Le cas 39

The person that social worker Renee Zellweger is investigating in Case 39 is Jodelle Ferland an innocent little girl seemingly who seems to be crying out for intervention. The humanitarian instincts of Zellweger necessary for her occupation are aroused and she and cop Ian McShane go to the house just in time to rescue the little girl from her parents, Callum Keith Rennie and Kerry McCallum from roasting her in their oven, the kind of horrific crime that every now and then you see splashed across your evening news.

Zellweger breaks the usual bounds of professional distance when she takes it on herself to take in the child. Once she does the little girl proves not quite what she originally seems and literally sucks the humanitarianism out of her.

This will go completely over the people who are not Star Trek fans, but young Ms. Ferland reminded me so much of an evil Talosian. If you will recall in that famous pilot for Star Trek, the Talosians are blessed with the power of illusion, they can make you see and hear all kinds of things that are not there. With that they can trick you into stuff. There not evil people however, but Captain Christopher Pike when he's captured by them has to learn their secret in order to triumph.

That's what Renee has to do, overcome the power of illusion. How it all works out for her is what you have to see Case 39 for.

As for the film itself, Case 39 is a cut above a lot of these horror films, but it could have used considerable improvement in the storytelling.

It's a decent movie. I liked very much some cinematographic concepts cleverly used here to build solid tension, and mystery effect. We are used to very straight way of telling very straight stories, but sometimes it's good to move the camera off the basics a little (even if the story isn't very original), just to tell something more by the picture, than only what the picture depicts. Mr Bogdanski (DP) and Mr Alvart (DIR) have used some of those "tricks" carefully and wisely, gaining few disturbing shots which actually describe the feel of the whole movie. The story is simple, predictable, and has the "yep, I've seen this before" factor, but THOSE few (yes, only few) weird shots puts this movie slightly above the average. And there are Callum Keith Rennie, Kerry O'Malley and Ian McShane who work in the same business here with DP and Director - giving very intense and disturbing appearances in supporting, yet the movie tone establishing roles (especially Rennie not being too demonic). I'm glad that screenplay had provided them few very good sequences to play in.

But let's be frank - that's not enough to break the limits. We have to remember some major flaws: First - the movie is very predictable. Very. Second - Jodelle Ferland plays in a simple, cheap way, using far away easier acting methods, than her character needs. Third - a promise of originality made by DP and Director in the first part of the movie, is never kept because of the second half, where everything is put in WYSIWYG manner, known from shitty Hollywood.

Summing all up - You CAN watch it with a pizza and a beer, but hardly believable that you WILL manage without those. :)

This was a trippy movie that was pretty intense. Most of all I wanted to know what was up with the little girl. There was clearly something not right about her, but was she another Samara from The Ring?

I'm not a Zellweger fan by any means, but she was decent in this movie. Stay tuned to the very end and you will be rewarded.

In this film, a dedicated social worker who works to protect minors will come across a case that initially appears to be violence and domestic abuse. She is not sure what is really going on in that family, but her instinct and experience tell her that there is something very wrong with those parents. And the suspicions are confirmed when, alerted by the girl, she finds her parents ready to kill her in the oven. Months later, she obtains the girl's provisional custody, but just a few weeks of living together will be enough for her to begin to see that this girl may not be as innocent as she looks, and that something truly sinister is going on with her.

Horror films in which children are the central element of the plot are nothing new. We had classics like "Village of the Damned", "The Omen" and the entire "Children of the Corn" franchise, not to mention the more recent films like "The Orphan". However, they are still delicious and appealing, when they are really well done. The film has an interesting story, which unfolds at a good pace, without twists, subterfuges or stratagems to amplify the suspense, and everything suffers from a certain degree of predictability. However, the film benefits from the good construction of the characters, especially the protagonist, a social worker who soon conquers us with her dedication and good intentions, and holds our attention until the end.

In fact, the excellent performances of Renee Zellweger and young Jodelle Ferland are essential for the quality and strength of the final product. Zellweger had already shown us, in several previous works, to be an actress of great talent and versatility, but she manages to take the film on her back, while Ferland was able to overcome her inexperience and youth to give us a colossal job. For a child actress, she even looks like an adult, as threatening and calculating as she can be. The film also features the work of Ian McShane and Bradley Cooper, safe bets on the supporting characters.

The film is not particularly remarkable in terms of production values and technical issues. Cinematography is standard, but it works quite well and is effective, adapting well and helping to build the light tension felt during the film. Some scenes in particular (such as the sinking car scene or the fire) were brilliantly shot, but there is a greater sense of danger. The sets and costumes are everything we could hope for, without surprises or major problems. The editing and the soundtrack do their job discreetly.

Social Worker Emily (Zellweger) takes in 10-yr old Lillith (Ferland) whose parents tried to kill her.

Things kind of get wrapped up within the first 15-minutes and what else is there to do you ask yourself. Well, things aren't quite what they seem and by now, you will have figured it all out. But, again, it's in the telling that makes this a good movie and you stay with it.

This is billed as a horror movie and you know I don't review horror movies (hey, I have to sleep at night). Okay, so I took a chance. See? The acting is first rate by all and the pace is very good. There is a certain amount of tension and suspense and you won't sleep here.

Now, although you have figured things out, you have not figured out how this ends or should end, or will end …..whatever. That occupies your mind quite a bit. And, along the way, you find yourself jumping at certain things. Not really horror though, but could have been.

Renee Zellweger really got into her character to such a point I was mimicking her moves at times. I felt as though I was there. You'll see.

Violence: Yes. Sex: No. Nudity: No. Language: Yes, but only one or two F-bombs