What if you had the genius of Hitchcock's ROPE and took a giant crap on it..this foul-mouth, modern updating on the perfect murder(s) has this psycho named Nick(Rick Otto, looking like a young Ethan Hawke, without the talent, merely a cocky obnoxious a$$hole)whose holding a going-away party for his pal, Jimmy(Lucas Babin)who is (un)surprisingly missing as their friends gather together to drink and smoke weed(..often through this very unusual bong)wondering where the man-of-honor is. Quietly, Nick murders each one, through various methods when the others as a group are away, developing his perfect plan in place. The professor, obsessed with the art of crime and death, Hal(Glenn Quinn)is who inspired him to attempt such a feat. Despite Nick's use of damaging weapons, the director cleverly avoids showing any grisly violence. The film really plays with the wickedness of the situation as various people attempt to leave the party, dying at Nick's hand when he gets them alone. "R.S.V.P" is almost completely set in Nick's uncle's pad, except for the opening sequences setting up the rest of the film(..a murder investigation leading into a class, taught by Hal, and the beer drinking toast between Nick and Jimmy). Brandi Andres portrays Jim's girlfriend, Nick's ex, who the screenplay sets up as the final girl. Jason Mewes pretty much plays his Jay character from "Clerks" as a wise-cracking druggie, care-free and the life of the party. He easily steals his scenes if you can appreciate his brand of comedy. Despite director Mark Anthony Galluzzo's ambitions, this is really just another run-of-the-mill slasher where you realize that the killer will eventually make that one mistake, despite somehow amazingly succeeding in carrying out a parade of murders without getting caught thanks to a screenplay that allows him to, which will lead to his downfall.Veterans character actors Jonathan Banks and Lynch icon Grace Zabriskie portray Walter and Mary Franklin, Jimmy's uncle & aunt. I treasured their time on screen, because they bring a sense of relief that you can appreciate, especially once they "exit" the film and we're back stuck with the hard-partying brood. The film is full of sequences involving discussions on death and those whose lives revolved around murder...along with plenty of sex jokes and Mewes tongue wagging at the sights of tight female asses in jeans. Slasher fans might enjoy some of the tongue-in-cheek murders such as what Nick does to an uninvited guest, a neighbor from next door who interrupts the well-developed plan.
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