April Fool's Day (2008)

APRIL FOOL’S DAY (2008) – This April Fool’s Day, put all jokes aside… Because you may be next. The new “April Fool’s” revolves around a party given by two rich siblings for their friend. Tragedy strikes when a friend falls over a balcony and dies. One year later, the teens responsible for the accident become the targets of a twisted killer who begins haunting them down one by one. Each April Fool’s Day, fabulously wealthy young Desiree Cartier hosts the most killer coming-out parties at her to-die-for southern mansion. And this social event is never complete without one of her patented pranks. But when this year’s joke turns deadly, Desiree, her brother Blaine and five of their friends all become the targets of a twisted killer who begins hunting them down one by one in this chilling tale of seduction, betrayal and revenge. When a teenage girl decides to invite her drama club to her isolated house for a killer weekend, nobody would have expected it to be taken so literally.

The beautiful people prove just as susceptible to death as their lower-class counterparts in this Butcher Brothers shocker about an upper-crust prank gone horribly awry. It’s been a full year since Milan Hastings was killed in an elaborate prank organized by elitist heiress Desiree Cartier and her scheming brother, Blaine and now the most popular kids in their social set are dropping like flies. No one is safe from the unseen killer who stalks their ranks, not aspiring actress Torrance, gay gossip columnist Charles, self-absorbed beauty queen Barbie, or her Republican fiancée, Peter – a promising political hopeful. As the body count begins to rise, Desiree suspects that aspiring filmmaker Ryan may be to blame given that he still carries a torch for his beloved Milan. But the reality is much more complicated than that. It would seem that someone out there knows the truth about Desiree’s nasty little prank on Milan and they’re willing to go to extraordinary lengths in order to elicit a confession from the scheming heiress. Desiree has been harboring a dark secret ever since that fateful night when Milan died and this April Fools Day the folks who have since suffered for her greed will finally get to watch as the girl who had it all gets her just deserts.

On April 1, 2007, Desiree Cartier is hosting a party at her mansion for her actress friend Torrance Caldwell. Present for a pre-festivities toast are Blaine Cartier, Desiree’s brother, who controls their joint inheritance (to Desiree’s dislike), U.S. Senate candidate Peter Welling, Peter’s “Miss Carolina” fiancée Barbie Reynolds and the quintet’s less wealthy videographer friend Ryan. With the party in full swing, Desiree’s social nemesis ad Ryan’s not-so-secret crush Milan Hastings, arrives. Also present is chihuahua-toting society reporter Charles. As another in her long string of April Fool’s pranks, Desiree suggests Blaine get Milan tipsy on champagne and seduce her in his bedroom upstairs. Desiree and several of the others hover by the cracked-open bedroom door, prepared to videotape the affair with the camera Desire lifted from Ryan. However, Milan has a seizure and falls off the balcony to her death. The group goes to court and Blaine loses control of the family’s fortune, which shifts to Desiree, but they are considered innocent and Milan’s death is considered a fatal prank.

One year later, Desiree, Blaine, Peter, Barbie, Torrance and Ryan receive anonymous invitations to meet on Milan’s grave at noon April 1, 2008, with the cryptic P.S. “I have proof.” Just after the entire sextet is back together, a messenger comes to the grave with a box containing a letter and a laptop computer. The letter says one of the six murdered Milan and if that person does not confess, all of them will be dead by midnight. As a show of intent, the computer has footage of Charles drowning in his pool. Everyone goes from the cemetery to the pool to confirm this mishap. Subsequently, an increasingly frantic Desiree sees one “suspect” after another “murdered” before her eyes (though the bodies keep disappearing). Barbie is electrocuted in a beauty pageant dressing room, Peter’s campaign truck runs him down in a parking garage, Ryan’s throat is slit in his humble apartment and returning home, Desiree and Blaine discover even their long-time butler Wilford has been butchered in the kitchen.

After a brie separation from her brother, Desiree finds him tied to a chair. Worse yet, gun-wielding Torrance soon has Desiree tied inches away in another chair. After some back and forth, Torrance fatally shooting Blaine in the chest, a chagrined Desiree finally admits it was she who spiked Milan’s fatal drink, while allowing brother Blane to become the “fall guy”. At this point Blaine cannot contain a chuckle and soon the whole crew of 2008 “victims” are surrounding a still-tied Desiree, telling her what a bitch she is and how they have conspired to prove it to her. Special effects people from Torrance’s Boogie Nights 2 set have equipped Blaine and the others with “squibs” and other cast members faked out Desiree by dressing as cops and “confirming” Ryan’s murder as she and her brother were fleeing the scene.

To illustrate her end of the charade involving a revolver shooting blanks, Torrance pulls the trigger once more. Unfortunately for Desiree, this time the cartridge in the chamber is real and the bullet blows off the top of her head. The next scene involves the same inquest-probate judge from a year earlier absolving Torrance of any guilt for Desiree’s death and confirming Blaine as sole heir of the family estate. The final scene shows Blaine driving off in what was Desiree’s red Mercedes, slowly building a smirk on his face.

A year after an April Fool’s Day prank which resulted in the death of one of their set, a group of friends find themselves targeted by someone who is out for revenge. In this debutant ball of the socialite Torrance Caldwell on April 1^st, 2007, the millionaire Desiree Cartier dilutes a powerful drug in the champagne of her acquaintance Milan Hastings and her brother Blaine Cartier, takes advantage of Milan. Desiree tapes the situation with a camcorder while her friends Torrance, Barbie and Peter Welling, Charles Lansford and Ryan snoop. However, Milan has a seizure and falls off the balcony immediately dying. The group goes to court, Blaine loses the control of the family’s fortune which shifts to Desiree, but they are considered innocent and the death of Milan is considered a fatal prank. One year later each one of them receives a letter mustering them up to Milan’s grave. While gathered in the cemetery, they receive a package telling that each one of them will die until the person responsible for the death of Milan owns up.

Charleston, South Carolina: Socialite Desiree “Des” Cartier is hosting a debutante party at her mansion on the evening of April 1, 2007, for her best friend and aspiring actress Torrance Caldwell. Present for a pre-festivities toast are Desiree’s brother Blaine Cartier, who controls their joint inheritance from their late parents (to Desiree’s dislike), U.S. Senate candidate Peter Welling Peter’s “Miss Carolina” fiancée Barbie and the quintet’s less wealthy videographer friend Ryan. With the party in full swing Desiree’s social nemesis and Ryan’s not-so-secret crush Milan Hastings arrives for her 21^st birthday which is on that very day. Also present is the chihuahua-toting society reporter Charles. As another in her long string of April Fool’s pranks, Desiree suggests Blaine get Milan tipsy on champagne and pork her in his bedroom upstairs. Desiree and several of the others hover by the cracked-open bedroom door, prepared to videotape the affair with the camera Desire lifted from Ryan. However, Milan’s drink was spiked with a “roofie” so she stumbles into the hallway in her lingerie and tumbles backwards over the railing to her death 20 feet below.

A few days later, an inquest-probation judge decides not to press criminal charges against Blaine and rules Milan’s death as an accident. But due to Blaine’s growing history of woman trouble, turns over control of the family’s fortune to Desiree (and she’s able to buy her annual red Mercedes, upon which Blaine had been hesitating before the household tragedy).

One year later, Desiree, Blaine, Barbie, Torrance and Ryan receive anonymous invitations to meet at Milan’s grave at noon, April 1^st, 2008, with the cryptic P.S. “I have proof.” Just after the entire sextet is back together, a messenger comes to the grave with a box containing a letter and a laptop computer. The letter says that one of the six murdered Milan and if that person does not confess, all of them will be dead by midnight. As a show of intent, the computer has footage of Charles drowning in his pool. Everyone leaves the cemetery and goes to the pool to confirm this mishap. Subsequently, an increasingly frantic Desiree sees one “suspect” after another “murdered” before her eyes (though the bodies keep disappearing). Barbie is electrocuted in a beauty pageant dressing room, Peter’s campaign truck runs him down in a parking garage, Ryan’s throat is slit in his humble apartment and returning home, Desiree and Blaine discover even their longtime butler Wilford has been butchered in the kitchen.

After a brief separation from her brother, Desiree finds him tied to a chair. Worse yet, the gun-wielding Torrance soon has Desiree tied up inches away in another chair. After some back and forth and Torrance fatally shooting Blaine in the chest, a chagrined Desiree finally admits it was SHE who spiked Milan’s fatal drink, while allowing her brother Blaine to become the “fall guy”. At this point, Blaine cannot contain a chuckle and soon the whole crew of 2008 “victims” are surrounding a still-tied Desiree, telling her what a bitch she is and how they have conspired to prove it to her. (Milan continues to be dead and buried, of course). Special effects people from Torrance’s movie Boogie Nights 2 set have equipped Blaine and the others with “squibs” and other cast members faked Desiree out by dressing up as cops and “confirming” Ryan’s murder as she and her brother were fleeing the scene,

To illustrate her end of the charade involving a revolver shooting blanks, Torrance pulls the trigger once more. Unfortunately for Desiree, this time the cartridge in the chamber is real and the bullet blows off the top of her head, killing her for real. The next scene involves the same inquest-probate judge from a year earlier absolving Torrance of any guilt for Desiree’s death and confirming Blaine as the sole heir of the family estate. The final scene shows Blaine driving off in what was Desiree’s red Mercedes, slowlu building a smirk on his face. (Implying to the viewers that he intentionally placed a live round in the gun knowing Torrance would “shoot” Desiree and thus with her gone, he now has all of the family wealth for himself.)

During closing credits, a snippet paralleling an earlier scene is inset next to the cast and crew listing, as Charles tells an entertainment show anchor how it feels to have his own TV show, largely thanks to the books he’s written on the two socialite killings.