I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU
Keep waiting

Some movies sustain my interest simply by virtue of a sexy cast.  I've Been Waiting For You is such a movie, which is off-putting and lame in so many ways, but managed to keep me distracted thanks to the efforts of the actresses.

The title and cover art bring forth unwelcome (and ultimately justified) comparisons to I Know What You Did Last Summer, and once seeing the film, more similarities become apparent (not the least of which is Lois Duncan, upon whose books both films are based).  I'm not sure if I'm in the market for anything trying to rip off I Know What You Did Last Summer.

Sarah Chalke (who's WAY hotter these days than when she was playing Becky on "Roseanne") plays a young woman who, along with her mom (Markie Post), moves into one of those huge small-town houses that has its own name.  This girl appears to be a practicing witch, although in the scenes where her "magic" is demonstrated, it's wisely left unclear whether it's "real" magic or simple trickery.  Mom's surprisingly supportive about this; hey, I'd be cool with it, but how many parents do you know who wouldn't shit nickels at the idea of their daughter getting into witchcraft?

Anyways, it turns out that three hundred or so years before, the local witch was burned at the stake by five cloaked townspeople (cheered on by the whole town), and in her dying breath, said she'd get her revenge, and all that.  This girl and the dead witch have the same name (Sarah), and the town can only put two and two together (although one guy demonstrates a hilarious failure to get straight the "float-or-drown" witch-test).

Meanwhile at school, Sarah's having difficulty fitting in because the jock/cheerleader crowd (this must be a small town thing; where I'm from, it was the yuppie larva who were the "in" crowd) is being extra antagonistic.  She secretly longs to fit in, but hides it all behind a mask of sarcastic quippage (as her mother points out unnecessarily).  She befriends a magic-store employee with huge hair, and soon enough, some cloaked figure with a witch's mask and Wolverine-like steel claws is trying to stick it to everybody.

What can I say?  Cheesy nonsense from beginning til end, the movie fails at both suspense and at the teenaged angst thing.  It would've bored the crap out of me if it weren't for Chalke and Soleil "Punky Brewster" Moon-Frye (playing one of the "in" girls who, alas, doesn't wear anything skimpy like she did in Pumpkinhead 2).

Just what's appealing about the prospect of being part of this "in" crowd is left a complete mystery, the filmmakers presumably hoping to tap into our own adolescent longings (which might work for the teenaged target audience, hell if I know; it wouldn't've have worked for me, I hated those people).  Additionally, Sarah's sort-of romance with one of the "in" boys is just as mysterious; exactly what does she see in this guy?  And why is it that late in the film, she tells him "It feels like you're the only one who's even a little on my side" when that magic-store guy has been supporting her WAY more consistently and overtly throughout the film?  Maybe it's an example of how some chicks just have no idea how to tell a guy who means them well from a guy who does not.  (Some?)

Still, I was involved, sort of.  Moon-Frye's a hottie, no doubt about that, and Chalke gets a sexy dance/lip-synch number about halfway through the film.  I know, I know, this is a pretty lame foundation on which to build interest in a film, but I've gotta go with what I've got.  There are a couple of small surprises in the plot, such as a hidden agenda for some characters (revealed early on, but still pleasantly surprising), and the identity of that Wolverine-wannabe wasn't who I'd thought it would be at all.  (And I'd been so confident I'd had it nailed)  Although while this movie doesn't fall prey to Tarot Cliché #1 ("Oooh, the Death Card!" "Do not be afraid, it signifies change!"), it does fall prey to Tarot Cliché #2 (every card drawn is a major arcana card; doesn't anybody ever draw, like, the three of cups?).

Not recommended, but you could do worse if you're in the market for this kind of thing.  Made for NBC, so gore/nudity/profanity is about at a PG level.  Obviously filmed in Canada, directed by Christopher Leitch.

BACK TO MAIN PAGE BACK TO THE I's