Melissa's alternate death featured in the UK cut is probably the most brutal, painful and cruel kill in the entire film. She has her eyes gouged out and is dragged across the floor by her empty eye sockets, into which the killer shoves his
fingers, all the while she's still alive. This death scene was filmed at the behest of Harvey Weinstein himself, much to everyone's dismay.

It's a shame; this character was definitely a final girl material. The nature of her death (both the US+UK cuts) also felt somewhat miscast/undeserving.

In the original script, the character of Melissa was intended to survive (not as the final girl though). Michelle, however, insisted that she would only accept the role if her character is killed off, as she hadn't planned on going back to horror
so soon and she also wanted to feel what it's like to die on screen lol.

I love good horror. I really do. It's actually my favorite genre. But unfortunately, this just isn’t it. Until recently, I considered the film to be so bad that I was extremely reluctant to at least skim through its key moments again in order
to provide a sober review, to the point where I was even thinking of giving up, which is mostly why it took me so fucking long to make another review thread.

Only now, after about the third rewatch and some thorough research, do I see that the film did have potential for a much more positive reception:

1. A stellar cast packed with genuine talent: Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Michelle Trachtenberg, Katie Cassidy, Lacey Chabert, Kristen Cloke, Andrea Martin (albeit not all of them were well-known at the time). Their acting is awesome; they
convincingly portray a full range of emotions, ranging from distress to sheer terror; even their screams are top-notch.