AMBER ROLLAND – Hoof Prints Staff

There are over 2,000 colleges and over 8 million roommates. Which one will you get? After seeing “The Roommate” I certainly hope my roommate doesn’t look even remotely like Leighton Meester because if she does, I’m transferring just to be safe. It’s a precaution I’d have to take if I didn’t want to end up laughing myself to death every time I saw my roommate lurking behind me.

When the film began I was seriously beginning to regret not bringing a pillow to hide my face in when I realized that the movie wasn’t scary at all. For the most part, the first portion of the film was slow and uneventful plot-wise. However, Leighton Meester managed to channel her inner creep in every scene whether she was waiting for her roommate in the hallway or lurking in the back of the library.

Unfortunately she would appear in the background of a scene so often that it became laughable, though her antics and facial expressions were anything but. Little did I know the true freakiness of her character Rebecca Evans was about to come out.

It soon becomes evident that there is something, or rather a lot of somethings, wrong with this character. She desperately wants to be her roommate Sara Mathews’ best friend and tries her hardest to “protect” Sara (played by Minka Kelly) from anyone who gets too close. Rebecca has already gotten rid of one of Sara’s friends and her favorite professor when Sara finds out that Rebecca hasn’t been taking her prescription medicine for her psychotic disorder and depression.

Sara really starts to get worried when they run into one of Rebecca’s old high school “friends,” of whom Rebecca has drawn countless pictures. I was disappointed by the lack of details surrounding this character though it added some of the only mystery to the film.

Rebecca soon breaks the final straw, causing Sara to move out, but even that can’t keep her safe. The final confrontation between the two is a great scene, though a little confusing since the two actresses look so similar, and will have the entire audience cheering.

Another plus for this movie was the fact that Minka Kelly’s character was not presented as the stereotypical, dumb, promiscuous party girl. I was also impressed by Leighton Meester’s acting effort especially considering how little she had to work with script-wise.

This film had the potential to be one of the best horror thrillers of the year but failed to live up to it. It seemed to be more of a comedy than a scary movie and was only mildly frightening at best. There were also some unnecessary scenes, including one no one should see with their parents and a particularly upsetting one involving a kitten and a household appliance.

Movie-goers seeking to be scared speechless will be disappointed, so I have to give this movie a neigh.