Fool (Brandon Quintin Adams) is a 13-year-old boy with major problems. His mom needs an operation, and because his family is three days late on the rent for their inner city apartment, they’re getting evicted. His sister’s friend Leroy (Ving Rhames) offers him a chance to make some money: break into the house of his landlords, who “deserve to be robbed.” They sure do, we find out. Upon entry, they discover that Man (Everitt McGill) and Woman (Wendy Robie) (that’s how they’re credited) have a deep dark secret. They’re in search of the perfect child, and will stop at nothing to get it. Their current experiment, Alice (A.J. Langer), befriends Fool, and tries to help him. Fool is left trying to escape the crazy white folks’ house with the money and his life.
One of the most striking themes of the film is that appearances are deceiving. For example, the irony of Fool’s name; he’s far from stupid—he outwits Man and Woman several times. Then there’s Man and Woman’s house; it looks nice on the outside, but the inside is dirty and rotting. The same goes for Man and Woman themselves; on the outside they seem normal, but in reality are deeply unhinged—they have a cellar full of mangled children to prove it. There’s a scene when Fool calls Child Services on them, and they trick the police into thinking they’re loving parents. Then there’s the theme of the underdog coming out on top.
Though it gets hard to watch at times because of the child abuse, overall, I don’t have any complaints about the movie; the acting is good, the plot makes sense, and it’s fairly original. I first saw this edited for TV, and I really don’t recommend that. There’s a good deal of swearing, and the editing is ridiculous. For example, “Shut the fuck up” becomes “Shut the face up.” Give it a look if you’re in the mood for horror and social commentary.
GhoulieJoe 