lathe-of-heaven's reviews

Oh yeah... Really liked this one. This the kind of 'Hard' Science Fiction that I really love. The story itself is Super Low Key, so if you like your Science Fiction more action oriented, this is not the film for you.

Extremely well written and acted. This movie is totally for lovers of stories concerning Artificial Intelligence, of which I am one quite passionately! The story gradually draws you in as you become more involved with the characters who are portrayed very well. Please make sure you are extremely careful in what you read about this movie first because you do ***Not*** want anything spoiled, so you will want to avoid that at all cost.

This is the kind of high quality Sci Fi storytelling that is super engaging if you like this kind of thing. Without giving anything else away (and Believe Me, you do Not want anything given away before you see this!) make sure you stay until the end which will likely catch you off guard, which is a great indication of good filmmaking.

Now, I will be totally honest and admit that towards the very end, if you want to be really analytical about it, yes, the filmmakers are a little misleading in the story in order to lead to a more dramatic ending. But still... in service to the movie overall, it still works really well.

If you don't mind very low-key, more cerebral Science Fiction movies, and you can really get into this kind of subject, then like me you will probably very much enjoy this!

I gave this a Very enthusiastic '8'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My Particular Way of Rating:

5 - Flawed, but perhaps with a little entertainment value here and there for some.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

I did give this a chance, I really did. And, don't get me wrong I don't mind semi hokey, goofy films like this as long as there is Some actual entertainment value.

Well... quite honestly I'm sorry to say there just isn't any...

I mean seriously... it is So bad. The effects are beyond Terrible. The script, such as it is, is genuinely nonexistent. It's just simply Horrible from the beginning throughout.

So, the current rating of 6.x...? Uh, that would be a most definite and undoubtable 'No!'

Seriously, if there were Anything at all that I thought I could recommend about this movie, anything... I would do so. But, quite honestly this is just about as bad as it gets. I don't even know why I've given it a '4'... Must be in a Very good mood! : )

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My Particular Way of Rating:

5 - Flawed, but perhaps with a little entertainment value here and there for some.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

The real masterpiece by Frank De Felitta is the excellent 1981 Telefilm 'DARK NIGHT OF THE SCARECROW' which next to the brilliant 1988 'SCARECROWS' is probably the 2nd best Killer Scarecrow movie of all time (you can see my review of that film here too if you wish)

But, back to this one... I'm glad he wrote and directed this movie, because in lesser hands it really would likely have been pretty lame. But, thanks to his engaging and creepy style, although somewhat flawed, it is a fun and entertaining film to some degree.

In my lowly and wretched opinion, I thought Sharon Stone's performance was not really that great. I was quite surprised since she went on to become so famous that her acting in this one was pretty weak. However, I thought everyone else did a great job with their roles, especially Railsback and of course the always great Ronny Cox.

As I do in all my reviews, I'm not going to waste your time going over the somewhat complicated plot, since just about every other reviewer almost always goes all through that. But, as I always try to do with my reviews is simply give you my opinion as to whether I felt the movie was well done and/or entertaining.

So, what carries this film the most I feel is the style and mood, a truly disjointed and Surreal tone which greatly adds to the atmosphere of this kind of Psychological Thriller. And, of course like I mentioned whatever directorial flourishes that Felitta brought to the story.

If you can tolerate Sharon Stone's rather overdone performance (yes, I Know she is supposed to be somewhat unbalanced, but I just didn't personally really buy her rendition of it) the actual story, the performances of the other excellent actors, and especially the offbeat, Surreal touches do give this movie a nice off kilter vibe which lends itself to being a moderately entertaining Psychological Thriller. I gave it a solid '6'

I personally think that with a little better writing and a lot better performance by Sharon Stone, this could easily have been a strong '7'...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My Particular Way of Rating:

5 - Flawed, but perhaps with a little entertainment value here and there for some.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

This really wasn't a bad film at all. For me personally, what really kills a lot of these types of movies or at least brings them down quite a bit is the poor acting.

I mean, this is 1979, in my lowly and wretched opinion Not the very best time for films and especially for realistic or believable acting. But, the director/writers did a good job here with the story and dialog.

And, seriously... Take about 80% of all the Slashers of the 1980's and how many of them have anything even Close to good acting. Normally, they are full of paper thin stereotypes, usually completely unrelatable and not realistic whatsoever.

So, that alone to me sets this film above most later Slashers. I was quite surprised that these characters did indeed come across as real people and their interactions and dialog weren't just some superficial, 'Hip' nonsense, but interchanges that the audience could actually buy into. Overall, I feel this is quite rare in these types of low budget Horror movies, especially Slasher films.

Apart from the above average acting (and remember, most of these people other than a couple of known supporting actors like Cameron Mitchell and the rather odd choice of Avery Schreiber, were relatively unknown) the story sets a pretty good tone and mystery about what is going on.

The plot isn't terribly deep or complicated, but with the good cinematography, nice locals, and decent writing and directing, I thought it was a good, slightly above average Slasher, especially for such an early one.

If you enjoy watching commentaries, it is a fun listen with both writers and the lead actress.

So, nothing that's going to rock your world or change your viewpoint on life, but a relatively fun and engaging early Slasher that you might enjoy if you like films like this.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My Particular Way of Rating:

5 - Flawed, but perhaps with a little entertainment value here and there for some.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

Don't get me wrong, I do love movies from this time period that do indeed get Surreal or Trippy, absolutely Love them! And, I could list several that are way, Way better than this one.

Even several of Jesus Franco's films are far better than this, as threadbare as his stories usually are.

Unfortunately, all you really get here is a Lot, and I mean a Lot of nudity and love scenes. Normally I am not against these at all, but storywise that is All you get.

The movie plods along and the first 30 minutes are all looking at the primary actress in the nude (Granted, she is very much worth looking at!) and long, draggy scenes where she is making love to the main guy or several others.

According to the synopsis of this film, there is Supposed to be some kind of Mystery here, some kind of intriguing story about this woman seeming to come back from the dead to avenge her killers (that is included in the main synopsis, so no spoilers there) But, honestly, you Barely get that, surrounded by about 80% showing off the lady's lovely body or drawn out sex scenes, and truly not much else.

Sorry... I really do love films made at this time, some with really good, atmospheric, moody Surreal overtones that are like artworks but also great stories. Sadly, this is neither.

So, I appreciate other reviewers here who for some odd reason say they think highly of this movie and that it is So Surreal & Trippy, but compared to so many Other much better films, this one to me personally falls really flat and just doesn't have that much to offer.

I normally don't bother to review movies that I rate this low, but considering who the director is and what I feel is honestly undeserved praise here for something that I truly feel is Very mediocre, I thought I really should drop this counterbalancing review in here as an addition to all these others.

Most definitely Not recommended...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My Particular Way of Rating:

5 - Flawed, but perhaps with a little entertainment value here and there for some.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

This is one of those films that I personally don't like, is not of the style of Horror movie that I enjoy, and yes is a Real Downer.

But, like I've mentioned in many of my reviews, especially when chiding others for doing this, just because I personally don't care for a film doesn't mean it isn't made well or isn't effective in what it's trying to do.

It's like I've mentioned before about Torture Porn Horror. I don't rate or review them and I certainly do Not watch them because I find them unpleasant and it just isn't my idea of 'Fun' But... I won't come here and give poor ratings and reviews to films like that (especially since I haven't watched them) just because I despise that particular Sub-Genre of Horror movie. That wouldn't be fair to those who do happen to like stories like that.

So, for this film I will say quite honestly that it is very well done, well acted, and absolutely creates the atmosphere of total dread and despair that I am quite sure it is shooting for. It just doesn't happen to be my kind of movie. But again, the very point of a review is to inform people if it is a well made film and to advise them of what type of story it is for those who may like movies like this.

For that reason I will give it a '5', but just like several reviewers say here, prepare to be depressed. This is Not a 'Fun' movie, which are the kind I like much, Much better.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My Particular Way of Rating:

5 - Flawed, but perhaps with some entertainment value for some.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

This is a pretty wild one alright... Towards the end of the great Italian Giallo movement.

One thing that can be said about it is that it didn't just completely mindlessly go for brutal graphic gore as many did by that time. Although there are some pretty dicey scenes in it, and although quite sleazy at times, still, it is done with a fair amount of true Gothic atmosphere and at times an engaging Surreal mood.

Don't get me wrong, there are some rather extreme scenes here, but for me personally there is a difference to a degree as to the intent and the tone of something with that kind of content. In other words, you can have a coldly sadistic, very mean-spirited tone by someone like Eli Roth for example, a man who wouldn't know how to make a genuinely 'Fun' Horror movie to save his life.

Or... like in this case, you can have almost the same degree of extremity, but the tone and mood are all quite different. More of a Surreal, Gothic, almost Retro dreamy atmosphere where you still kind of turn away in Horror, but with more of a 'Fun' vibe that doesn't come across as mean-spirited in its intention. So, to me, there is a distinct difference.

John Phillip Law is of course very well known by this point for much better and more famous films years before like 'Danger Diabolik', and at this point he is clearly just glad to have the work. But, as Troy Howarth says in the commentary, and I do agree, is that even though his performance is Way the hell over the top, still, he'd rather see an actor fully commit even to a rather Out There role than just go through the motions. And, boy does he give it all he's got!

The guy who plays his assistant was also very well known at the time and had made many films. Their interaction during the movie I thought had a special something that made it almost more sympathetic, which is Really stretching the meaning of that word when you see him do some of the things he does. I will say that, without giving away any true spoilers, the one scene where he is continuing to rape the girl after she is clearly dead I found rather disturbing. But, thankfully it is very brief. Extremely Creepy, but brief... : )

So, not one I would ever highly recommend as one of the better Giallo films, not even close. But, just for pure wild effort and commitment on the parts of the director and actors, I will give it a '5'...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My Particular Way of Rating:

5 - Flawed, but perhaps with some entertainment value.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

I really liked this one. I wasn't steeped in dark, shadowy style like many of the Noir films of the time were. And, there aren't any real stylistic flourishes really.

However, being a lover of all Film Noir I must say that the story is a solid little Thriller, well written and acted by all concerned.

I'm not familiar with the director and I don't know if he did many films, but I felt he did an excellent job setting up the situation and then slowly and steadily building the suspense and tension as you begin to realize what is happening.

I'm also not familiar at all with the star, but he really did a great job and portrayed his character in a very believable and sympathetic way. The dialog was not forced or overly 'Noirish' at all, but very natural and fit well with the ongoing story.

So, although I usually prefer the more Dark, Moody, stylish Noirs of the period, I must say that this simple little story was very effective and quite entertaining.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My Particular Way of Rating:

5 - Flawed, but perhaps with some entertainment value.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

Pretty much that...

A shame too. I do think this director has a great feel for mood and atmosphere, and with the lighting, camerawork and such, I felt he has an excellent grasp on how to use those. Unfortunately, and with what is still a rather thin story, I feel that he really did not handle the writing/dialog very well at all. The few scenes where the actors interact with each other I honestly think are not done terribly well.

And, unfortunately with a story that is about 90% atmosphere and mood, the dialog and scenes between the people absolutely Have to be very strong. And, sadly that is where I feel the director and/or the writer, and even the acting really detracts from the story.

If the writing and the direction of those scenes had been a lot stronger, then I feel that really could have added to the tension and buildup of suspense to the story. But those scenes I feel were handled very poorly and instead kind of diminish any suspense or atmosphere that had been built up rather well up to that point.

Yes, I think the director has a lot of promise and has some genuine talent for visuals, lighting, and atmosphere, but he really needs to work on the dialog scenes so that they work in harmony with the powerful mood created and help strengthen the ongoing plot rather than weaken it.

So, a really solid if rather simple idea and some great atmosphere, but the threadbare story really runs out of steam towards the end and without being too specific, leaves the audience kind of going, 'What...?!'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My Particular Way of Rating:

5 - Flawed, but perhaps with some entertainment value.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

I'm being a tad more generous than many here because I really liked the basic story and the beginning was quite scary.

I also enjoyed just the huge scope of the world they were creating, and loved the monsters and the effects in general.

But, for me about 2/3 the way through I felt that the writers/director kind of lost the story somewhat, becoming a little trite at times, especially the scenes with the little girl which dragged the whole story basically to a halt each time for the little 'Cutesy' dialog.

I think that with such a powerful and truly scary beginning and the strong momentum that they had built up throughout the first half to 2/3 or so, for this kind of story I really feel that they needed to amp up the tension even more so, and keep tightening the suspense as they went. But, I think they failed to do that.

So, yeah, pretty dang entertaining and truly intense in the first half with great effects and a marvelous scope created, but ultimately losing steam in the last act.

Still, I think enjoyable and worthy of a tad higher rating than many are giving it.

So, if you keep these things in mind and just go along for the ride, you might find primarily the first half fairly engaging and entertaining.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My Particular Way of Rating:

5 - Flawed, but with some entertainment value.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

I personally don't care for Horror movies that mix their tone as much as this one does. Like I mention in my title, 'Re-animator' is way Over The Top too, but maintains more of a campy/satire tone throughout. This one right from the opening scene starts off with prolonged, extreme violence. Just not really my thing, especially if you are going to mix goofy humour with it later. The tones are just to extreme for my personal 'Taste' (such as it is)

However, in all fairness if you like these kinds of films that mix extreme violence with Over The Top gory humour, you may indeed like this one just fine. But, just for me, I don't really care for this more 'Modern' take on this kind of 'Horror', although I did kind of like the Supernatural elements as basic as they were.

For example, it is similar as to why I didn't enjoy the recent film 'Violent Night' Again, they were trying to mix humour with extreme violence, and in this case with a young girl involved. To me, I feel you should either go for a lighter touch and play up the humour, or take the whole thing completely seriously and just make a straight forward Slasher film. Just my take on it.

But, like I say, IF you are the kind who likes this more 'Modern' approach to Horror, and you don't mind the mix of really goofy humour and extreme, brutal violence, then you may very well enjoy this movie more than I did.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My Particular Way of Rating:

5 - Flawed, but with some entertainment value.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

Basically that... I mean is Anyone honestly expecting Oscar quality stuff here? Seriously...?

I thought this movie was truly a lot of fun. It has just the right Creepiness you would expect, but not going way OTT with graphic cruelty like so many today.

And, I mean, isn't Howard absolutely Perfect for this part, probably his greatest role ever! :D I thought he was fantastic as the Ice Cream Man.

So, this is your typical but I feel really well done 'Fun' Horror film. Yes, low budget and such, but to me this shows how a person can really make a great, totally entertaining Horror movie without a bunch of what I feel is Fun-Robbing explicit violence, especially in this case involving children. And, have a resulting film that is really a Lot of fun and very entertaining. This movie is Clearly not trying genuinely to Scare or Horrify you.

Is it 'The Shining' or 'Silence Of The Lambs'...? No, of course not. But, for what it is and for what you totally will expect from it, it is honestly one of those super fun, totally great Horror movies.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~My Particular Way Of Rating:

5 - Flawed, but with some entertainment value.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )C'mon, this is a Blast! You get exactly what you are expecting to get... : )

I'll keep this simple (like my mental state...) This starts off well with a great look and atmosphere, and even a clever touch of humour here and there.

But, sadly, after about 20 minutes or so it begins to lose its focus, and its hold on the audience. To me, the forward momentum just kind of stops as the scenes around this time are just very SLOW, drawn out torture in a sense. That does not a good movie make and for me personally is just a very lazy default to an unnecessarily lowest denominator.

That is too bad, really, because I think there was a fairly decent, if not terribly original idea here, but someone definitely dropped the ball in my lowly and wretched opinion. The look and mood though I feel could have been very effective, if there were a decent story to go along with it.

To be fair, I am not a huge fan of these kinds of Sword & Sorcery films (with the exception of course of the excellent 'BEASTMASTER', 'CONAN', 'KRULL', and perhaps a few others) but, especially with such a strong, dark beginning, it is a shame that whomever was behind the actual storytelling to me just simply didn't seem that terribly interested.

I gave it a VERY generous '5' because of the nice look of it and the good look and atmosphere, but if you are looking for an entertaining and compelling story, I'm afraid this isn't it...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~MY PARTICULAR WAY OF RATING:

5 - Flawed, but with some entertainment value.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

(Maybe, this statement below which was my original Title was why my first review was declined, IDK... Let me try added it down here)

Yes, a lot of these '10' reviews are clearly plants. But, the '1' star ones are not justified either...

The plot was pretty straightforward, but I thought that the writing, direction, and the acting were actually quite good.

I particularly liked the dialog between the two leads. There was a good chemistry and considering the time and that it was a Telefilm for a pilot, it COULD have simply been tossed off without much thought put into it. But, I liked the humour and interplay between them.

You could tell that they were sort of shooting for a feel similar to the series The Avengers. Between the two of them, her being British and him being a pretty cool fellow, I felt it worked rather well.

There was a decent Mystery too, and I liked the way the story unfolded where they continued to build a sense of tension as the audience tries to figure out what is going on.

Again, considering the time and type of film, the characters were all portrayed fairly well. Usually during that time and with such a low budget production, you would see a lot of overacting and hammy performances, but not here.

It was really nice to see Leonard Nimoy in such a role and see him smiling freely and using humour, which as we all are well aware for a few years there we almost never got to see... : )

All 'n' all I truly felt it was a fun, entertaining movie. If you have the right mindset for the time and what kind of production it is, and you are not expecting too much, then you may very well find some enjoyment here.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ MY PARTICULAR WAY OF RATING:

5 - Flawed, but with some entertainment value.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

I am a really avid fan of all things Sherlock Holmes. I have all the Basil Rathbone/Nigel Bruce original movies and all the Jeremy Brett Telefilms and series.

I also have the excellent 1959 Hammer 'HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES' with wonderful Peter Cushing as Sherlock Holmes (FWIW, I have like 8 different versions of that movie... : ) And, the later, not as well known 1985 film 'THE MASKS OF DEATH' also starring Peter Cushing as Holmes.

And, a LOT more... :D

So, in going into this movie I was curious as to how Rupert Everett would be in the starring role. Well, I honestly thought he did a very good job. Watson actually took a bit longer to get used to, but both I feel did a genuinely good job in portraying these famous characters.

Also, what gives the movie a lot of strength is the story itself. Not to mention, the excellent atmosphere and the very adept way it was directed and written.

Another thing I really liked was that with the way the characters were developed, you really had a strong emotional connection to both the good and the bad guys. I tell you, that one Duke or whomever the hell he was was SO damn pompous, I swear I really wanted to kick his bottom! So yes, the characterization all around was done very well.

A very compelling story, almost along the lines of a Jack the Ripper with a very effective atmosphere, something if you are a Holmes fan at all you should really find entertaining.

I gave it a strong '7'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~MY PARTICULAR WAY OF RATING:

5 - Flawed, but with some entertainment value.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

The reason being is that they are two totally different movies. I mean, not really two completely different films, but the American version was edited and structured differently to make it more of a satire or Comedy satirizing Hitchcock films.

The Italian version does not have the humour added to it, and is a straight up Mystery/Thriller that is done very well.

The great Mario Bava lent his directorial style to this good crime thriller. You can tell his nice, creative touches with the cinematography and editing.

Of course, this would be before he became super well known for his excellent use of colour in his Giallo and Horror films, which the also great Dario Argento used to great effect in some of his movies, particularly in 'SUSPIRIA' and 'INFERNO'

There is also the always great John Saxon... Is there anyone cooler... : ) The performances are excellent throughout, and there is a good sense of Mystery and growing tension as the movie progresses. This predates the full on Giallo movement, but you can definitely see the beginnings of it here.

The Black and White cinematography is used to good effect. And, if you are able to get the Blu-ray, you can also listen to the excellent commentary by Bava expert Tim Lucas!

All 'n' all a very good Mystery/Thriller with good suspense by the master Mario Bava.

I definitely gave this a very strong and deserved '7'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ MY PARTICULAR WAY OF RATING:

5 - Flawed, but with some entertainment value.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

I very rarely write reviews that are not positive, but once in a while when I see a movie that is particularly painful and I personally find way overrated, well, I feel I should at least leave a brief comment about it, even though it may be against the tide or opinion.

Maybe, it's just that the film itself is a product of its time (1970) but for me, having to wade through the first almost 30 minutes and all the 'Cutesy' little scenes and the scenes that set up the parade that too FOREVER, and then when I got to when Mark Lester is trying to tell them about the shooting, and then having to endure the ever so painful Susan George's HUGE overacting, well... seriously, we are already a 1/3 the way through the movie and, at least for me, has been quite a trial.

I SUPPOSE that if you can put up with all the what I feel are very Cheeeeeeezy directorial flourishes and almost every scene screaming 'Look at me how showy I'm being!', and can just get through the story, maybe you possibly might be able to get something out of it.

It's not that I am a snob by any means and I do love a variety of films, some can be rather silly or over the top, some more clever, some deeply scary and atmospheric, that's fine. But, when the combination of what I feel is very amateurish direction (where I would personally lay the most fault) and grossly overacting and paper thin characters at best, I'm sorry, for me I honestly just find it truly painful to watch.

I hope that this may help those who may feel similar to the way I do, as opposed to the many rather positive reviews that are here. I gave it a fairly rare '4'...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ MY PARTICULAR WAY OF RATING:

5 - Flawed, but with some entertainment value.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

To me, I think several of the reviews here are quite harsh. I mean ratings of 1 or 2... C'mon, compared to the usual poorly made drivel we wade through in low budget Horror these days. Totally unjustified. Don't go by those.

It's no masterpiece by any means, but like I said in my title above, I really did like the acting and felt along with the writing the characters and dialog came across as believable and realistic.

It's just that the story itself was pretty basic and you could tell just about what was going to happen. To me though, I really liked the characters and the way they interacted, which for me personally is almost ALWAYS the thing that lets these kind of movies down in a big way. So, that was really refreshing to see it well written and acted.

I really liked the character of the Grandmother. So many times a character like that, an old Native American woman, can so easily come across as overdone or very cliched, speaking in superficial cryptic phrases. But, quite honestly I totally liked the older woman's character and they way she came across, she was really good.

So yeah, no big deal here with this film, except the definite above average acting/writing. The story is passable, but with the well done cinematography and direction, not to mention the good looking local, not a bad little movie to pass the time.

I gave it a solid '6'... Please don't pay any attention to these Numbnuts giving the moderately entertaining movie a completely unjustified 1 or 2, certainly not compared to the wealth of truly poor done and quickly cranked out crap that is considered Horror these days.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ MY PARTICULAR WAY OF RATING:

5 - Flawed, but with some entertainment value.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

Sorry to say, especially with the supposed talent in front of the camera, the movie was extremely slow, drawn out, and honestly a whole bunch of pretty much nothing...

I don't mind slow burn films at all, but like any good story, it really has to have a decent plot behind it and just as importantly if not more, a decent script and director. And, quite honestly this has none of that.

I swear the director (along with all the supposed 'Performances') were totally sleep walking through this 'Story' Bland, absolutely NO atmosphere what so ever. And, when you are trying to create an effective Gothic Ghost/Haunting tale, strong atmosphere and mood are absolutely essential, and there truly ain't none of that here.

I mean, literally in the first 30 full minutes almost nothing of any note happens other than the obvious plot point of what happens to the wife. Long, drawn out scenes where not only nothing happens, but they are so completely devoid of any mood or atmosphere, it's like the director had no idea at all what kind of movie he was making.

Normally, I really love good, old fashioned Ghost Stories, especially the British kind even though they can be really low key at times. But, not to put too fine a point on it, this was is completely dead on arrival.

Not recommended at all... I gave it a '4'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ MY PARTICULAR WAY OF RATING:

5 - Flawed, but with some entertainment value.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

Okay, like I mentioned in my title, honestly a very intriguing idea, and wouldn't it have been nice if it had been done well... : )

In most cases, unless there is clearly studio/executive interference, I strongly feel that the responsibility of the way a movie ultimately turns out rests largely on the director.

This is really a fantastic idea and I would have LOVED to have seen it done properly. But, to me what really let this movie down were the performances that the director ultimately drew out of and chose for the final draft of this film. In my lowly and wretched opinion, horrible, terribly cliched performances fill this movie, sadly. And, it's a shame because I felt that it really took a person right out of what could have been a very good story.

And, maybe it is just me, but I swear that every possible little cliche both acting and action wise was used to very poor effect. Everyone, even at times including the usually decent Milla, just reacted in ways that were so over-emoted, overdone, NOT realistic at all.

Perhaps the script itself may have been at fault too, but it is my belief that even with a crap script and even crap actors, a REALLY good, talented director can still draw out and select and ultimately edit together the best performances and story elements to make it work on some level. You could really tell that in this case that clearly was not done. If you have $h*t takes, you do them again, you DON'T just settle for them...

So, to me anyway, these flaws were so egregious and plentiful that I honestly had to keep FF through the movie to get through some of the awful dialog scenes, so that I could follow the plot and see what was going to happen.

And, there really were some great elements and ideas here, like the shot of the schoolchildren in the classroom all very erriely looking alike, and the IDEAS in some of the action scenes were excellent, if only they had been done well.

Seriously, definitely a missed opportunity to create a really tense, effective thriller based upon a rare and intriguing disorder that could have been SO good, but whomever they chose to direct it and perhaps the writer, were simply I feel just not up to the task. A real shame, truly...

I gave this a '4'...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ MY PARTICULAR WAY OF RATING:

5 - Flawed, but with some entertainment value.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

I can see why this movie is somewhat divisive. There ARE indeed some good elements in it like one reviewer stated in his/her title.

I would say what really props up this movie at all is the tense atmosphere. The acting overall is decent, not as cringeworthy as many of these modern day Horror films.

I personally like the approach when you have this small, rural town where everyone knows something is not right. That aspect I thought was done very well.

I just don't feel that there was quite enough substance and weight truly to carry the story as well as it should have been. There were definitely instances of genuine creepiness, but perhaps if the writing/plot could have been thought out a bit more thoroughly, I think it really could have been a lot better.

Yes, many good elements are there, but I think maybe a bit more skill was needed to bring it together and really make it much more strongly effective and powerful to the audience.

I was torn between giving it a '5' or a '6', but in considering the sum of everything, I ended up with a '5' So, there is some entertainment value here, but ultimately I honestly feel it is a bit too flawed to be called really good.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ MY PARTICULAR WAY OF RATING:

5 - Flawed, but with some entertainment value.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

Basically that...

What I did like about it was it's very old fashioned style. None of the OTT flourishes that permeate Horror films these days. No extreme sadism or violence. No annoying overacting.

And, like others here have said, it is a good concept, rather imaginative, and I thought the visuals were done well, especially in the way they blended the 'Real' with the Unreal (I don't want to give too much away...)

Also, with many films like this where a family is going through this kind of stuff, usually the acting is not so hot with a lot of the Drama overdone, etc. In this case, I really did like the way the characters were developed (primarily the parents, the children really didn't have much to do) and their reactions and the way they dealt with each other, particularly in dramatic or uncomfortable scenes, were very well done, realistic, and believable.

Also, like some others have said here too, the ending is probably not as effective as it could be, finishing with a bit of a whimper...

But, if you are not expecting a super modern Horror movie with all kinds of extreme violence and effects and such and can appreciate an older fashioned yet imaginative style, then you might find this one fairly entertaining. I gave it a decent '6'~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~MY PARTICULAR WAY OF RATING:

5 - Flawed enough probably to give it a pass.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )

Okay... I've reviewed probably well over 300 movies here over the last 15 years or so, and generally I do not add a review when there are already so many here.

BUT... the reason why I am adding a brief review amidst these 300+ already, and in reading them I see that some others do indeed agree with me, for those who may feel like I do about movies like this I think it may be helpful to share how this movie struck me personally.

Straight out, right from the start, the overly 'Hip' tone put me off. Unless a film is done REALLY well and cleverly written/acted/directed, I usually do not care for movies that are kinda 'Cute' in the sense that they are in effect saying, 'Hey look how cool and hip we are', especially with the dialog that was being exchanged between all those 'Hip', 'Cool' very unrealistic people.

It just is not my thing, really. I understand if others, which many here are, into that kind of style, almost self-referential, then fine you may really like it. To me personally although I honestly do love a wide variety of styles in movies, and yes, they can be light hearted, don't always have to be serious or 'Heavy' But, the way that the style in which this movie was written and directed mainly just comes across as very Plastic and unbelievable.

In a case like this, I don't feel that it is the actors fault, because they simply follow the tone and direction of what they are given so they are not the ones who carry the ultimate responsibility for the way they come across. The style presented here just comes across to me as VERY artificial, superficial, and makes it very difficult really to 'Get Into' the story at all.

Heh, sorry to get real wordy, I guess this review is not really going to be 'Brief' after all, my apologies... : )

But, yeah, that's pretty much it. Probably the worst culprits to me as an actual film as far as it being truly engaging in any way or drawing the audience into the story at all, would be the writing and direction. If perhaps the same story could have been told in a more realistic or truly clever way, then sure the story may well have been very good. But, to me, honestly, I just didn't get the impression that the writing was very sharp or believable at all. And yes, I agree with many here that the introduction in just the first few minutes basically shows it's hand in what the tone of the film will be when she says what she does in just the first few sentences.

So, basically that's it. And, I don't know if that may indeed be very helpful to some others here. But, honestly, I would say for people who really get into movies where they are intelligently written, and NOT insulting the intelligence of the audience, and who appreciate films that give some depth and substance to their characters and especially their dialog with each other, then like me you may very well find this film somewhat lacking.

Superficial, not very well or cleverly written, characters poorly come across as real people at all and are FAR too busy trying to be 'Hip' and 'Cool' to relate to in any realistic way.

Sorry about that, but with all the very positive reviews I felt I really should throw in here my honest impressions as to the way the movie struck me.

I gave it a '5' because it is not Gawd-Awful, but very shallow and unsatisfying.

I hope that helps...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The way I rate movies on 'My' curve : )

5 - Flawed, Not really recommended 6 - Passable, Worth a watch, not highly recommended 7 - A Solid, Entertaining Film.

Wow... This is not normally the type of movie that I watch. There are just a handful of romantic comedies that I really like. This one truly is one of the very best.

It is extremely well written and acted. Every character is portrayed perfectly. I love the humour in this which I feel is very funny and truly situational in the purest sense.

I saw this probably over 25 years ago, I had it on VHS. I believe I still have it. I was looking all these years to find it on DVD or somehow get a good print of it. FINALLY, after all this time, I found a nice HD print of it online.

In my lowly and wretched opinion, there are VERY few films on this type that are this good. To give you some idea at least as to what I find well done and entertaining I'll mention the few that come to mind. First and Foremost, primarily because I LOVE Sandra Bullock, the film she did with Hugh Grant called 'TWO WEEKS NOTICE' is probably my all time favourite. So, incredibly funny, both of them in absolute top form. A very close 2nd, and more of a Teen Comedy, but with romance, and perhaps an even better pure Comedy, would be 'BETTER OFF DEAD' with John Cusack.

Other films that I also really like which would fall under that one are 'AMERICAN SWEETHEARTS', 'FOUR WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL, and the other Hugh Grant films of this type. Honourable mention would go to 'SERENDIPITY'...

So, that will give you some idea that even though this is not the type of film I would normally choose to watch first (that would be mostly Horror, Science Fiction, Thriller, Film Noir, etc...) But, this one is most definitely one of my all time favourites!

And, what makes this one so good, in addition to it being brilliantly done, is that it has a very satisfying romantic side too.

So, yes, I gave this one a very rare '9' and I feel it very much deserves it.

Yes, first and foremost, DO NOT even look at the titles here because you can always count on some Dip$h*t Numbnut giving everything away, just in their title. So, just a kind warning...

A basically good story, fairly decently executed. The main guy is OKAY in his role. The supporting characters I thought were actually better. But, even so... a fairly clever idea moderately well executed. I think that if the writing and direction had been just a little sharper, then this story could have had more impact, but the idea is good.

Again, a moderately entertaining Telefilm based upon a Stephen King short story, one of his more fun ones.

It you are not expecting full theatre grade quality and enjoy a good little mystery of what the hell is going on in this town, then you should enjoy this movie somewhat.

Again, DO NOT read the other review titles unless you want the entire story SPOILED!