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They (2002)
Your deepest fear is out to get you.
They
They, a film about fear. Not too many of them about now is there. Starring Laura Regan, of little fame and from the atrociously disgraceful Hollow Man 2. Hollow Man 2 being the straight-to-DVD sequel to the 2000 hit Hollow Man starring Kevin Bacon. Laura Regan plays the haunted heroine of the film who, along with the rest of the cast, should have picked a better movie to try and make it big in. It also stars Marc Blucas of Buffy The Vampire Slayer fame, trying to prove he is more than a soldier boy who can fall in love, as the boyfriend to Regans Julia Lund.
The basic premise of the film is one that we have seen a few times since, albeit in more successful films, the two since have been a bit on the terrible side. Those films being Darkness Falls and Boogeyman.
Just with those two, this film plays on a childhood fear. Whereas Boogeyman was all about a child's fear of, you guessed it, the boogeyman, Darkness Falls was based on a legend of a tooth fairy gone bad. The tag-line of the film should say it all: Are You Afraid Of The Dark? You Should be. If you haven't figured it out from that, it's about being afraid of the dark. This is generally shown to be a fear of the unknown, as you fear most what you do not know and cannot see. But that has nothing to do with the film, so let's carry on.
We open with a young boy being comforted by his mother, who reassures him there is nothing to be afraid of. The boys mother leaves the room and all of a sudden we know that there is something to be afraid of, guess she had it wrong all along. The boy, just like all little kids when afraid, hides under the covers hoping the monster in the dark will go away. When he thinks the coast is clear he comes out from under and it seems as though he is safe once more when bam, he is dragged under his bed by an unknown monster.
Jump forward 16-19 years and we are now following Julia Lund who is now a psychology major living a normal life with her boyfriend, whose name now eludes me.
This is where the story kicks in and we find out that said little boy from many years ago, is now a delusional adult with major mental problems. He calls her and they meet in a diner where the lights start to go out and it is all blamed on electricity blackouts. They talk, he starts blabbering absolute nonsense about them being after him and then he goes and shoots himself. Julia then meets two of his friends and finds out that they all had something in common, they suffered night terrors when they were children.
Night terrors are like a waking nightmare, the child becomes delusional and sees things that are not there. If they continue into the teenage years then professional help is needed.
The story continues from there, and if you wish to know what happens then you should see it yourself. Just don't blame me when you are half-bored to death.
Whilst the premise of the film sounds good on paper, it doesn't work on film. The script was weak and makes you wonder how it ever got past the boards approval, anything to make a quick buck is my guess. The acting is less than desirable and I am very disappointed in Blucas' performance, I really thought he would be the one good thing in this film, which is why I bought it in the first place. He seems so out of place without an army-ish uniform on and when he's not barking orders or hunting anything. It feels as though he just read the lines without bothering to do much else. Regan was the brightest talent here, even though she isn't going to be anything big in the future. If she sorts herself out and learns how to act with emotion a bit better then she might go far. Otherwise, she should stick to movies that no-one really cares for.
The weakest thing of all was the ending. I would say what it is but I do not wish to spoil it for anyone wishing to see it. The DVD came with an alternate ending and this, in my opinion, should have been the main ending as it carried with it a far better message and awareness into mental illness.
Further proof that PG-13s do not make good horror movies.
I give it a 4/10.
Das Experiment (2001)
Absolute cracker of a movie that had me in awe.
never realised anything good could come out of Germany. I have now been proved wrong after watching Das Experiment.
It's based on a real life psychological experiment that took place. The experiment consisted of 20 ordinary people who would be put into a prison environment. 12 would be prisoners and 8 would be guards. Who would be put into what role would be decided by a computer. The experiment took place over two weeks and was to see how each person would cope within the environment as whatever they were. Would the guards be corrupted by power? Would the prisoners succumb to weakness? They never knew, until they performed the experiment.
Now films based on real life events are usually pretty on the ball because everything needed for the script has already panned out and is there for the taking. Naturally, adjustments are made and the result is a disaster or a movie that makes you realise how shocking real life is and give you a sense of satisfaction at the same time.
Das Experiment satisfied in every sense of the word. If all films were made like this one, then Hollywood wouldn't be slated so much for churning out mindless crap like it usually does. This film trounces everything ever produced in America and Britain. The direction is near perfect and he uses his actors to their full potential. It's pretty shocking considering this was Oliver Hirschbiegel's debut as a feature-length director.
If anyone has ever seen Run Lola Run you will recognise one of the names connected with the film, Moritz Bleibtreu as Tarek who is the main protagonist. I have not seen anything else starring him so I have nothing to compare with, but his acting was pretty damn good. His role as the undercover reporter Tarek, who constantly provokes the guards into action, has made me want to see more of his stuff.
If you are interested in the slightest bit after reading this, then go check it out now. It's too good to miss. Even if you don't like the sound of it, check it out NOW.
A Child's Cry for Help (1994)
A doctor suspects a mother of mistreating her child. Is she right or are her own failings as a mother interfering with her work?
This movie is about a doctor who is new at a hospital. She instantly goes about making sure her place there is known. A young boy is brought in suspected of having an infected appendix. He has an operation to remove it but afterwards he gets really sick. He gets sicker and sicker and no one knows why and it seems as though someone is making him sick. His mother is devoted to being by her child throughout everything he goes through, so much so that she is by his bedside 18 hours a day and rarely does anything for herself. Everyone sees her as a saint and a loving mother. But the new doctor suspects the mother of having a psychiatric disorder. This disorder is known as Munchausen's Syndrome by Proxy. The syndrome is where a parent (or a carer) of the child will harm them intentionally so that they can get attention off doctors and other people.
I have to admit, the film makers have balls to make a film about this subject. Especially considering that most people do not even believe in this syndrome. The film is really well done and should be given a lot of credit for doing what they did with the set being limited to so few places. The storyline was top notch and could have been written by Hollywood's best.
The acting, while not perfect, was still pretty good. Pam Dawber should be given a lot of credit for selling her character so good. She really convinced me with her portrayal of the mother. Veronica Hamel also did well with the doctors character.
The rest of the cast were pretty good as well.
I definitely recommend this movie to anyone who likes a good story. 8 out of 10 is a very worthy score.