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The Others

The Others

List Price: $19.99
Your Price: $15.99
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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Very Effective Ghost Story
Review: As other reviewers have said, the mood of The Others harkens back to classics like The Turn of the Screw and The Haunting. I completely enjoyed this movie, especially Nicole Kidman's performance (she's always good but she really makes this movie). Among the supporting cast, Fionnula Flanagan's turn as the housekeeper is suitably creepy. I did anticipate the twist at the end of the movie, although I still was surprised by one aspect of it. Overall, in a lackluster movie season, The Others stands out.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Best Gothic Suspense Movie since the original "Haunting"
Review: I went into this movie expecting yet another remake of "Turn of the Screw", but this film is so much more. An excellent supernatural suspense thriller, on a par with (and with elements of) the original "Haunting", the forgotten classic "The Uninvited" (read the books on these two, they are even better than the movies), and even "The Sixth Sense". Shot with nice steady camera shots reminiscent of Hitchcock (no MTV editing here), backed with a hauntingly beautiful classical score written by the director himself. Beautifully eerie lighting adds to the atmosphere and Kidman gives an incredibly moving, convincing performance as the wife of a missing English soldier protecting her children to the point of obsession that will bring you to tears at the end. Clever, well crafted story with all the gothic elements used well: the dark brooding, desolate mansion; the woman not sure if she's slowly going mad or not; the two cherubic children who swear they see "intruders" wandering the rambling house; and the three mysterious servants who show up apparently out of thin air at just the right time. Set on a desolate British isle at the end of WWII, shot through with hints of an unknown tragedy, this is a beautiful eerie film. They don't make them like this any more.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Wonderful, Thrilling Movie
Review: I saw The Others in theatres today, and although that was well over 5 hours ago, I'm still in awe. This is the first movie, I've EVER watched, that actually had me gripping my seat in suspense, not knowing what was going to happen next. There were times the pace was a bit slow, but it was only to give more shape to the plot, and I found all of those scenes interesting. Nicole Kidman gave a stunning performance as a religious, over protective mother of two young children who are resistant to any kind of light other than candle light. The 2 children in this movie are wonderful, and truly did very well. The remaining cast were also great. A movie with a completely great cast? Yep! The Others is a movie you can't give too much plot detail of, for it would ruin the entire thing. Therefore, this is going to be a pretty short review. But I must say, the ending is one to make you gasp or have to rethink the whole movie over. I wish I could talk more and more about The Others, but I would end up giving the whole thing away. It's a wonderful, thrilling movie with true scares that didn't require blood or a knife. I'm very much anticipating the DVD release.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Wonderful
Review: This has got to be the best movie so far this year. It left me thinking about the plot for a long time afterwards. I do not like Nicole Kidman, but she was very good in this film. I can't wait to see it again!

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Not sure which movie the other reviewers were watching
Review: But this movie is boring. It is just like all the other crap Hollywood has been producing these days. They show you a few scary scenes in a preview and set the expectations. The movie was hardly scary or suspenseful, and most of it just dragged on. I would wait for the video, or better yet wait till it shows on regular television....

Boring, boring, boring

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Adequate but Forced
Review: This movie is an example of the type critic Pauline Kael describes as a "Boo Movie." The handle refers to the fact that, intermittently, monsters jump out, yell "Boo," and then return back to the woodwork from whence they came.

The first problem is that the movie is set in 1945 a house on the island of Jersey, one of the Channel Islands that belongs nominally to England, is set just off the shores of France, and is functionally independent. This choice of setting appears to be an attempt to emulate classic movies like 'Rebecca.' The problem is that 'Rebecca' was set in what was then a contemporary atmosphere. Placing the action on an island few people will ever see, at a time more than half a century removed, enables the casual viewer to keep events at arm's length, unaffected.

Nicole Kidman, the graceful and stunningly attractive redhead who was the basic reason anybody went to see 'Moulin Rouge,' stars as Grace, a wife and mother who's lived in isolation in her sprawling mansion ever since her husband went to France to fight in the war. Though the war in Europe is over, her husband still hasn't come home, but she steadfastly refuses to give up hope. Her two children, however, are convinced they're going to live the rest of their lives in this sepulchral, unlit building.

Are we supposed to believe that Kidman, who has a waist like my ankle, is the mother of two children as old as the kids in the movie? Kidman and her ex-husband Tom Cruise are the adoptive parents of two young children, but most women who have given birth twice, and have children as old as these, have figures that reflect that fact. I for one wouldn't mind seeing a woman with such a figure cast in the lead of a movie, as I find that figure attractive. But Kidman, who is extremely thin and graceful, simply doesn't look like a mother of two.

Grace's children suffer from a rare (and very real) disorder that causes them to suffer severe burns, asphyxiation, and other gruesome symptoms on exposure to bright light. Left to itself, the disorder will eventually result in the children's death. This plot twist is interesting and offers a few material contributions to the storyline, but essentially, its purpose is as a macguffin to keep most of the house as dark as possible for as much of the movie as possible.

The movie tries to move through a series of suspenseful interludes, complete with a few red herrings designed to throw viewers who aren't paying exacting attention off the true path. The effect isn't what the director had in mind, and where there is anything scary, it tends to be more startling than deep-seatedly frightening. Slamming doors, unexpected music, moving furniture, and more seem to be contrived to make viewers jump out of their seats, but fail to establish a necessary environment of underlying dread.

The hired help, three people of mysterious background who simply show up one day and get hired that quickly, serve to create interplay and tension. By showing us scraps of their conversations and giving us hints at unseen actions, we are led to think that they are trying to manipulate Grace and her children, in the style of Mrs. Danvers, the housekeeper from 'Rebecca.' However, we see such short snippets of the characters that we get no real feel for them, nor do we understand why they're doing anything they do. This undercuts the desired tension, leaving us with a trio of characters who say one thing, do another, and serve still another purpose in the plot. Indeed, some of the shots featuring these characters seem designed to willfully deceive us as to who they are. Red herrings are fine and most critics appreciate them, but we are simply lied to as to what these characters are about, setting us up for a payoff that never comes.

The movie prides itself of its surprise ending. This is fine, except that it's not a surprise. Because it's deeply reminiscent of another recent movie (I won't say which in case some reader of this review is actually going to be startled), careful viewers see it coming well in advance, and it actually serves as something of a letdown. What tension is built up through the course of the movie is never effectively released, and viewers who are accustomed to horror in the style of Daphne du Maurier, whom the movie's creators seem to be consciously imitating, will be disappointed.

In total, the movie is adequate, creating a few startled squeals and a few jumps from the seat. However, it fails to create the desired dread seasoned suspense fans have grown to appreciate, and the setup fails to equal the payoff. The creators of this movie seem to be testing the water for a more mature, sophisticated attempt at horror later; here's hoping that, next time, they pay less attention to dress-up atmospherics and more to the actual events that cause us to feel fear.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Lack of Entertainment
Review: My friends and I rushed to this movie the first day it came out. Talk about disappoinment. The movie dragged on for about an hour and there was only 2 scenes that was interesting (but I fell asleep on one of the 2 scenes and missed it, but I was told it wasn't much). Save your money and wait for the DVD. The scenes cut out of the movie might be more interesting than the scenes left in the movie.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: a rare and unique ghost story masterpiece
Review: when I went to see The Others in theaters, I had serious doubts that it would live up to the suspense of The Sixth Sense. I soon found myself to be very wrong. the others is full of suprises, emotion, romance, and, of course, horror. But whether or not you think the movie is good really depends on your willing to consider the idea that ghosts exist and that there is a supernatural world. If you do decide to see this movie, don't let anyone tell you about it and spoil it. Once you watch it the first time, it will never be the same again.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Scary yet pleasant
Review: Scary yet pleasant in a freaky way, Nicole Kidman gives a great performance in this thriller of a ride. I reccommend this to those who want to be scared by the abnormal sides to life. 4 stars goes to the writers, the film crew, the people involved, the actors and above all Nicole Kidman.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: I recommend the movie...
Review: I am a very observant person but I was surprised by the outcome of this movie. If you liked The Sixth Sense, you'll like this one. I personally liked this one moreso because of the fact that I was surprised by it. In my opinion, this isn't a scary movie, so if you are planning on getting spooked...try something else. I would label it more of a drama/thriller.

The movie is a little drawn out but tolerable and a nice movie to catch!!


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