FILM REVIEW: The Boy Next Door (15)

Jennifer Lopez stars as Claire, a high school teacher conflicted by her husband’s infidelity and desire to put her family back together.

Pushed to ‘move on’ by her forthright friend (Kristen Chenoweth) she falls into the arms of her toyboy neighbour, Noah, who also happens to have transferred to her school as a senior student.

Mortified by her indiscretion and finally ready to welcome her husband back into her life, Claire tries to break it off, but Noah’s interest in her turns out to be more of an obsession and one which he’ll kill in order to feed.

The Boy Next Door definitely qualifies as a low budget thriller.

Despite being made for just $4million by a first time writer and unknown director, they’ve attracted big enough names to lure audiences.

Chenoweth shows some range outside of her twee, grinning showgirl bit, holding her own against psychotic Noah, and Lopez is as good a girl-next-door as ever.

You wouldn’t expect to see these two in a quick and clever thriller and it’s wise to approach The Boy Next Door with that level of expectation.

While it starts off well and there’s some palpable tension throughout, rather than building to a climax, the story unravels away from those trying to tell it until it’s trashed by an inexplicably gruesome final scene.

Ashley Whittaker ??