Deadline

A writer Alice (Brittany Murphy) gets dropped off by a friend at a spooky Victorian house, to be alone for a week to write. Her friend drives off leaving Alice alone to explore the house and as she does she finds mini video cassettes of the former residents, a young couple, going about their daily lives. The rest of the movie jumps between the present, the author in the house, and the past, what is happening to the couple's lives by watching the tapes. Even with the dual story line there is no character development, at all. There isn't a reason to even care about what happens to them. You don't know what their goals or hopes are, or their past. Except in a the simplest of references. Like: "He had a history of depression". So when the movie jumps between past and present you don't even want to even bother to try to and figure it out. And Brittany Murphy has the complete inability to keep her mouth closed. As in, lips together, so it looks like she is gasping for air like a fish out of water. She wanders through the entire movie with eyes bugged out and lips apart, brow furrowed (not literally of course with the advent of Botox) and saying nothing because this takes place in an empty house there really isn't a lot of dialogue. I am wondering what the point of this movie was. I really am. No conflict, mute fish-like characters, no plot really or story...hmm. I gave it a 4 because the camera work and production was decent and the bad acting was due to a sophomoric script. This isn't even a good rainy day desperation I will watch this, because nothing is on cable type movie. And Thora Birch was in this so I mistakenly thought it would improve. There is a last gasp at the end to try to scare you but seriously. After an hour and 10 minutes of nothing it is kind of hard to recover. And these movies with the tired plot line of people who are mentally ill and/or on medication is so old. EVERYONE IS ON MEDICATION. Statistically 50% of the US is, so why this should be significant to any plot is beyond me. In short, watch this only if you run out of Ambien.

Deadline is written and directed by Sean McConville. It stars Brittany Murphy, Thora Birch and Marc Blucas. Music is by Carlos José Alvarez and cinematography by Ross Richardson.

Recovering from a psychological breakdown and required to finish a screenplay for a deadline, writer Alice Evans (Murphy) retreats to a remote Victorian house. Once there, though, mysterious goings on begin to accompany her. Undetered, Alice begins to unravel the terrible secrets of the house. But at what cost?

One of the last films made by Brittany Murphy before her sad and untimely death, Deadline (poor title) is mostly friendless in the world of the haunted house sub-genre. Yet in spite of its flaws and tired old set up of premise, it's hardly one of the worst of its kind. It's all very low key and thriving on moody mystery atmosphere, both things which are aided by better than average music scoring and photography. Performances by the cast, in what is purely a six character piece, are very committed, managing to make the thin script more palatable. There's a couple of jolts placed within, while the scenes involving Birch and a clearly unhinged Blucas are genuinely creepy.

Its reputation tells us that it's just too low key for some, and for sure it brings nothing new at all to a well populated formula. While the outcome is infuriating and has proved to be unforgivable for many a sub-genre fan. But with expectations set at low this rounds out as a decent enough time filler for those who like atmosphere laden haunted house pictures. 6/10

Brittany Murphy plays an emotionally broken young woman looking for solitude to try to meet a deadline for a manuscript. The movie itself is haunting since Murphy actually does die about a year later under suspicious circumstance after wasting away from some trauma. Her death in real life is deemed natural, but skeptics think there's more to it and her husband does about 6 months later from virtually identical "health issues.". It's almost prescient. Her character is offered a beautiful but secluded house to stay in while she finishes her manuscript. This "friend" is not doing Her any favors as the house is haunted, or cursed. Age finds some home movie cassettes and becomes obsessed with them. The home movie footage documents of the prior couple's disintegrating relationship. Fortunately she plays the dozen or unmarked video cassettes in chronological order. Also, coincidentally the emotional and physical trauma she recovering from is mirrored in this couple's relationship. As she watches her character begins to unravel emotionally and physically. Can she survive this haunting and learn what happened to the prior occupants? Brittany is believable and great in this role. Watching this knowing that she actually dies in a highly weakened state in a year is eerie. Overall though this is barely an average horror film.

The actors do at least try hard with this dull-as-dishwater ghost story with a by-the-numbers script and uninspired directing, but alas it's not enough.

The film doesn't really have flaws significant enough to point out, but nor does it have anything really positive going for it either. There's virtually no attempt to weave anything interesting into the work. Every camera angle, movement, and even the set-design of the house are as predictable as the plot and dialogue. The scares are mild to non existent, the "mystery" is telegraphed so far in advance you can practically write the conclusion in an sealed envelope at the outset and pretend you did a magic trick to your friends. By the time the end credits roll you're already forgetting the movie.

Writer/director Sean McConville seems to be far out of his depth even creating a simple four-character ghost story. According to IMDb listings, this may be his first attempt at a movie... in which case we could probably cut him a little slack, but holy-hell he needs to try harder with his next attempt.

Brittany Murphy is Alice, a writer in her early 30's who moves into a spooky old Victorian mansion in order to be alone to work on her book as well as distance herself from a traumatic nervous breakdown. But no sooner is Alice settling in, that the house is getting the worst of her imagination courtesy of strange noises and nightmares. Now Alice, already in a fragile mental state, must deal with that as well as an ex who recently got out of prison.

I found myself enjoying this film much more than I thought that I would've, thanks in no small part to a nice atmospheric soundtrack as well as a surprisingly adequate subdued performance by Murphy. All of this is almost (but not quite) enough to make up for a pretty clichéd and heavily predictable storyline. The late Britt does the most with what little she's given.

My Grade: C