Lindsay Lohan’s 2007 horror film was completely misjudged

In 2007, a film came out that audiences just weren’t ready for. I know who killed me — a sleazy, hallucinatory, camp-fueled horror show starring struggling star Lindsay Lohan — was soon declared one of the worst films of all time, breaking Golden Raspberry’s previous record. Showgirls with eight nominations and seven wins. This uniquely bizarre erotic thriller about a healthy teenager who is attacked by a serial killer and suffers from a split personality (or is it?) was generally panned. But can something so daringly different really be bad?

In recent years I know who killed me has begun to enjoy a re-evaluation. Although it defies all traditional standards of quality, some viewers have recognized its originality and some critics have identified it as American giallo: an often sexy and cruel Italian subgenre that favors style and symbolism over ordinary logic. Love it or hate it, the peculiar I know who killed me It never gets boring – and that’s definitely a good thing.

For better or worse, I Know Who Killed Me is a film like no other

In Chris Sivertson’s unparalleled oddity, a serial killer stalks the quiet town of New Salem, torturing and murdering able-bodied teenagers like Aubrey Fleming (Lindsay Lohan). Her parents are shocked when their daughter turns up alive but partially dismembered in a ditch – and claims to be a completely different person. “Dakota Moss,” the person Aubrey claims to be, is a street stripper who doctors and investigators believe is a figment of Aubrey’s traumatized imagination. Otherwise, however, she seems to have a clear head.

Dakota tells a bizarre story about one of her hands and part of a leg spontaneously rotting away. In the hospital, she is fitted with high-tech cybernetic prosthetics and once she’s back on her feet, she sets out to prove that she’s not Aubrey. Dark family secrets and strange supernatural experiences lead them into the lair of a twisted murderer who lives out a fairytale fantasy with the virginal young women he collects.

As strange as it may sound on paper, actually watching I know who killed me is a wilder ride than any description could convey. The feverish film delivers one shock after another with its collection of dreamlike images, irrational revelations and eccentric visual flourishes. It may not meet the expectations of the average audience, but it is deliberately unusual, never boring and not boring at all. No matter what crimes the critics accuse it of, the film is always extremely surprising.

Fans will witness the birth of a cult classic

Open-minded film lovers are beginning to realize this I know who killed me Maybe he got a bad reputation. Does it make any sense? No. Is it tastefully done? Certainly not! Is it fascinatingly unpredictable, lavishly produced and relentlessly entertaining? A thousand times, yes. Director Chris Sivertson described Jeff Hammond’s script as a combination of elements from Brian De Palma and David Lynch – references the film wears on its stylish sleeve – and Hammond told critic Coleman Spilde that the apparent pointlessness was actually a kind of controlled chaos . He said:

His contradictions exist on multiple levels and most of them were intentional. It has campy and serious elements. The magical elements in the story seem cheesy because they came from Aubrey’s imagination. A robot hand with a super power grip? This is what a young girl would dream of.

Accusations of poor acting are also unfair and are likely based on conventional preconceptions about what a normal film should look like. Aubrey’s traumatized parents are played by capable veterans Stephen McDonough and Julia Ormond, and much-maligned star Lindsay Lohan is legitimately great, seriously committed to a subversive script that not many actors could handle. The icing on the cake is an expressionistic cameo from the nun herself, Bonnie Aarons, as strip club owner Fat Teena.

Lindsay Lohan’s talent has often been ignored due to her personal reputation. This is what sets her apart
The Canyons
a twisty, spooky thriller from Paul Schrader and Bret Easton Ellis. The controversial film has been criticized by many critics and praised by some, but deserves a spot on the Criterion Channel.

Every now and then a film comes along before its time. Iconoclastic films like Donnie Darko, Videodromeand John Carpenter’s The thing All had notoriously hard landings, but have since been considered essential works of art. Only time will tell if I know who killed me is destined for such a royal reassessment, but for now it guarantees the adventurous viewer a good time.