Rating: 
Summary: I should have abandoned this movie
Review: This movie is so slow. I was spacing out while watching it. The characters are so two dimentional. Katie Holmes is a beautiful actress but she cant act. The real saver of this movie is Zooey Deschanel whose beauty and outgoing character is the only good point.
Rating: 
Summary: Stephen Gaghan does it again
Review: For everyone who loved the flavor of dialogue in TRAFFIC this additional thriller by Stephen Gaghan won't disappoint. Yes, there is a fantastic cast (Benjamin Bratt who continues to grow as an actor, Katie Holmes ditto, and that new light of the screen Zooey Deschanel) to propel this rather dark tale along, but it is the grit in the direction and filming that rounds out what appears to be a consistent vision on Gaghan's part. This is a dark movie but one that keeps its claws in you until the end. A lot a chance taking here and the chances were rewarded. Recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: What... the... HELL!?
Review: I saw this in the theaters and wanted to burn all the copies. The ending makes absolutley NO sense, and the story pretty much [stinks]. It was also OVER HYPED and the dvd [is bad].
AVOID EYE CONTACT!
Rating: 
Summary: abandon
Review: this is not a teen movie. kakie gives agreat departing peformance from joey potter. there is a great twist, and a red herring. benjamin bratt also gave a great performance. there are parts that could have been deleted, like the freind who seems to be more anoying then her value as a freind (zooey deschanel)the boyfreind also was badly casted. the ending is what makes this movie good
Rating:
Summary: What a Thriller This Is, Do Not "Abandon"
Review: Katie Holmes stars (coincidentally, not) as Katie, a college student who has a bright future. Just when life is perfect for her, a detective (Benjamin Bratt) shows up, questioning her about her ex-boyfriend Embry, who's been missing for two years. Soon, Katie begins seeing [visions of] Embry around the campus. This twist of a script makes the film jump up and down, back and forth numerous times through flash-backs and flash-forwards. For some, it's puzzling. For others, it's a ride that keeps you on the edge of your seat, right up to the ingenious finale. Holmes definitely stands out, and this box-office failure is worth a second glance. The suspense thriller is brilliantly written and directed by the award-winning screenwriter of "Traffic." Others may find the movie a lost cause, but you shouldn't ditch "Abandon."
Rating:
Summary: A Truly Suspenseful Film!
Review: Two years after the disappearance of undergraduate student Embry Larkin (Charlie Hunnam), police detective Wade Handler (Benjamin Bratt) sets out to determine if the young man should be considered dead and the case closed. His investigation into the disappearance leads him to Emry’s former girlfriend, Katie (Katie Holmes), who is now preparing for her imminent college graduation. But it seems that the missing boyfriend may have returned and might be stalking her. Or is he a figment of her imagination, a delusion produced by intense stress and wishful thinking? Detective Handler and Katie’s relationship turns to romance as the investigation proceeds. The audience knows little more of Embry’s fate than the detective. We wonder if Embry has really reappeared and what the sources of Katy’s anxiety and sleep disturbances actually are. We are held in suspense until the final minutes of the film. Abandon is the first movie I’ve seen in a long time that creates real suspense and keeps the audience guessing. We are never entirely sure if Embry has returned or if Katy is hallucinating until the end of the movie. We don’t know what to believe, but the story still maintains our interest. Abandon is suspenseful and mysterious without being confusing, self-conscious or far-fetched. The payoff at the end of the film is satisfying and successfully avoids being anti-climactic. I especially have to compliment director Stephen Gaghan on the last 5 minutes or so of the movie, in which a combination of flash-forwards and flashbacks (depending upon how you look at it) answer all of the questions left in the viewers minds and lead to a terrific last scene. The cast is adequate, but not wonderful. I believe Katie Holmes when her character is emotionally vulnerable, but she is less convincing as romantically irresistible, on which some aspects of the story pivot. Benjamin Bratt is credible as the mild-mannered detective and quintessential decent guy. The supporting cast is good, most notably Zooey Deschanel as Katie’s good friend Samantha . Abandon is a smart suspenseful thriller with an appealing cast. Recommended for anyone who likes suspense films, thrillers or mysteries. Abandon should appeal to a wide audience. Often, a film’s trailer is better than the film itself. But in the case of Abandon, the trailer did not do the film justice in creating the impression of a disjointed shallow thriller-wannabe. This may explain the film’s poor performance at the box office. Abandon is a far more coherent and interesting film than its trailer would lead you to believe. So be sure to check it out on video or DVD.
Rating:
Summary: Reckless Abandon
Review: Abandon should have been a better movie. When one considers that the film was written and directed by Stephen Gaghan, the man who won an Oscar for the screenplay of the film Traffic some years back, I expected a better story. Detective Wade Handler (Benjamin Bratt) is asked to follow up on a two year old missing person case. It seems that music student Embry Larkin (Charlie Hunnam) just vanished The investigation leads Handler to Embry's girlfriend Katie Burke (Katie Holmes) She is trying to put her life together. She is about to embark on a promising career but the investigation causes her feelings about the love of her life to resurface in very strange manifestations. Abandon is a film that wants to be good, but instead, is nothing more than a jigsaw puzzle that is not worth putting together The big payoff at the end is moot because as the film progresses, the story gets more muddled and there's little reason to care about anyone by the middle of the picture Abandon isn't very thrilling, nor was it engaging enough for me to abour the outcome. The acting is just ok. No one really wowed me here either. A disappointing film indeed. As for the handful of extras on the DVD, the commentary track from Gaghan is ok, but he kinda rambles at times The Making of Abandon featurette is just your run of the mill fluff piece/bloated commercial for the film. Deleted and extended scenes with commentary offer little to enhance the plot and were well chosen to be edited out of the movie. Rounding out the DVD features is the usual theatrical trailer for Abandon Recommended viewing only if (and that's a big IF) you are suffering from a bad case of insomnia and need some sleep Avoid this one at all costs
Rating:
Summary: Abandon all hope!!
Review: I have rarely, if ever, turned off a movie. I did with this one. I don't know where to start with it. Suffice it to say, it lacks any serious plot - it stumbles around looking to create one, but it does not have one. I constantly got the feeling that someone edited out about an hour of the movie. I could go on for hours, but I won't. Just save yourself the trouble and leave this one alone!
Rating:
Summary: Don't "Abandon" This One
Review: After his Oscar winning scrpit for "Traffic" Stephen Gaghan decides he wants to direct. At first I wasn't to sure about this. But, I did want to see the movie anyhow, because I'm a fan of Katie Holmes. So now after watching this movie I find that it was actually enjoyable, and I can't understand why the public has decided to bash it the way they have. "Abandon" tells the story of a young college student Embry Larkin (Charlie Hunnam) who has mysterious disappeared for the past two years. This brings forth a detective Wade Handler (Benjamin Bratt). Who is now questioning all the students to find out anything he can on Embry including Katie Burke (Katie Holmes) who we find out was dating Embry. And then a lot of weird things happen. Suddenly Embry returns and starts stalking Katie! And then a friend of Katie's, Harrison (Gabriel Mann) disappears too! Is there a connection? Well, I'm not going to say. I liked "Abandon" because it seemed to take it's time a tell a story. It tried to create characters that would make it enjoyable for us to watch 90 minutes. The movie had some depth to it, and I like it when movies do. The acting by the cast is wonderful, and I suppose it's Holmes and Bratt who steal the movie but credit has to be given to Stephen Gaghan as well. While I admit the film rarely hits a suspenseful moment, there is a certain style to Gaghan's directing. The movie in a way is sort of a character study-ish movie that examines it's two lead characters. And I'm also pretty sure most will see the ending coming. I myself predicted 50% of it. I wasn't exactly sure. Would I tell someone to see this movie? Yes. I don't feel it's bad movie, the way some people would have you believe. Do I think everyone will like it? Well, I think that answer is obvious. No, everyone will not like this movie. And I'm not exactly sure what the target audience is for this movie. You might guess teens because of Holmes, but, that's not to say someone over that target audience wouldn't enjoy the movie. Bottom-line: An entertaining first effort by Stephen Gaghan. The movie has a wonderful performance by Holmes, and manages to keep our interest until the end.
Rating:
Summary: "Abandon" is what you should do to this film.
Review: I hate it when there is a movie that I am dying to see, then I see it and it's a huge disappointment. Katie Holmes in a psychological thriller was the reasoning is seeing this movie, unfortunately this movie is a predictable, boring mess. It is very slow moving and takes a good hour for anything exciting to happen. Katie is a college student whos boyfriend Embry disappeared 2 years ago. Benjamin Bratt plays the detective reassigned to the case. All the sudden, Katie starts seeing Embry watching her, in cars, etc etc. What happened to Embry? is the big question. Well, we eventually find out in the end, but there are to many unneeded scenes before we find out. The ending is a bit predictable, but I do have to say Katie Holmes is wonderful in the movie, and because of her, I didn't see the end coming. Benjamin Bratt is boring, Zooey Deschanel is alot of fun, and Charlie Hunnam brings much needed intensity to the film. I suggest this for Katie Holmes fans. Otherwise, you'll probably be bored to tears.
|
