yarra1966

Yes, the story is muddled. Yes, it's far fetched. But the thing that made me turn this off is the lead actress whispering every line. In scene after scene, every line is spoken in a hushed, urgent whisper, even if it's not called for in the situation (the conversation is not private, no one else is around, the other character is speaking in a normal tone, they are not in a library or church, etc) I don't blame her, I've seen Michelle Monaghan very good and appealing in other productions But she is following trend. In the past ten years or so, there is a trend going around with Hollywood actors who think that that whispering every line passes for good acting, or makes the scene more compelling, or is mysterious and exciting. It's doesn't. A good director should step up and say, "Speak up. No need for hushed tones here!?" In any case, I turned it off.

If Alfred Hitchcock was alive and well and making movies in France, this would be the sort of thing he'd be doing. And my hat is off to Olivier Masset-Depasse for adding his own sinister touch to it. Under his direction, all of the actors are outstanding--which is important because in the wrong hands the story could have turned out like a Lifetime movie. But I was truly on the edge of my seat for much of this.

Everyone involved in this has talent. The cast is attractive and committed, the cinematography is slick, the direction is mostly interesting,and the art direction very good. The problem is it's too aware of its own artiness and influences and that makes the pace sluggish. Too many scenes slowly (very slowly) build tension without a payoff--so you start to get impatient. But there is enough good here to recommend it...especially cinephiles with a taste for things like Aronofsky;s "Black Swan" and Polanski's "Repulsion."