Rating: Summary: Hmm... thumbs up, but a very minor one Review: Keira Knightley fans may get a kick out of this movie since she is topless for a split second. But for the movie as a whole, you may feel slightly disappointed or moderately pleased. Short plot snypnosis: four hormone-driven teens ditch a scheduled school field trip to party out in an abandoned bomb shelter, an event that goes terribly awry when they are trapped in this "hole," which gets gut-wrenchingly disturbing as days go by.
Of course, sex, drugs, drinking, and just pure partying is what goes on in that "hole." But once they realized that they're locked in, everyone starts going insane, which leads to deaths. Only one person managed to escape the hell-hole. A girl named Liz (Thora Burch). You think I already gave too much away? You'll know right away once you see the first five minutes of the movie when we see her walking around, obviously tramautized. She then tells the story, which results in numerous flashbacks. But then things get a lil' twisted when another person argues that her story is completely inaccurate and false. For a good half of the movie, we are falsely informed of the event. Now our story gets rolling through pieces of flashbacks...
The movie's theme revolves around obsession and one's desperate way to get what he/she really wants by any means necessary. Liz wants to get the attention of the boy she adores but can't seem to acheive such desire. She's like the "social outcast" type. The "weird" one... kinda like the other character she played in "American Beauty," only with a more demented mind and soul. You may love her or hate her, or express both feelings simultaneously, particularly in a scene where Liz is calmly talking to Frankie (Keira Knightley), who is just puking her guts out in a bathroom. Liz doesn't express any emotion and doesn't seem to care for Frankie. Man, talk about how horrible humans can be. The movie also stars Desmond Harrington(from "Wrong Turn" and "Ghost Ship") as Mike, the boy Liz has a deep crush on, and Laurence Fox as Geoff, Frankie's love interest. Altogether, they provide good acting as a group of friends trying desperately to survive.
You'll be shocked, you'll be disgusted, but most likely, you'll at least enjoy this movie. I wouldn't consider it a psychological thriller since "To Die For" (with Nicole Kidman) also had a similar theme, but I guess what makes it a psychological thriller is that it makes us think and try to figure out what really went wrong in that hole, why the teens were trapped down there, and who would be so cruel as to leave them remained trapped there. Love it or hate it, you'll feel disturbed for quite a while. That's what I felt. I liked it, but at the same time I disliked it, particularly of the movie's weak plot, but it's still amazing that a good thriller came out of such a topic, even if it went over the top.
The DVD doesn't have much extra stuff. Just some ho-hum deleted scenes and a commentary. And for some reason, on the back of the case, it reads "Widescreen (2.35:1)" when the movie is actually presented in a 1.85:1 ratio. I dunno... it could only be my copy.
The tagline on the US reads "Once you get in, you can't get out," whereas the British version reads "Desperate to get in, dying to get out." I think the latter works much better since the first is kinda misleading.
Rating: Summary: Remarkably Bad Review: Maybe there is an age factor here - those who seem to enjoy this movie seem to be relatively young (21 and younger).
I found the entire thing to be as big a disappointment as I've endured in years.
Thora Birch's demented character really offers little sympathy and elicits no concern for her plight. Her character simply goes from pathetic to repulsively unlikeable. Not a broad range there.
As a thriller "The Hole" simply does not work. First we spend almost the entire movie with these same four kids in "The Hole" even if they ate each other alive, how scary could that be . . . and eventually, they'd probably have to. Right?
The supporting cast performs well and one feels sorry for their victimation. While visually the film is fun to look at, but where plot, story and character development are concerned this gives us almost zip. A grostesque matter of style over substance, where the entire premise hinges on an obsessed teenage girl willing to do anything to spend a few days with the object of her obsession.
Director Nick Hamm tries to impose a "Rashamon" type quality to the film where perspectives of what happened are explained from
different angles . . . it just feels contrieved and doesn't work.
Sorry, this one just didn't work and is one movie that belongs to stay in "The Hole." It will probably appeal to girls under 21 for the male nudity factor and guys the same age range for the gore (which is kinda fun).
Rating: Summary: An interesting mystery thriller Review: The movie begins with Thora Birch's Liz wandering around looking a bit of a mess after apparently surviving something unpleasant until she is able to find a 'phone and call for help. Something unpleasant turns out to be an illicit party that went badly wrong when she and three classmates from her expensive private school found a hideaway in an old abandoned underground bomb shelter in which to hang out and misbehave and from which they were then unable to escape. Help when it arrives comes in the form of lots and lots of cops, the disappearance of these four kids having meanwhile occasioned a large measure of official anxiety. In particular it consists in Embeth Davidtz's Philippa, a police shrink whose job is to debrief Liz and figure out what happened. Eventually she succeeds in eliciting from Liz a version of events but she's clearly immediately aware that it's some sort of fantasy and what really happened had to be far far nastier. As indeed we discover...This is quite a nice little thriller. It's extremely well acted by everyone concerned especially by Birch, Laurence Fox, Kiera Knightley and Desmond Harrington as the four kids who find themselves incarcerated. And it's genuinely disturbing both in the horrific events that unfold in flashback and in its picture of the sheer awfulness of the social world of the upper forms of an extremely posh school and the frightening capacity of obsessive romantic love to becomes twisted into something dangerously close to madness. The best bits are those that deal with what happens before and during the children's ordeal in the "hole". The parts that deal with the aftermath as Liz is debriefed and then confronted with the classmate she has incriminated are less convincing and less powerful and the ending doesn't really work. Well worth a look, though some scenes call for a strong stomach.
Rating: Summary: This film is full of holes. It is in fact just one big hole. Review: This film is f*****g rubbish. I don't think I have ever seen such a crap waste of time in my entire life. To all those smart ass Americans out there reading this (No offence, my Mum's American) that thought this film was great because it was English, well let me tell you, I'm English, I was born here, and I've lived here and let me tell you, if you wan't to see a film because it's English, steer clear of this one. It's soooooooooo BORING. The film doesn't go anywhere, the script is completely useless, there is no plot to whatsoever, and the whole thing looks like it was made in an afternoon and completely concieved on the spot. ARRRRRRRGGGGGHHHHHHHH!!!!!!! It makes me so angry. Give me half the money and I'll make a better film. What the hell was this guy thinking. That bit where Mikey bashes his friends brains out over a can of Vimto. WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT ABOUT. Five seconds later we saw Mikey with a new can. It's not like his friend was stealing the last can or anything. And what the hell was that twist supposed to be anyway. Clever? I sincerely hope not. First of all, how could that girl be strong enough to throw that guy off the bridge (No offence Ladies). Surely he would be strong enough to fight back. And even if she could have done it he wouldn't have drowned. The water was inches deep. (I must admit I had a good laugh over that.) This film is pure tripe. Don't watch it, don't buy it, don't listen to your friends who tell you to watch it, just avoid it at all costs. A complete and utter waste of time and money. You might as well spend 2 hours watching adverts.
Rating: Summary: This film is full of holes. It is in fact just one big hole. Review: This film is total rubbish. I don't think I have ever seen such a crap waste of time in my entire life. To all those smart ass Americans out there reading this (No offence, my Mum's American) that thought this film was great because it was English, well let me tell you, I'm English, I was born here, and I've lived here and let me tell you, if you wan't to see a film because it's English, steer clear of this one. It's soooooooooo BORING. The film doesn't go anywhere, the script is completely useless, there is no plot to whatsoever, and the whole thing looks like it was made in an afternoon and completely concieved on the spot. ARRRRRRRGGGGGHHHHHHHH!!!!!!! It makes me so angry. Give me half the money and I'll make a better film. What the hell was this guy thinking. That bit where Mikey bashes his friends brains out over a can of Vimto. WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT ABOUT. Five seconds later we saw Mikey with a new can. It's not like his friend was stealing the last can or anything. And what the hell was that twist supposed to be anyway. Clever? I sincerely hope not. First of all, how could that girl be strong enough to throw that guy off the bridge (No offence Ladies). Surely he would be strong enough to fight back. And even if she could have done it he wouldn't have drowned. The water was inches deep. (I must admit I had a good laugh over that.) This film is pure tripe. Don't watch it, don't buy it, don't listen to your friends who tell you to watch it, just avoid it at all costs. A complete and utter waste of time and money. You might as well spend 2 hours watching adverts.
Rating: Summary: It's a GREAT movie Review: This is a really neat, dark movie. The acting is great as well as the makeup. The cinematography is sooooooo amazing. It creates an atmosphere that has yet to be matched in cinema today...alright maybe not but it's is still pretty spiffy. The twists and turns are fun and the scenes between the teenagers are interesting to watch as you laugh and cry and become terrified. As I said before, the acting is great. Thora Birch is one of the brightest stars right now and this movie doesn't take anything away from her resume. Keira Knightly is gorgeous and this is a fairly shallow role for her but it got her noticed. It's a complex plot, with three or four sides of the story leaving the audience to decide for themselves before their own theories are blown out of the water. I'd highly recommend this if you are a fan of, especially Thora Birch, any of the cast members or if you like psychological thrillers that are geared towards a younger audience. It's slick and fun.
Rating: Summary: "WASTE OF MONEY AND TIME!" Review: This movie seems to fall under "love it or hate it", and I'm afraid I fall under the latter category. I'm not going to give it one star because I save that rating for films that gave me so much pain I turned them off before they were finished, but it was a waste of my time and rental dollars.
The major problem was the pacing. They'd start winding up the dramatic tension... and winding it up... and winding it up... and by the time they got to any sort of payoff moment the viewer has already relaxed on his or her own and a scene meant to be scary or emotional is watched with bored irritation. "Get on with it, then!"
The second problem is the characters. If you're going to make a psychological thriller, the psyches of the major players need to be interesting, and they aren't. Unless you're already such a fan of Thora Birch that you're inclined to find her interesting/sympathetic no matter what, she goes from annoying to revolting without becoming in any way interesting at any time. The only character that caught my attention in a more-than-superficial way turned out to be a plot device, and failed to develop after the first part of the movie. I wound up only continuing to watch the movie out of a desire to see most of the characters die in inventively nasty ways for the sheer satisfaction of being rid of them. It wasn't worth it.
Rating: Summary: A OK movie Review: This movie was very good and it had a good storyline but they should have taken out all the swearing and some nudity. But in all, it was a good movie.
Rating: Summary: Eh... Review: Thora Birch is amazing in "The Hole". This movie lacks something though. The story moves at a very slow pace and moments that are meant to shock are brushed off and expected. Many of the actors give amazing performances, and for that the movie should be watched. I wouldn't recommend buying it unless you find it at a good price.
Rating: Summary: Eh... Review: Thora Birch is amazing in "The Hole". This movie lacks something though. The story moves at a very slow pace and moments that are meant to shock are brushed off and expected. Many of the actors give amazing performances, and for that the movie should be watched. I wouldn't recommend buying it unless you find it at a good price.
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