Lifetime Review: 'Dead on Campus'

Still coping with the loss of her mother and fresh off breaking up with her high school boyfriend, Natalie Kellison (Katelyn Tarver) is ready to head to Riverton University for a fresh start—starting by pledging to her mother's old sorority, Delta Psi Beta. Upon arriving for rush night, Natalie meets Delta Psi Beta's president Alexa Cooper (Tamara Duarte). Beautiful but intimidating, Alexa takes a particular interest in Natalie for her status as a sorority legacy.

It's later on in the night that Natalie learns that to gain admission into Delta Psi Beta, she must fulfill a quest: seduce fellow Riverton student Sumner Williams (Stephen MacDonald). While initially wary to complete the quest, Natalie ultimately goes about meeting and dating Sumner, and finds herself interested in the shy but cute sophomore. But it's just as Natalie is prepared to fulfill her sorority task that she learns that she was unknowingly part of a prank against Sumner—who winds up dead soon after.

Stunned by Sumner's death, Natalie is halfheartedly convinced by Alexa to cover up the prank, claiming she's thinking of what's best for the sorority. But with Sumner's sister Danielle (Nicki Aycox), a career counselor at Riverton, investigating her brother's untimely death, Natalie finds herself overcome with guilt and struggling to keep her secret. It's after Natalie learns that she was an unwitting pawn in a spiteful scheme of Alexa's that she finds the courage to fight against her sorority sister--and finds herself in conflict with a cold-blooded young woman whose ruthlessness knows no limits.

Those coming to Dead on Campus might come expecting a dark and gritty drama, as the above-featured poster (along with another showing Katelyn Tarver walking up to a sorority house splattered with blood) gives off the vibe of a blood-drenched thriller. While there is a particularly violent death present in the film, one that is somewhat more graphic than the average Lifetime fare, Dead on Campus is surprisingly subdued and low boiling for a film centering around a protagonist going to battle with a ruthless and well-connected villainess.

Despite the change in pace and tone, Dead on Campus is fairly entertaining. While the plot is nothing Lifetime hasn't tackled before and hardly deviates from the formula, the cast breathes fresh life into the well-worn storyline to make it something viewers will stay engaged with. As the movie's good-natured protagonist pulled into a ruthless girl's vicious plan, Katelyn Tarver is sympathetic and likable as Natalie Kellison, particularly when she is mourning Sumner's death and when she begins fighting to take a stand against Alexa and put an end to her vicious games. One flaw comes in the beginning, however, as you wonder why Natalie (already wise to some degree about Alexa's true nature and the fact that Delta Psi Beta isn't the same place her mother described it as) would go along with Alexa's demand or continue wanting a place in the sorority. This is never explained beyond a few orphaned lines of dialogue, putting a crease in what is otherwise a strong and proactive heroine.

On the far opposite side of the morality spectrum, Tamara Duarte is a force of nature as the unapologetically nasty and cruel Alexa Cooper. With her fake smiles and disingenuous praise and talk of sisterhood, the audience knows from the beginning that Alexa has a scheme brewing and will use anyone and do anything to get what she wants out of it. Her motive (while extremely petty) fits her character like a glove, and while her plan is ultimately far more elaborate than it really needed to be, Duarte plays Alexa with a zest and vigor that makes her a marvel to watch in action and who you will cheer to see be taken down.

Nicki Aycox is strong as Sumner's grief-stricken but determined sister Danielle, with her scenes of mourning her brother's loss striking an emotional chord, as do her fierce scenes of grilling Natalie and Alexa for the truth. Stephen MacDonald is a surprising stand-out as the tragically fated Sumner, nailing his portrayal of the sweet but awkward college student and making his inevitable demise all the more devastating. Solid performances abound from the supporting cast, including Lifetime regular Peter Michael Dillon, Asha Bromfield, Eva Link, Jessica Sipos, and Sante Scaletta; the last of those listed has a brief scene of comedy as Natalie's dorky unfaithful boyfriend, Billy. Noam Jenkins also appears as Danielle's professor husband Aiden and gives the role his all, though he's unfortunately stuck with a boilerplate "Heroine's Loving Husband" role that leaves little to work with creatively.

The slow-burning nature of the plot won't be everyone's cup of tea, and Dead on Campus suffers from some gratuitous amounts of filler (a scene of Natalie and her roommate Sophia clothes shopping stands out, and the side plot about Natalie struggling to accept her father's girlfriend never really amounts to anything substantial). But aside from these flaws, Dead on Campus is a fairly enjoyable drama with a strong cast to liven up the familiar and slowly built story. For a lazy day on the couch, Dead on Campus would make for a good watch.

Score: 7 out of 10 drugged brownies.