The Snare

Three young people-- congenitally uncomfortable Forward, her best friend Warren, and Warren's crude boyfriend Paton-- enjoy a secret and illicit holiday on the top floor of an unused resort. Their first morning, the elevator stops working (as well as the emergency stairs' door). Then, the nightmares start.

The Snare actually starts off strong (and in the closing camera-work, Cooper finally shows what he could have accomplished had he put his back into it.) But this film, which is primarily about 3 people's boredom, is itself just as boring.

The characters throw their hands up helplessly very early in the film-- despite having access to much that they could use to try to escape, from fire, to water, to heavy toilets. This film could have chronicled their descent into helplessness, echoed in the transformation of his set, but Cooper's characters are helpless from the beginning, and his movie is static because of it. Forward's initial discomfort is believable, and suggests the potential for transformation-- but no, she never moves past her unease, and Cooper never gives her the opportunity to deviate from the single expression she wears throughout the film.

What about the supernatural element? The creep value? The earliest scenes are good, but The Snare runs out of steam fast, quickly settling into a junior high level of creep, down to the hackneyed phrases carved on the walls, down to the junior high notebook art.

The first thirty minutes of The Snare aren't bad. But the last sixty aren't only bad, they're unchanging. And it's such a shame, because in that first thirty minutes lies the potential for a great film. I'd recommend passing on The Snare.

So many layers, so much going on, difficult to take it all in on the first watch. Certainly requires a second viewing.

If I had to be really critical I would say that I feel like maybe they should have tried harder to find a way out of the apartment and should have tried to find alternate exit routes. It felt as if they gave up a little too easily....but then again, this is no ordinary scenario, since there is this evil demonic force manipulating things from below the surface.

My partner and I talked for ages afterwards trying to unravel what it is that actually dwells in the apartment and whether or not it was real or part of some strange fantasy concocted by the main character.

Don't watch whilst eating.....felt so sick watching parts of it but totally worth it.

Ain't gonna be able to put this one out my head or a while.

First off, let's get one thing clear. THE SNARE is nothing like THE EVIL DEAD. The comparison seems so far off the mark to me it's as if the guys on the marketing team who put out that press release comparing it to EVIL DEAD haven't even watched this movie.

Secondly! After all that said...Wow this is a great movie! It's utterlly relentless with what it throws at you....Starts slow at first but then it just hits you again and again and again.

Gripping, believable performances, a rich, foreboding atmosphere and extremely harrowing to watch all round.

DEFINITELY NOT FOR EVERYONE...I totally get why some people wouldn't enjoy this, especially if you're going in expecting something like the Evil Dead.

I'd say that as a movie its much closer to THE SHINING in style but is different enough to be it's own thing.

Like I said, some people really won't like this but if you fancy something different and a genuine scare then this one is certainly worth a watch, even if just for the experience!!!

But not when you're eating!

For starters, good movie, really enjoyed it.

Strong on atmosphere, great performances, a real sense of mystery throughout and nail biting suspense.

However, I would say that it is weaker overall in terms of story and character, although I don't feel this hurts it too much because of the type of film it is.

This film is more about an experience....an emotion driven, mood driven and tension driven piece and that is where and why I feel it excels.

It doesn't matter whether the characters are likable or not in this context. It's apparent from the get go that this film positions the audience as the cold spectator so that they can witness the horrific events that take place and then draw their own conclusions. It doesn't hold your hand, it's up to you which characters you like or not, feeling connected to them and empathizing with them is not important or essential when it comes to watching this.

Likewise, similarly to The Shining, which was obviously an influence, I get the impression you're not supposed to get all the answers, its not supposed to make complete sense, that's the very nature of what makes the paranormal frightening if you believe in that sort of thing.

It's what makes you think about it afterwards and keeps you talking about it.

Would recommend a watch.

What got me interested in watching this movie was the trailer, which turned out to be very misleading. It made it look as if it was going to be a bit of a creepy jumper horror, however it was quite the opposite. Scenes that were meant to be creepy were boring, and there was one scene that makes you jump throughout and it wasn't anything terrifying. Any movie producers that feel the need to mislead viewers with the trailer must know that their product is garbage.

Good notes would be the acting, as always with most British movies it is spot on, and the way it is shot is pretty good especially that end scene of the apartment they were trapped in. However that does not justify the unbalanced way the plot plays out, and how it drags without anything interesting happening.

So much potential not reached.