THE HAUNTING OF SORORITY ROW/DEADLY PLEDGE (TV Movie 2007)

BASIC PLOT: Samantha Willows (Leighton Meester) is having a blast her freshman year at college. She's pledging the hottest sorority on campus, and has made lots of new friends. Her new roommate, Jane Horten (Kailin See), is a bit odd, but she's still nice to have around. The only problem? Jane never sleeps. She's always awake, and she never seems to eat either. There's something unusual about Jane, but Samantha chalks it up to freshman jitters, and tries to keep up with pledge week.

Samantha is also having problems with her high school boyfriend, Oliver (Adrian Petriw). He's always been a great guy, but lately, he's been a bit smothering. After Oliver makes a scene at a sorority party, Samantha decides to let him down gently. She wants to see other people, and Spencer (Carlo Marks) fits the bill.

After leaving a heartbroken Oliver, Samantha is approached by Collin, the boyfriend of a sorority sister who disappeared last semester. He tells her a strange story about his girlfriend Jenna Thorne (Lara Gilchrist). She disappeared during pledge week last year, a week after they got engaged. He knows she'd never run out on him, or college, and he tells Samantha to be on the lookout for her engagement ring.

Things get weirder and weirder for Sam, she knows the older sorority sisters are hiding something about Jenna Thorne. One by one, they either disappear or die, and the question becomes, does someone know what they did last summer? And is that someone human?

WHAT WORKS: *This movie uses actual music, AND gives credit to it at the end. It makes the all difference, and enhances the storytelling. In the scene where Samantha breaks up with Oliver, the haunting song, "Goodnight, Moonshine," by Dusty Rhodes & The River Band, sets the mood.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: *Why does Sam make fun of Spencer (Carlo Marks), when he tells her he likes theater, more than regular frat guy behavior? She's not a bobble head, so why? The whole scene doesn't work, it should give them something in common, but instead, it makes Sam look cruel.

TO RECOMMEND, OR NOT TO RECOMMEND, THAT IS THE QUESTION: *I would recommend this movie to anyone who enjoys light paranormal frights. It's not scary, but it is entertaining. Remember, this is a made-for-tv movie, not a big budget picture.

CLOSING NOTES: *This is a Made-For-TV movie, please keep that in mind before you watch\rate it. TV movies have a much lower budget, and so your expectations should be adjusted.

*I have no connection to the film, or production in ANY way. I am just an honest viewer, who wishes for more straight forward reviews. Hope I helped you out.

When I stumbled upon this 2007 horror mystery titled "The Haunting of Sorority Row", of course I opted to sit down and watch it, as I never had heard about it. And given my fascination and love of the horror genre, of course I needed no persuasion to sit down and watch the movie.

Now, I had no idea what I was in for, as I had never heard about the movie. So I only knew whatever little I could discern from the movie's synopsis, and the fact that it was a horror mystery of sorts.

The script in the movie was straightforward, but at the same time also very simplistic, almost to the point where it was dumb. Writers Jed Seidel and Michael Vickerman didn't exactly concoct a particularly terrifying or innovating haunted mystery narrative here. It made for semi-adequate entertainment, sure, but you're not in for anything thrilling, new or particularly scary.

I wasn't familiar with the cast ensemble in the movie, but I will say that the actresses and actors actually put on good enough performances, despite of the limitations imposed upon them by an inferior script and storyline.

Visually then "The Haunting of Sorority Row" certainly looked and felt like a TV movie, for better or worse.

All in all, not a particularly outstanding or memorable horror mystery. It came and went without leaving any lasting impression. And I will not return to watch the movie a second time, simply as there isn't enough contents to the narrative.

My rating of director Bert Kish's 2007 horror mystery "The Haunting of Sorority Row" lands on a generous four out of ten stars.

Samantha Willows (Leighton Meester) is a college freshman pledging a prestigious sorority. However something supernatural is killing its members. There was a mysterious girl missing from the previous year's pledges. Meanwhile, Sam's high school boyfriend has come along to college but is jealous of her new life.

This is a low budget weak production horror. The supernatural is revealed right off the bat. The big mystery is revealed before it even asks the questions. The CG is poorly done. The only good thing here is Leighton Meester. She takes this weak material and makes a little something. However, the production is so low that there isn't even enough members in this sorority. It's just weak overall.