Body

A shoestring house-of-horrors exercise that just sort of, well, exists, with no real purpose or artistic vision driving it forward.

"Body" may not be the kind of modern-day B-movie that wins awards, but it does exactly what it sets out to, and that's a fair amount. So go ahead: see this film for yourself. You won't know what hit you.

Mishaps and conflicts ensue, some scarier and more credible than others, and some just plain irritating.

On the surface a typical exercise in horror-film cliché, Body turns out to be a far more thought-provoking creature, a parable of adulthood and a stinging indictment of white-girl privilege.

The film is well-acted, slickly made on a shoestring budget, and blessedly efficient, with a runtime that inches just past the one-hour mark, credits included. It's also nearly devoid of surprises ...

An uninspired thriller that would barely squeak past an hour's length without its drawn-out final credits.

With a generic title and a unsensational storyline, Body might not be remembered as readily as some other films, but that doesn't mean it's not worthy of standing out.

Body mines heaps of tension from Cali and Holly's moral back-and-forth-but their dilemma might have cut deeper with better, less predictable characterization.

Despite a couple of clever twists to keep the plot churning, the characters lack sufficient depth to generate sympathy.

Women's friendships in dangerous situations are not something we see a lot of onscreen. But this ends up not really being about the women at all.

A shockingly brief picture (68 minutes long before end credits) and not without its pressure points, but the feature lacks prolonged snap, only coming alive in certain charged moments.

Helen Rogers has been dancing around the indie scene for years now but has been deserving of an even bigger audience since she injected heart into V/H/S' best segment.