I picked this one up at the video store because Prepon is on the cover, and being a huge That '70's Show fan I like to see other stuff that the cast is in. I was glad I did get it as it was very well acted by everyone in the film. The characters were very believable whether it was a psycho religious mom or a redneck teenager. The story was pretty simple and in this case that's not a bad thing. I also found it interesting that Prepon was exec. producer. I think anybody that has or has had aspirations of getting out of their hometown to make it the entertainment industry will relate to this movie on some level. It also goes to show that you shouldn't overlook a DVD on the shelf of the movie store just because it hasn't had a big theatrical release.

Here we go again... "Lightning Bug" is a noble attempt to inject some innovation into the Teens-Coming-Of-Age subgenre, but remains too grounded in convention to properly solidify its earnest intentions. It drips with sappy sentiment, caricatured characters, and a woefully familiar plot that pits Religious Kook against Independent Thinker. Brett Harrison plays a teenage boy with dreams of becoming a Hollywood makeup man; Laura Prepon is the secretive girl whom he loves; Ashley Laurence (who gives one of the film's worthwhile performances) is his put-upon mother; and Kevin Gage (the other worthwhile performance) is the brutal drunk who dominates over the family. Set in the South, God-fearing zealots come out of the woodwork to derail Harrison's goals, as does Gage's blue-collar drunk. Writer-director Robert Hall infuses the film with some affecting passages (Laurence, from "Hellraiser," invokes genuine sympathy), but too often seems to be putting "The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys" through a horror Cuisinart, with only moderate success. Worth viewing, but certainly nothing spectacular.

Very cool first time film from Robert Hall. Great performances from Bret Harrison (as I still am bummed about the cancellation of one of my fav TV sitcoms, that he was on Grounded For Life) as the main character Green Graves, ateen with a great talent for making models & for doing very realistic make-up of monsters & blood- n- gore. However, due to the fact that he lives in hillbilly land Alabama & his mom, played very good by the always awesome Ashley Laurence ( who was so amazing in 2 of my all-time fav's, Hellraiser 1 & 2) as a down on her luck very slow-witted trailer-trash mom who against her better judgement has a relationship with a terrible, white-trash mean m@#3#3f^&*&&r who is just one step away from beating her & her 2 kids to death & he also has to contend with the religious fanatics in the town, namely the character of Mrs Duvey played by Shannon Eubanks , who gives a great performance this side of the mom in Carrie, as a woman hell-bent on doing the Lord's Work & carrying & loving her pillow, who she thinks is her absent husband who left her holy-rolling ass for a stripper. Also good was Laura "That 70's Show" Prepon as Green's girlfriend & the young boy Lucas Til who plays Green's little bro. Was billed as a horror film.But it isn't. Horror fans will like it as it has a lot of horroresque material but this film isn't a horror film. But, it is something very special. *** out of ****

I had the great pleasure of seeing this movie at its world premiere at the Philadelphia Film Festival on April 9, 2004. It is a movie that will grab hold of you and take you on a ride, incorporating many genres of film. It has many moments of laugh out loud comedy, jump out of your seat horror, thrilling scenes of tension and suspense, and many touching and poignant moments of drama. The development of all the characters is done in such a way that you cannot help to like every single one of them. I swear to God that the character of Billy Martin (played to exception by George Faughnan) went to my high school! And if you don't fall for the Southern homespun witticisms of the character of Mr. Tightwiler (portrayed by Bob Penny) then I feel sorry for you!! And the dramatic range and emotion showed by the two lead characters of Green Graves and Angevin Duvey (Brett Harrison and Laura Prepon) is an insight into these two actors that we have not seen in their previous work. I loved seeing this film so much that I caught the second showing the very next night, and there were many things that I hadn't caught the first time through! I would highly recommend EVERYONE to go and see this movie, you will NOT be sorry.