the girl on the tv that was high and had messy black hair and "serial mom" said she was wasted.

Great!!

Extremely funny black comedy. Kathleen Turner gives a great performance

hilarious

this is actually a really funny movie if not highly unbelievable, but what do u expect from john waters? kathleen turner was casted perfectly. i never knew she could be so sly and devilish . well with maybe the exception of her role in WAR OF THE ROSES. one thing that bothers me though, how come ricki lake looks so young here but the film was made in '94.

Beverly Sutphin is not to be trifled with

Imagine this: the main character is a woman called Beverly Sutphin. Her husband is a dentist and she does her best to bring up her children. In short, she is a respectable human being with the particularity of being a real stickler for good manners . Maybe, a little too respectable so that when someone speaks ill of one member of her family, Beverly is ready to kill to defend her family!Only one filmmaker seemed designated to shot this highly entertaining black comedy: John Waters, the king of bad taste and extravagance. In "Serial Mom", most of the comical situations are structured about the two quoted characteristics. The whole is condensed in one hour and a half. You don't get bored one moment and you honestly laugh in front of all these murders. In "Serial Mom", you also recognize Waters' strong taste for bloody, gore and horror movies. Moreover, for this extraordinary director, it is the occasion to harm the model image of the American family.All in all, a delightfully politically incorrect comedy led by a Kathleen Turner on top form.

Hilarious Black Comedy

This movie was great! Kathleen Turner was trmendous in this orginal and entertaining film. This is one movie you can watch more than once without becoming bored and sleepy.

Are Those Pussy Willows Dotty?

John Waters did a terrific job on this movie. The casting is great. I can't believe they got Kathleen Turner to do the things she did in this movie. The movie starts out all sweet and cute with family breakfast and then some detectives stop by to question folks in the neighborhood about a lady in the neighborhood who is being sent some pretty nasty mail. Once the detectives and kids leave we then get a glimpse into the world of Beverly Sutfid while she makes a prank phone call. This entire scene is destined to be a comedy classic...Serial Mom then goes on a killing spree because some people have insulted her and her family. This movie is funny!!!!!!!!

Love it!

This movie was offensive, vulgar, shocking, and yes, mean spirited. Forgive me if I'm wrong, but isn't that was John Waters is all about? Kathleen Turner and Sam Waterston do a wonderful job of overacting (badly) in classic Waters fashion. Liver on a fireplace poker? Turner as June Cleaver making obscene and threatening phone calls? Juror 8 (Patty Hearst) wearing white shoes after Labor Day? How can you not love it? This movie ranks up there with Citizen Ruth or Heathers as one of the best black comedies ever. And it also seems to have given some inspiration to Natural Born Killers, the finest of the genre. (Although not nearly as easy to stomach.)

would you like some serial for breakfast?

Great movie, really outrageous, really shocking and Kathleen Turner gives a 5 star performance... she is terrific... it is really hard not to like this movie, unless u have a really bad sense of humor. Absolutely perfect.... a really fun time...

It's KILLER!

Oh how I LOVE this movie! Serial Mom is a fantastic John Waters movie. If you've enjoyed some of his other films, you'll no doubt appreciate Serial Mom. It's worth watching for Kathleen Turner's performance alone, but the rest of the cast is just wonderful as well, making this one of my absolute favorites. I've always been a big fan of John Waters' films because he uses all different types of people...from the beautiful Kathleen Turner to the not-so attractive character of Dottie Hinkle. It just makes his movies seem more real, no matter how surreal they truly are. Strongly recommended!

the best movie ever made.....

This movie is my favorite. I'll tell you why. When Mrs. Sutphin makes those obscene phone calls to Dotty Finkle, I can be in a really bad mood, but those calls make me laugh. I enjoy all the characters...the husband, Scotty, her 2 kids, Scotty's parents (who were tearin' up that chicken!), that pervert in the bathroom, and that lady who used to be on Mr. Belvedere. This movie has everything in it: sex, laughs, comedy, murder...even when Mrs. Sutphin clubs that old lady with the leg of lamb while watching Annie! How many movies can come up with that type of comedy?

YOU SO HAVE TO WATCH THIS MOVIE....Trust me, it's worth it.