Panic Room (3-Disc Special Edition)

Rating:
Summary: Worth Watching
Review: If it wasn't for master filmmaker David Fincher (Seven, The Game) and the talented actors Jodie Foster and Forest Whitaker, "Panic Room" would have been a lot worse...a LOT worse. Thanks to all these fine individuals, we are treated to an experiment in articulate camerawork and methodical acting abilities.

The biggest hole in "Panic Room" is its plotline. Filled with a couple loose ends and misconceptions (911 would never put you on hold), it's the most noticeable problem with the movie. Like I've said before, the camerawork and acting more than makes up for that. The dialogue within the screenplay is important, witty, and intense, with excellent performances all around (including the other two robbers Jared Leto and Dwight Yoakam; Jodie Foster's daughter Kristen Stewart; and a special cameo appearance by Nicole Kidman).

Unfortunatley, I must not recommend purchasing the DVD. Your best bet is to wait. David Fincher has had a history of releasing his movies with next to nothing in the way of special features. Wait a couple years, and he'll probably release a two-disc special edition like he did with "Fight Club" and "Seven".

Overall review:
Movie--* * * * out of 5
DVD--* * * out of 5

Rating:
Summary: It's All About Poe
Review: I saw this in the theaters, and I loved it. I bought the DVD the day it came out, and I don't regret it at all. It's best to watch in the dark, too.

With the possible acception of Jared Leto, everyone was perfect in their perspective roles. Leto chewed a little scenery, but he looks good in his corn rolls. Foster does what she does best, and so does Forrest. Taught and scary with a little black humor thrown in, directed as only David Fincher can, it's sure to please. The cinematography is simply amazing, and even the credits were fun to watch.

Rating:
Summary: Panic Room
Review: Okay, as some of the negative reviews have pointed out, this isn't quite a thrilling horror flick like the title may suggest. To fully appreciate this excellent film, one must drop all expectations and presumptions at the door.

Now, "Panic Room" is no-doubt a thriller, but it has an unusual dosage of humor and unlikely castings. Forest Whitaker's soft heart, Jared Leto's comical stupidity, and Dwight Yoakam's impulsive rage are indeed an odd combination for such a film. Add in the the fact that this is not your typical cat-and-mouse game between a cop and a criminal, and "Panic Room" is truely one of the freshest productions to come along in a good while! Jodie Foster and Kristen Stewart handle their roles to a tee, but it is the villians who are the gleaming highlight. The characters played by Leto and Whitaker both have weaknesses that make them seem almost harmless, allowing for respite from the dramatic action. By the middle of the film, you'll realize both of them are far from the bonafide, heartless killers you may have intially thought them to be. Nonetheless, Yoakam makes sure the viewer gets his/her share of shakes and jolts as his homocidal character progressively gets more and more out of control throughout the film. "Raoul" starts off as if he's just a quiet assistant to Leto and Whitaker, but he soon takes control of the scrape with his quick instincts and cold-blooded decisions.

Overall, "Panic Room" doesn't contain the all-out viciousness, nor the head-scratching mystery that most thrillers live and die by. In place of this is a creative plot and some very interesting character interaction. The script is sharp, not wasting any time on narritives or character backgrounds. Finchner's fast-moving camera work is the icing on the cake that makes this a fine thriller. "Panic Room" is smart, quick, and is sure to keep you glued!

Thanks!

Rating:
Summary: Fincher's only Middle of the Road Fare
Review: This movie is none too terrible, as it is none too great. So there it is in the middle with nothing really to make it stand out from the crowded genre of suspense thrillers. After director David Fincher has delivered such unique twisted tales shot in a highly stylized manner such as "Seven" and "The Game", we expect a little more out of "Panic Room." But what really stands out from this movie is not so much the acting, plot, or mood, but instead a cool special effect in which the camera moves the viewer from room to room and gives you this quick glance at the space in between walls. It's a grabbing omnipotent filming technique that gives you a sense of the house as a character. But the fact that the movie highlight was a special effect is a telling hint at the overall impression of the movie itself.

For the most part the acting is good. We get quality Foster as she seems to have a strength for this type "strong woman in a tense situation" roles. It is a good thirty minutes into the movie before it strikes you that Kristen Stewart is playing a girl instead of a boy, strong performance nonetheless. Forest Whitaker needs a bigger role. Dwight Yoakam is menacing, but we get some pretty egregious offenses of overacting by Jared Leto playing the character Junior. In fact it got on my nerves from the next room hearing his over-pronunciation, over-reacting, over-everything over the sound of a very loud microwave popping very loud popcorn, but alas it wasn't enough to drown out Leto's "sledgehammer over the senses with no nuance" performance.

This movie isn't a bad rental, but it's nothing to scream about.

Rating:
Summary: What a let-down!
Review: There are three (3) things I have come to expect to see when viewing a David Fincher film:

1. Rain. Lots and lots of rain

2. The colors green and blue

3. A completely left-of-center, sucks-to-be-you sort of ending

And yes, in that sense, Panic Room delivers. But really, there's nothing else in this movie! For one thing, I personally didn't find it very suspenseful, I mean, two women (Well, Jodie Foster and a female Edward Furlong look-alike) being victimized by three men, you know that the women will win for the cause of being politically correct. Also, the villians (aside from "Raoul" played by Dwight Yoakam) weren't very threatening at all, just wanting to get into the room to get some money and scare the girls out. Jared Leto is almost unrecognizable in this movie. Half way through I thought to myself "Hey, wasn't Jared Leto supposed to be in this movie?" then finally I caught on that he is playing the corn-rowed leader, Junior. Forest Whitaker plays the least threatening one of them all, reminding me more of Carl Winslow from Family Matters than a criminal. The story is: Meg Altman, a divorced mom (played by Jodie Foster, who is always excellent) and her daughter (believe it or not, it is not little Eddie Furlong, but a newcomer by the name of Kristen Stewart) move into a giant house that was formerly inhabited by a paranoid shut-in. Within the house is a virtually unpenetratable safe-room with a phone line, known as the "panic room" where the home-owners can hide from invaders and call from help, unharmed. The room seems sort of pointless until the major plot-point comes into play: There are millions of dollars hidden under the floor of the panic room, and three intruders enter the house, not knowing that two people just moved in, with intents on grabbing the money. Of course, Meg notices the three men and her and Sarah quickly hide away into the Panic Room, causing one major problem for the intruders: They can't get the money. They try dilligently to get the girls to come out and resort to all sorts of weird tactics to try to drive the girls out. However, as things go wrong, tensions start rising, and well, I'll let you see the rest. The reason why I didn't like this movie is because of it's limited plot. This movie is what it looks like. There is nothing hidden under the surface and there is no underlying message. All this movies come across as, to me, is a 2 hour-long, spiffed up version of MTV's "Jackass" with the intruders trying odd stunts to draw the girls out of the room. Also, the ending, which I won't ruin for you, was extremely weak and anti-climactic. After viewing movies like Se7en and Fight Club, I expected another high-quality flick from Fincher. However, this movie is basically just recycling the odd camera techniques used in both of those films, and if you pay attention, you will notice that all of the "impossible shots" are computer generated. The DVD is also very weak, I had seen all these commercials for the DVD announcing this new "Revolutionary Superbit Encoding Process" feature, and now I realize, I have no idea what that is. Does anyone? This DVD doesn't look or sound any better than other DVDs. What makes this so special?

Overall, I suggest you check out other David Fincher films. He is a man whose name is synonymous with quality. However, everyone has that one bad film, and this is his.

Rating:
Summary: Not your typical "Killer vs. Cop" -Thriller
Review: David Fincher could quite possibly be the best director in the world today. Panic Room is incredible, without doubt the most tense, thrilling and exhilirating movie for this or indeed this year. From the slick and the professional opening sequence featuring famous and distinctive images of the Big Apple, you know you are in for a top quality picture. The casting has been fantasic, if I didn't know better then I'd say Kristen Stewart really was Jodie Foster's daughter. Or clone. The similarities in appearence is obvious, but their acting is flawless, both seem genuiley frightened throughout and the cemistry between them is undeniable. The at,osphere when they are in the Panic Room itself could be cut with a knife, the tension is electric. David Fincher's immense skill is a shown by the awe-inspiring camera work in the opening half hour as Leto/Whitaker try to enter the house, instead of switching angels often, we are kept with one long continuous shot and the tension is heightened. Howard Shore's awesome score while send a tingle up your spine as you try to guess what will happen next and as you will Foster/Stewart to succeed. Panic Room is a movie which will effect you in many mor ways than you over entirely and holds you to the edge of your seat. This coulb be the best two hours which Hollywood bringsus this year, you owe it to yourself to indulge in one of the most intense cinematic experience possible. David Fincher really is getting better and better with each movie, a truly outstanding work, motion picture making of the highest calibre.

Rating:
Summary: Another Fincher masterpiece
Review: You have a certain expectation when you go to movie directed by David Fincher. You may not know what that something is, but it should be different.
The Panic Room delivers.
Set in a four storey brownstone on the upper East side of Manhattan, the focus of the film is a secret room used by inhabitants in emergency. A panic room. Jodie Foster is her usual reliable self as the wealthy divorcee trying to deal with her recent breakuo. She plays the role with the right mixture of independence and motherly worry for her child, who is the only other person in the house.
On their very first night the house is invaded by three robbers with a very specific goal. Foster and daughter run to the panic room a only to find that the target of the robbers is in the room.
Then begins the cat and mouse game and battle of wills and intelligence that is the focus of the film. There are many Fincher moments, when the intryders walk around the exterior of the house the camera follows eerily from the inside, moving through floors and walls. The tension without which there would be no film is maintained throughout and brought to peaks by great acting and cinematography.
As the three intruders, Forrest Whitaker, Jared Lehto and Dwight Yokem are perfect each clashing with the other as their obviously different styles insist. Fosters daughter is fantastic holding a supreme performance all the way through the film and often taking the slacker attitude to being the only adult on screen, as the older characters lose their collective cool.
Altough you know how it has to end, how it will get there is enough to keep you on the edge of your seat and as Fincher plays on the claustrophobia of a film in a house you find yourself wishing for a scene outside to break the tension.
As I've said from the point of view of acting, directing and sheer entertainment, the Panic Room delivers.

Rating:
Summary: Spectacular
Review: This is one of the best movies that I have seen in quite a while. It has everything including an excellent cast and creative director. This movie is very simple with few characters creating suspense in just one large house. Yet the storyline lets your imagination roam on a greater scale. It has an original angle on an unoriginal plot and some of the best camera work that I have seen. Jodie Foster gives an Oscar worthy performance in the female lead role and the rest of the cast create magic together on the screen. If you want to see something different that you will remember for years, then you will find it in the Panic Room. If there is a film to see this year, then is it. An absolute thumbs and toes up.

Rating:
Summary: Wicked Film!
Review: Some films make you jump, others use dramatic camera angles and visual imagery to build on suspense, some utilise a musical score to expertly enhance your immersion in the experinece... Panic Room has it all. Though predictable in some ways, the plot still twists and thickens, to ripen into a memorable, impacting finale, leaving an impression that will make you want to watch the film again at the earliest opportunity.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent - thoroughly recommended
Review: As a fan of Jodie Foster's previous films, I had been looking forward to seeing this one for ages, and I certainly wasn't disappointed.

It's quite a simple story - mother(Foster) and daughter are home alone in a big(really big, actually!)house - it's the middle of the night and three burglas come calling, after the contents of a safe kept in the 'panic room' of the house.

Mother and daughter retreat to the safety - or so they hope - of the specially built room, while the three men try various ways to get them out, and mother and daughter fight to generally survive and get help.

This film is very tense in places, and I know it's a horrible cliché, but it really will have you on the edge of your seat.

Jodie Foster puts in her usual excellent performance, ably assisted by Kristen Stewart, playing the part of her young daughter.

Go see this film - it's highly entertaining.