There is nothing like a good suspense thriller, and this is nothing like one. Kip Pardue's talent is limited to a few different facial expressions, taking his shirt off once in a while, and having tantrums. Tara Reid has one basic facial expression - like someone has asked her to figure out her bank balance using an abacus with warped beads. She slowly realizes the man she married is a loon, and conveys through acting skills alone that she wonders if she left the porch light on when she left. The opening scene is of Tara smoking a cigarette, which she handles quite convincingly, looking mussed, with a scratch on her jaw. THEN the story starts, from her flashback point of view - the wedding, bride's mom reminding them to be careful on the island, mom's birthday is in a few weeks so be sure to be careful and come back in one piece, preferably with a great gift in hand. I don't know what other pictures, if any, Joel Viertel may have directed, but here's a free tip, Joel -- when you show the main character/victim at the beginning of the movie and the rest is told in flashback, we pretty much KNOW that no matter what happens, she escapes, and in this case with nothing worse than a few bruises, a scratch on her jaw, and a hankering for Marlboros. The isolated island setting is a good plot device until you see in the long shots that the cabin is in FULL VIEW of anyone who may be ambling around the pond. Tara's character also displays the ability to think quickly, a talent she must have developed from taking 16 items into the 10 items or less check out counter. She wants Kip to leave the island so she can plan her escape, so she burns up the WHOLE BOX of matches, clever girl - and Kip has to leave the island to drive to the nearest Piggly-Wiggly for smokes and lights. Tara swings into MacGyver mode and takes action. Then stays there and waits for hubby to come back so they can act some more, I guess. There's not much more to say other than this is a movie about two characters and the incredible match of wits (half-wit vs. dim-wit) between them.
Review of Devil's Pond
