Drop Dead Gorgeous

*** stars out of 5

Mockumentary about a small-town US beauty pageant
Watched this wee gem on video the other night after we lost the footy to the Aussies. The movie is shot in mock documentary style and follows the build up to the annual Mount Rose, Minnesota beauty pageant. Kirsty Alley plays the obsessive pageant organiser Gladys Leeman, who is determined for her daughter, Becky (Denise Richards), to become Miss Teen Minnesota. Kirsten Dunst plays Amber, another pageant hopeful, who practises her tap steps whilst beautifying the dead down at the local funeral home. Amber dreams of becoming a quality journalist, like Diane Sawyer; the pageant provides her with an opportunity to leave Mount Rose and realise her ambitions.

However, the competiton becomes deadly when a contestant is killed when the wheat thresher she is riding mysteriously explodes. Meanwhile, animosity grows between Amber and Becky as the day of reckoning draws closer; Amber is convinced Becky has something to do with the random "accidents" that continue to occur.....

This film is very funny ( in a sick and twisted way). The interactions between the "documentary" crew and the actors especially cracked me up (the "COP's" references etc.). However, I don't really want to ruin the laughs for those who haven't seen it. But if you think "Sweet Valley High" meets "Spinal Tap" with a little sprinkling of "The Family Guy" and you've got a very entertaining flick

Look out for Adam West (T.V's Batman).