Pretty Good

It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.

Admirable film.

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

CRUEL WORLD is a very silly little comedy horror film made on an indie budget. The setting is a mansion in the Hollywood hills, where a typically maladjusted Edward Furlong (yep, the kid from TERMINATOR 2) takes a bunch of airheads hostage and forces them to play in his deadly game show. The acting is very cheesy and the story non-existent; just endless bikini beauties paraded around mixed with the occasional disappointing gore scene. Pity Furlong - who I like - for being reduced to this level.

This is what needs to happen on most reality shows.. then they might actually be watchable. Eddie Furlong captured the essence of a lunatic with great passion and enthusiasm. I've seen this movie about a hundred times now, and will probably watch it 100 more; its just one of those movies that never gets old. I don't think they could have hired a more perfect cast to fulfill this original heartwarming film. This movie is full of quotes that will be remembered throughout film history. Quotes such as "You win some, you lose some." and "Im the bad boy your mother warned you about.", and who could forget "I want Jenny.". If it was possible I would rate this movie an 11 out of 10, and would nominate Cruel World for BEST MOVIE EVER MADE.

Two brothers somehow sucker a bunch of young people into believing they're part of a reality game show in which they do whatever challenge the mastermind comes up with. Eventually it becomes apparent that the stakes are life and death, and the contestants start getting killed off, sometimes by each other.Perhaps the craziest part of this movie is Edward Furlong as the lead, Philip Markham, who overacts at every turn as he screams at the contestants from his control room, where he chain smokes and eats gas station food. His performance is not one of his finest, but given that he appears to be past his prime at this point, he does deliver something that is, at very least, entertaining (not always for the right reasons, though).As others have pointed out, Markham is a fairly lazy killer. Mostly he just yells a lot. It is often up to his simpleton brother, Claude, to carry out the dirty work for him.The big question is whether or not the flick is worth seeing. Well, for me, the movie came with four others in a small package that was located at the bottom of a bargain bin. Given what I paid for it, it wasn't too bad.

I'm one of those people who try very hard to see the good in everything, even movies, and this film "Cruel World" deserves far more credit than it seems to get, as it is actually rather good. Part of the reason people seem to think it is terrible may be because, whether intentionally or not, the film sets about mocking Reality Television (which is a major part of the film), so while you may watch the film and think that it is rubbish, perhaps that is what the creators want you to think.The premise of the film is an interesting one. A jilted loser, Philip Markham (Edward Furlong) of a bachelorette-style reality show seeks revenge on the woman who turned him down (Jaime Pressley), by killing her and her hot husband (who doesn't appear to be credited unfortunately), then starts his own reality show, where one by one the contestants are killed off - usually by Markham's dimwitted brother, Claude, leaving only the "final girl" (Laura Ramsey). The reality show is presumably fake, that much is not revealed, but it is similar to "Big Brother" in which the nine contestants are all in a confined house and are made to do tasks which determine who gets "sent home".The contestants are certainly a varied group of people, and most have distinct personalities, which is nice to see. Laura Ramsey plays the "final girl" Jenny, and though she is nice, as per usual in many horror movies (horror is one of several genres that are merged in this film), she is rather bland. However, it would seem that Laura Ramsey is off to a nice start in her acting career. Andrew Keegan, in yet another obscure film, plays the "hero", Bobby, and does so with his usual gusto. The lovely Nicole Bilderbeck as Mikko puts up the best fight in her death scene, but her role is relatively small, which is a shame, as for someone who made their debut in the smash hit "Clueless" she hasn't really had as big a career as the others, (she was great in "Bring It On"), but as usual she gives a terrific performance.Sanoe Lake makes her first on screen appearance since "Blue Crush", though one might wonder why she bothered, as she gets nothing to do. Brian Geraghty is terrific as the hot Southern boy Colin, who surprisingly shows the most humanity in the film, especially when placed in a "kill or be killed" situation. Joel Michaely on the other hand plays the terribly annoying gay Jack, who you cannot wait to get "voted off". As far as Edward Furlong goes, playing the villain, he does eccentric well. Daniel Franzese however sure is a step down from his role in "Mean Girls". And as for the lovely Jaime Pressley, she adds a touch of sophistication to the film, and as usual gives a terrific performance.Even if you don't believe that the film is smarter than it sets out to be, at least enjoy some near-mindless fun for 90 minutes.