"Idle Hands" Article

In what might be dubbed "spine-tingling slapstick," Idle Hands brings a special brand of wry humor, teen-themed terror and movie magic to the screen. Compared to the recent spate of big-budget teenage slasher films, Devon Sawa observes that Idle Hands is a standout because of its comedy and the "great fresh ideas" of its director, Rodman Flender.

"That has been the biggest challenge, to keep it funny and keep it scary," Flender says. What helps this director in his quest to create something "completely wacked out" and in "its own genre" is the film’s supernatural element. "I think what makes this film different is its wry comedic take on those great, serious, heavy-handed films of the ’70s and ’80s, like ‘The Exorcist’ or ‘The Omen,’" he explains.

"It’s an original story," says teen idol Sawa, who stars as the young man with the idlest hands in town. "It hasn’t been done yet. It’s funny, it’s creative. I think this film is going to entertain people with that sort of terrifying humor," he adds.

Says Jessica Alba, who stars as Sawa’s romantic interest, Molly, "It’s funny, yet it’s really scary. It has the best of both worlds. I want whoever sees this film to want to go and see it three or four more times because it has such energy," she concludes. Alba describes how there was "something deep inside of me… this sort of Mollyness" that made her want to do the film.

Sawa notes that his motivation in the film is, indeed, ‘the girl.’ "He meets this terrific girl across the street that he’s had a crush on for the longest time. So now that he’s got this great girl, he has no reason to be lazy anymore."

Throughout most of the film, to his ever-growing horror, Anton behaves as though he’s in some crazy dream where someone or something controls his right hand, whether he’s butchering his best friends (what better way to make sure they don’t call 911?) or getting a little too fresh with Molly in her bedroom. With a little forethought, however, Anton is able to keep from killing Molly, too. Alba credits Sawa for making Anton such an irresistible character despite his homicidal tendencies: "He is so funny. He danced in between scenes, and he sang. He’s just a goof, but I was really inspired by how he threw himself into the role."

Later in the film, Anton really thinks he’s losing it when Mick and Pnub, whom he disposed of the day before and buried in the backyard, are back from the afterlife. They figured it wasn’t really their idea of a good time, and decided to ditch purgatory in favor of giving Anton a taste of his own violent medicine and moving into his house as ghosts. Desperate for help, Anton turns to Randy, the neighborhood stud/heavy-metal fan played by Jack Noseworthy, for clues about all things evil. Randy advises that "idle hands are the Devil’s playground" and suggests that Anton keep busy… knitting, perhaps?

"Because I listen to this really hard rock music, he thinks I have a connection to evil spirits," says Noseworthy of the relationship between his character and Anton. "But basically," he says of Randy, "I drink beer and work on my truck." Explaining his motivation to work on Idle Hands, Noseworthy says, "When I read the script, I thought it was very funny and I could do something with it," he notes enthusiastically.

Vivica A. Fox plays Debi, who races across the country and goes through an entire wardrobe of outrageous disguises as she follows a trail of sinister events leading to the small town of Bolan. Prepared for a showdown, Debi has a ceremonial dagger made especially for the owner of the possessed hand.

"The main thing that attracted me to Debi was that she’s the heroine in the film, chasing down evil spirits to try and do something good," says Fox. "I love that she’s just a different, quirky kind of character… tough but with a sense of vulnerability."

All of the mayhem comes to a head at the high school costume dance, where zombies Mick and Pnub are a sensation but the hand is supernaturally strong and relentless in its blood lust. Trying to derail its deadly pursuit of Molly, Anton, Mick and Pnub are joined by Debi and Randy in a desperate struggle with the forces of hell to prevent the catastrophic fulfillment of the Halloween curse.

According to Vivica Fox, Idle Hands is a breed apart from other movies in the horror-comedy genre because the film has it all—"the horror, the comedy, the special effects, the babes, the dudes."

Noseworthy, too, predicts success for Flender’s approach to the genre. "I haven’t been in a movie in a long time where people were rolling on the floor and laughing, and I hope this is going to be it. I think it is!"

Back 12.31.2007.