Reindeer Games (1996) User Reviews

Touchy movie for me, i am torn between two points

[fire-58 · 4/10 · 2 January 2012]

I am torn on this movie. You have to look at this movie from 2 point of view. The first point of view is the view of every one in the entire world, meaning your average person that is going to watch a movie.

From the every one point of view i described above this movie is a big stinky pile of horse crap, steaming up steam clouds of bad acting and poor filming. Most of these types of people never made it though the movie. Im not bashing this group, i am in this group HALF of the time.

Then the next group of people are the types of people that are in to these types of movies, little budget, independent films that the little guys make. You can tell them from a mile away by the picture on the box and the description on the back.

IF can look at this movie from the second groups point of view, this movie is really not that bad at all. If you compare this movie to 50 other independent movies of this type it stands out from the crowd in plot and acting.

Now looking at this movie from both point of views? my only big problem is the guy that hassles the main guy at work, he was so over the top stupid and really had a huge part in making this movie bad.

If your the actor that hassled the dish washer and your reading this for some reason, YOUR the main reason this movie was corny, and bad.

Very Poor

[JTowle · 2/10 · 11 March 2006]

I rented this film from my local video store and was surprised that it was even picked up for release. It is evident that the ONLY reason it is out there is because the two jokes from Project Greenlight made it. I guess when it became obvious that nothing would come of their future works, they decided to cash in on their past works. Very poorly acted, particularly by Kyle, who insisted on putting himself in most of the earlier works. After having seen him in this and in Pennyweight, I personally think that he should never act again. I do like the spirit of independent film, but I also think there is a difference between independent and amateur, and this film comes off as the latter. I found the plot to be unintriguing and at times to be well above the skills and budget the filmmakers had to work with. The blind date sequences stand out as particularly bad and cumbersome and far tool long. Overall I feel like a distribution company new that they could repackage it with the words Project Greenlight and get people to rent it, they should have watched it first and had some integrity.

Not Bad, NOt Good... Not even Called Reindeer Games anymore.

[dannerlc · 7 November 2005]

Just rented this from Hollywood video today and i have to say I'm semi-impressed. The opening trailers on the DVD had me worried. They were TERRIBLE. But i can honestly say had this film been on TV i would have watched it. Sadly i payed money for it... not sure if it's worth that. I REALLY wanted to smack the creators of the DVD cover (although i should shake their hands they were doing their jobs) I fell for the PROJECT GREENLIGHT tag attached to the film. That's what i get for not doing my homework before renting this. I thought THIS was the horror film which project green-light was working on and thus the reason why i rented it. Only later did i realize that it was just running off Kyle Rankin and Efram Potelle's "Battle of Shaker Heights" (a MUCH better movie). Silly girl. I should have known not to take it when the title "A Cult CLASSIC" was proudly displayed. And had I taken a moment to USE my college degree and actually decipher the coded quote from ABC News on the back i might have put the film back completely. "... makes silence of the lambs seem like breakfast at tiffany's". First off, and ellipses at the beginning of ANY quote only means that the writer had something else to say, but the editor decided it would either a)not be important or b)not work for their purpose. My guess after watching this, the ABC News reviewer was saying that this film made Silence of the Lambs look like a classic (which it is, so really that's redundant). I'm really not trying to bash this film, it was a great first effort and there are things about it which are great. Kyle's performance as Alec Clark is quite good. Mary Skinner is great, even if she did sorta come off like a cross between Charlize Theron and Ashley Judd, but hey what's wrong with that? It was just some of the lines and the overall feeling of boredom which kinda made me wish i had just stumbled onto this on cable one lonely night.

My only question....

Why is Hollywood Video renting this as a film called The Girl in the Basement? No one owns a title of a film. I can call my film Casablanca if i want, so why change the name from Reindeer Games to that, unless you're worried about it getting mixed up with that horrible Charlize Theron, Ben Affleck piece of junk. (hmmm Kyle looks a lot like Affleck, and Mary looks a hell of a lot like CHarlize... crazy). If I were them i would have left it, or at least contacted IMDb some how and let the know that the film has a new title.

To wrap up, not a bad film, not a good film. I give it a solid 4 out of 10

I Feel Like a Bully

[MisterSisterFister · 2/10 · 31 October 2018]

This movie is so bad and so forgettable and so obscure that its not even worth commenting on. Its like picking on someone with a disability. "What's your problem, man? Oh ... oh, sorry, man. I didn't know."

Bloody panties...

[mcharlesmartin · 2/10 · 15 April 2010]

Need I say more? Well actually I should because that was the only good part of this movie. Not even good just hysterical. Because of that I gave this movie a 2. The highest rating I've given any of the movies I have reviewed thus far which isn't saying much considering the fact that so far I have reviewed dreamcatcher, juno and avatar.

This movie is sooooooooooooo stupid. Sucha waste of time. Go see it. See for yourself. Please.

I don't even know what else to say. I went to two blackbusters with a friend to find this movie and needless to say it was the smartest thing I have ever done in my entire life!

Being released Tuesday, October 25th as "Girl in the Basement."

[ThomYorke · 6/10 · 24 October 2005]

I discovered this film at Blockbuster, and it's coming on DVD tomorrow and it's a film that suspense fans should rent.

The plot is minimal, but, that's meant to be a compliment. It's suspenseful at times and "grungy Santa" was very disturbing. And, it's darkly humorous at times a le De Palma.

Some minor quibbles. The quality even of the DVD is a bit grainy, especially in the earlier scenes. And the acting by the owner of the restaurant is terrible. Even the girl overacts sometimes.

But the way the plot unfolds is sad, tragic. But, it's about what you would expect. You do end up feeling sorry for Alec.

Rent this on a lonely Saturday night, if you like suspense films. You'll not be disappointed.

Surprisingly Good

[iarepacman · 9/10 · 26 October 2005]

Mean to cash in on the use of the "Project Greenlight" name on the DVD, I picked up an apparent re-release of this thriller under the name "The Girl in the Basement". I was quite impressed, a very solid if not simple story line, couple with some great performances by unknowns, and a truly disturbing back story (the antagonist's past is truly disturbing). I do hope that the folks who actually made the film get to profit off of the films re-release, as it is quite evident that this was a labor of love, and made in 1996 when indie horror wasn't something that every joe with a camcorder could get into the video stores. They really stretched the meager budget of 35,000, based on the locations, I honestly would have had no idea the film was shot so inexpensively. And the "adopt a roll" method of raising funds was brilliant! Well done, I love to see successful independent film-making!

A Girl,A Basement,and PROJECT GREENLIGHT connection !

[guestar57 · 7/10 · 27 November 2005]

THE GIRL IN THE BASEMENT WOW, Where to start…Great DVD box art, Title is better than Reindeer Games( IMDb ),Alter Ego(commentary track) and nice plug about these filmmakers who went on to do a Project Greenlight " Battle Of Shaker Heights". This do to some behind the scenes drama, The director was killed after this film in a botched car-jacking and the others went on to do ONLY comedies. This is a good film and works well, Kyle Rankin & Mary Skinner as the leads are perfect. This movie needs to be nominated for best use of a Baby Monitor and that "I've fallen and can't get up" gizmo. You know it's even holiday-themed with this Sick Santa Icon. Sooo, If you looking for the early works of Project Greenlight winners-This film is very good and intense drama.

A little independent that comes through with the goods.

[uds3 · 29 May 2002]

Compared with the big-budget Ben Affleck flick of the same name four years later this offers per dollar, way better value. Rough around the edges perhaps, but still a "worth seeing" little item.

Kyle Rankin is Alec Clark..."Mr extreme average" who loses the plot of his own life and finds it necessary to vent his frustrations (and/or perceived lack of manhood) on a young girl Kate Regan (played by Mary Skinner) who he sees fit to relocate, fully tied up, in his own basement. Kate has a problem.

Acting and direction are above average for the budget constraints here and you could do far worse than watch this one night.

One of the few decent indie films....

[tallnewyorker · 7/10 · 13 July 2005]

So "Reindeer Games" is actually one of the few decent independent films I've seen. You have to remember: This comment is coming from a guy who despises Kevin Smith for wasting my time with every movie he releases. I fear I'll never learn my lesson with that guy (but I just have so much hope in my heart.) Reindeer Games is nothing like the Affleck version (which is utterly disgusting.) It's about this guy named Alec who works at a restaurant in downtown Portland, Maine. He accumulates a crush on a co-worker and manages to finally land a date with her.

After the date she makes it clear that she never wants to see him outside of work again, so he does the only logical thing: knocks her out and locks her up in his basement.

There are suspenseful moments--but in that independent film kind of way. The chief of police for Portland (Mike Chitwood) makes a cameo on the end. Not bad considering he violentfied the entire police force--it only makes sense to have him appear in a violent movie like this.

There is one shot they did that I still can't figure out (it appears more vividly in the trailer--where a shadow looms over a chair in the foreground. Anyway, that's about it.

-EE

Creepy, suspenseful, and unique...

[sgtdeal-1 · 9/10 · 21 May 2002]

I had no idea what to expect when I borrowed this movie from a friend. I was pleasantly surprised. Despite a minimal budget, this movie delivers top-level drama and suspense. Kyle, Efram, and Shayne did a wonderful job of crafting a film that held my interest until its dramatic conclusion. Kyle gave a superb performance as the maladjusted "Alec". The images of the "dirty Santa" were completely disturbing, and caused a shiver to go down my spine. I really enjoyed Alec's quirkiness, which bordered on humorous in such instances as the tampon and cigarettes scene. Well done guys.

Overcoming the Shoe String Budget

[shmince · 8/10 · 26 February 2010]

I rate this film so highly out of respect for how much the filmmakers accomplished with virtually no budget and an all-volunteer cast and crew. The acting is surprisingly good for a Red-Cross group (a couple of holes in the minor roles, but forgivable under the circumstances). The lead roles are done well. The grandmother is believable as a supporting character. The cinematography is quite good. These guys knew what they were doing.

The product is solidly entertaining for any psycho-thriller fan, and a must see for independent filmmakers (especially of the low-low-budget sort... This film will be an inspiration to make your next one!). On the creepiness factor: They got a good deal of "creep" for their film-making dollar.

Check it out. It's worth the two bits and an hour-and-a-half.

Very good, suspenseful independent movie.

[b3nz0r22 · 8/10 · 23 March 2000]

Reindeer Games was an extremely well done independent film made by a couple of excellent film makers working right in my area (Portland, Maine). The acting is excellent as is the direction, which the great script deserves. I'm not very good at reviews, so I'll wrap this up. I strongly suggest this movie to anyone who can get a hold of it, and if it's not available near you, come to Portland, Maine, and rent it