It's hard to believe, but Brittany Murphy--who won our hearts as way harsh Tai in Clueless--passed away more than four years ago. Yet it is only now that her final film role is coming to theaters. It's a thriller from director Darin Scott called Something Wicked and you can get a peak at it above in its newly unveiled trailer.
THR has shared Something Wicked's first preview, which sets up a story of a beautiful woman experiencing some serious trauma. One Tree Hill's Shantel VanSanten stars as Christine, a bride-to-be with a bright future whose life is thrown for a look when a gruesome car accident kills her parents. As her wedding day approaches, however, her grief is just the beginning of her problems. Is it post-traumatic stress--as Murphy's psychiatrist character diagnoses above--or is she being stalked?
Let's be honest: this trailer is an absolute mess. It takes a laborious amount of time setting up the train accident, then devolves into a confounding montage before capitalizing on Murphy's fame--and possibly exploiting her tragic death--by going out on her and her screams. Basically, from the looks of this trailer, it's little wonder that Something Wicked took so long for it to secure a theatrical release. Frankly, it' surprising Something Wicked isn't going straight to VOD.
We first got word of Murphy's involvement in Something Wicked in 2009, and we weren't especially hopeful then. The thriller shot in that summer, and wrapped a few months before Murphy's death. But then there was no sign of of the film until last month when plans were finally announced for a very limited release. How limited? Well, this Friday Something Wicked will open in exactly one theater, the Valley River Center Stadium 15 in Eugene, Oregon(where the movie shot). Producers insist that Something Wicked will spread to 19 other theaters over the course of April. So watch out for that.
Along with news of its release date, Something Wicked's producer and screenwriter Joe Colleran told NY Daily News that part of the delay in its opening was because of Murphy's death, coupled with the need for exterior reshoots that demanded specific--and presumably hard to find--weather conditions. He was quick to rain praise on Murphy's performance, which you can see more of in the inexplicable deleted scene below:
Something Wicked opens April 4th.
