The story takes on what was quite a popular theme about one's obsession to another person, like what we saw in "The Fan". But this movie gave it a more specific theme of high school boyfriend crush. The story was set up quite neatly, with the movie able to return the mood to neutral almost every time thriller part cedes. But the movie ends itself weirdly by forcing the strange end twist into the story. For me the twist itself on its own feels quite nice. But how the movie incorporated it without really building supporting hints, aside putting Caitriona Balfe as the actress for that part, really confuses me. The acting overall is not so good. Lucas Till really need to improve his acting. Sarah Bolger also didn't give out good performance. Crystal Reed's acting is the only one at adequate levels for her character.

I was pleasantly surprised with this movie. It is very effective in creating a suspenseful thriller vibe. Throughout the entire movie you will be continually guessing who the crazy one is. Or maybe it's not as simple as that. One thing I know for sure is that apparently it sucks to be the school sports star.The movie is full of talented young actors who have lots of potential and manage to shine in a low budget film. They have put everything into their characters that it feels completely plausible. It's creepy to think that this sort of situation hasn't happened more often.If you have considered watching this movie then take the plunge. It is totally worth it.

CRUSH is slow-moving, virtually humorless, without a lot of serious tension or big turnabouts, and a bit hard to follow. A lot of people obviously like the twist at the end, but all I can say is that it didn't surprise me that much. Nevertheless, the ending IS far more effective and conclusive than many of them. CRUSH is also realistically filmed and acted and gives a convincing view of the darker aspects of adolescence, capturing its angst, jealousy, loneliness, and love hexagrams very well. The way the girls in the film all kind of look alike is initially confusing but really serves its purpose in the end. All things considered, CRUSH is like a fairly good Lifetime film on PCP.

*Some very minor spoilers about the general direction of the plot, nothing directly from the movie*This is not just a cheesy teen obsession film. It looked that way to me when I saw the thriller, but I was pleasantly surprised. Not only does it bend some of the obsessive stalker plot arc's we know of, but it also has a real human and emotional element to it that made me connect to the characters since they didn't just end up as 2D stock people. There are subtle side-plots about competitiveness, jealousy and the normality of obsessive or strange behavior, which helps flesh everything out and adds nuance. Visually and sound wise the film looks great and is not a budget or amateur production at all, it has the Hollywood polish which is nice.The plot is still familiar, and it does have several of the typical tropes, but at the same time it adds its own originality and personality to the characters in a way that made it refreshing. All in all entertaining and immersing, and touching even!