The Dead Room

I've never seen anything quite like this, I loved the atmosphere, slow pacing at the beginning (which usually turns me off) and the gradual build & twists to a frightening end. I can't understand in the slightest where the current headline review sees this as a run of the mill movie & he knew everything that was on the cards, psychic much??

Was it perfect, no, of course not, occasionally the performances where a little 'off' but it passed quickly. All in all I found it different, quite eerie & it held my attention from beginning to end. I would happily recommend this to all looking for a ghost story with an enigmatic twist & a couple of really ticked off spirits.

An interesting little movie really. The bad - The acting from some members was a bit stilted and there was no sense of history between them. We never got to know the backstory so I didn't really care for them. The reactions looked as if they were at times waiting for an offset director to give them the 'GO!' so the action can be added in later through CGI. The story line was a little too simple and the ending was a bit of a let down.

The good - loved that it was raw. Not overblown. I liked the slow build and that it felt subtle during the build-up. I liked it wasn't American, so no over the top teenagers screaming, no excessive CGI or ridiculous music. It was simple, so no 100 takes and angles, just straight shooting. As much as I complain about the actors in 'the bad' I enjoyed their presence (odd, I know).

It wasn't terrible, it wasn't great but I did think about it afterwards which is a bonus point. And, I'd watch it again.

So 5 for making me think.

It's rare to come across a horror movie that takes itself and its characters seriously. More often than not, it seems horror producers take it for granted that the plot consists of illogical supernatural things happening and people dying in gory yet cinematic ways. To this end, very little is done to give the story or the characters any heart.

This movie does just that. It has an innocent story of three ghostbusters investigating a haunted house. The characters are, not only NOT obnoxious but downright likable. I could watch 90 minutes of this even if nothing spooky happened because they managed to keep my attention and were thoroughly well fleshed out.

It's not very scary, but it gives you the delicious little glee of watching one of those 'spooky phenomenon' movies. Won't make you jump, but will make you wiggle your toes in your snuggie.

The ending was kind of rushed. I would have liked to know more about the dead room and what transpired all those years ago to put the spooks in that situation.

Overall a very enjoyable watch.

I don't quite understand some of the low reviews for this film, except perhaps that some people only appreciate fast paced, gore infused, CGI blockbusters. I thoroughly enjoyed this film. While the premise is not unique, the acting was very good, the dialogue well scripted, and the setting was excellent. Shooting a movie with only three primary actors is difficult, this movie pulled it off. While suspense builds slowly, it works well. With the onset of supernatural occurrences, the characters, for the most part, react like real people.

The ending was unexpected, and from my perspective, added an interesting twist I did not see coming.

All in all, I was not disappointed by this New Zealand addition to the horror genre. I rarely am when it comes to international horror. If you like a simple 'haunted house visited by paranormal investigators' film, I recommend this one.

Just about everything about this film is good. Good acting, camera- work, lighting, and so on.

The only thing that let it down as far as I am concerned is the ending.

Having built up the story (which was well written and well acted) and drawn the viewer into the events I was expecting more of an explanation through the final sequences of why they had happened.

The ending felt rushed and perhaps edited a bit too much to keep the film within time.

But apart from that, the film was enjoyable and certainly as good as similar films in the horror genre.