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Archives for : Ian Nelson

Movie Review: “The Boy Next Door” is a Foolishly Redundant Tale

Men beware; just a taste of JLo can lead to an unhealthy addiction!

Claire Peterson (Jennifer Lopez) is a high school teacher in the middle of a separation from her cheating husband (John Corbett).  Amidst the stress and drama, she has only been able to focus on her work and her son, Kevin (Ian Nelson).  She hasn’t been on a date in years.  Somehow, this always made-up beauty hasn’t even felt wanted by a man since the split.  She is lonely and vulnerable.  (Yeah, right…)  Here comes the new hot, young, and extremely fit neighbor.  Noah Sandborn (Ryan Guzman) seems harmless.  He’s a sweet kid taking care of his elderly uncle, and now he’s even befriended Claire’s awkward, wheezing son.  After going on a horrible double date with her friend/vice principal of her school, Vicky (Kristin Chenoweth), she receives a phone call from Noah who is need of her assistance.  The evening escalates from inappropriate to disgustingly wrong within seconds.  Claire wakes up immediately regretting the whole thing, but it’s too late.  A night of “passion” with “Jenny from the block” has caused Noah to catch a fever that he just can’t shake.

The Boy Next Door is a story we’ve seen before, multiple times.  In fact, you could probably figure out the entire film, without ever watching it.  Writer Barbara Curry offers no originality to this script, unless you count the record breaking amount of cheese in the dialogue.  Director Rob Cohen (Fast and Furious, The Skulls) does serve a few moments of excitement movie-goers can look forward to, particularly the end sequence.

January is known to be the worst month for films, and The Boy Next Door is no exception to that rule.  However, it is a film that audience members could possibly, still, enjoy.  I went in with the mindset of knowing this movie would be ridiculous and just had fun with it.  The acting is embarrassing, and the storyline doesn’t always make sense. Yet, there is plenty to laugh about.  Take for example, how Jennifer Lopez never looks bad.  It doesn’t matter if she’s fighting for her life in a burning barn, or if she’s about to go to bed; her lip gloss is always intact.

Sadly, The Boy Next Door does not provide the same entertainment value as other popular teen /stalker flicks like Fear or SwimFan.  But, if you’ve already seen all of the Oscar nominated films, and you’re looking for a thoughtless, outlandish comedy, The Boy Next Door maybe worth the watch!

Rating: 2/5

The Boy Next Door opens in theaters today.