Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘Fingerprints’

Written by Scott Edwards 

Melanie is returning home from a brief say in rehab. Having seen her boyfriend die right in front of her very eyes seems to have scarred the young girl, but now with the help of her sister Crystal and her parents she will become a functioning member of society once again. Reminding herself that it is okay to say no to anyone and everyone that comes along with their offers is the only way that Melanie will be able to get through her days and although it seems like things will be tough, she is ready for the challenge.

On their drive home from the airport, the sisters stop by the local depot train tracks and put an urban myth to the test. Some fifty years ago, a group of school children were killed on the train tracks and if you leave your car in neutral and believe in them, they will push your car across the tracks and save you from the same fate they suffered. Although Melanie does not believe, her sister Crystal wants to try it out and the two sit motionless along the tracks until they are interrupted by an impatient truck driver. The girls shake off their brief scares, but Melanie will not let the legend go as she has seen someone watching her at the tracks.

The children at school have all heard the same story about the bus accident from many years ago and some will vouch for the haunting, while others would rather just walk away from the situation altogether. Melanie is left with her own thoughts to see if this is real or not and gives the myth another try on her own. Having the car pushed across the tracks by the ghost children was freaky enough for her, but a little girl with a name tag calling herself Julie is watching the entire time. Melanie does not want to be a bad person and offers the little girl a ride home. Even though the little girl does not talk during the ride, Melanie has a feeling that Julie has something to say and what that is will leave Melanie questioning herself and the town elders as to what really happened to the children fifty years ago.

Fingerprints follows young Melanie as she has returned home from rehab. With her sister Crystal trying to look out for her little sister and trying to get Melanie to make some new friends, the back story of Melanie becomes public knowledge around the school, and everyone has something to say about her past. Having over dosed and come back to life has left Melanie a different person in her home town as she is now an outcast, along with a newfound ability to see something that nobody else can, the children from an accident several years earlier. Befriending one of the ghosts, a girl named Julie, Melanie discovers that there is much more to the story that is not being told by the town elders and has to find out the truth before her visions become more and more violent and begin to hurt her. Not being helped by the local law enforcement or her parents due to her shady path, Melanie can only depend on herself and the ghost of Julie to find out what the town is hiding.

A fun high school movie that embraces all of the basics, sex, drugs and rock-n-roll. But with your main character having to say no to all of the above, you think that it will leave you longing for something else, and you get a thriller/mystery thrown your way instead. While the back story of the kids being killed in a tragic accident should have been enough, the return of the conductor who was on duty who is taking out his frustrations on the new kids hanging around the tracks just adds its own brand of scares into the equation. A good movie if you are looking for something that will leave you with a couple of hairs sticking up on the back of your neck when it ends. Stay Scared.

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