Rating: 
Summary: Chilling and Oddly Funny
Review: eThis movie really kept me guessing, and guessing is always fun while you're in a dark movie theater, your eyes becoming more glued to the screen with every frame and your fingers clutching the seat with anxiousness. This movie will certainly do this for you. It's a true blast, and Johnny Depp is amazing as usual. He really has a knack for playing the offbeat character-- perhaps because he himself is offbeat, but in a way that makes you want to see more.Depp stars as Mort, a writer with a severe case of writer's block. He takes long naps, talks to his dog, sits at his computer hoping to write something other than "bad writing," which he won't even bother with. If it's bad, he deletes it. There is no editing. So along comes John Shooter (Turturro) who claims that Mort stole a story of his who leaves behind his manuscript for Mort to look over. Mort is dismissive at first, but soon discovers that Shooter could be more of a problem than what he first thought. Did Mort really steal the story? Nah, and don't worrry-- my mentioning this is not really a spoiler. There's a bit of backstory in this movie with Mort's estranged wife and her new boyfriend and how Mort is coping with the fact that his wife is sleeping with someone other than her husband. I like that this movie is full of mystery, but isn't so twisted that you're not sure what's going on... well, until the end that is. This movie had an ending that I wasn't so thrilled with, and perhaps you may agree with me on it after you actually see the movie because I refuse to give away the twist ending. It's typical. That's all I'll say. (You may disagree-- I'm sure lots of people will like the ending, and I'll bet this is a movie that some people may see more than once, just to catch all those things they might have missed throughout it the first time.) I still give this movie five stars. Not only is Depp fantastic, as he always is, but even though I didn't really like the ending, I was NOT expecting it, and I can truly appreciate that. I love it when it's unexpected, and I'm sure audiences will have their mouths covered in amazement when the final revelation happens. This movie is definitely worth the few dollars to see at the movies. But don't get popcorn. You might not want it as the movie progresses. It freaked me out in some spots to the point where my stomach was in knots, but in a good way-- in the way any thrilling movie should do. I did like that it carried a quirky tone as well, it definitely suits Johnny Depp. His mannerisms and some of his lines and predicaments will make anyone laugh. So see it, you're bound to like it.
Rating: 
Summary: Go see it! It's different from "Pirates," but worth it
Review: ... I think this is another typically odd Johnny Depp movie worth your time & money. It is not fast-moving, but psychological. The logline should be: "Jekyll and Hyde" -- or "A Beautiful Mind" -- meets "The Children of the Corn."
Rating:
Summary: great movie
Review: Really..I thought it was great.. Many people may not though..its a very twisted phycolgical (sorry bad speller..but you know what I mean) movie that is obviously Stephen King. I am a personal fan of Johnny Depp and Stephen King so this was a great movie for me. I strongly suggest going to see it. Don't worry I am not just saying this because it is a Johnny Depp movie and to prove this I am going to say that Once opon a time in Mexico would have to be one of the worst movies I've ever seen. anyways go see it! I bet you will like it.
Rating:
Summary: Fine acting and directing heighten the tension. Good story.
Review: Take Johnny Depp, a movie star with fine acting abilities as well as box office draw. Then take John Turturro, one of the best actors in Hollywood today. Put them together in story adapted from a Stephen King novella. Have the screenplay written and directed by David Koepp of Spider Man and Panic Room fame. Have a big budget and shoot the exteriors in Canada and the interiors on a set in Los Angeles. If you like scary movies, this is a winning combination. Johnny Depp is cast as a writer who is living in what he refers to as a cabin but is, in reality, what many people would consider an ideal rustic vacation home. It has a secret window which looks out over a garden - hence the title. He's an unhappy man because he's going through a messy divorce. He sleeps most of the day and finds it difficult to write. All of the sudden the doorbell rings. Standing there is John Turturro, dressed in a black suit with a large brimmed black hat. In a deep southern accent Turtorro accuses Depp of stealing his story. He even leaves his manuscript, which Depp soon realizes is the exact same story that he published several years before. Turtorro starts to menace Depp. It's all very frightening, especially since the atmosphere of the story is planned to have the utmost of tension. As the story unfolded I was completely drawn in, but a small part of me was impatient with the outcome. Knowing this was originally written by Stephen King gave me a hint of the ending. The plot thickens as the wife, played by Maria Bello and her boyfriend, played by Timothy Hutton, enter the story. There's one scary moment after the other with no explanation. There are several acts of violence, which intensify as the story progresses. But by the ending, however, I wasn't surprised. It's not a pleasant ending and left me with a rather hollow feeling. This certainly isn't a "feel good" movie and, even though the conclusion is satisfactory, it wasn't a conclusion I wanted. But that's Stephen King for you! Fans of his and of the stars will probably love it.
Rating: 
Summary: disappointed
Review: I was really hoping that this movie was going to be good. I really wanted this movie to be good. Maybe I just set my standards too high. I mean sure Johnny Depp is in the movie, (and carried the whole movie, again) but how many horror movies like these are really good? This movie makes one less. This movie had a ton of flaws. I can't really tell what they are without ruining the "surprise" ending. Just take my word that there were many flaws. SPOILER ALERT: The ending was very similar to Idenity and I really do not like those endings. Maybe because I can't understand how it is all possible, if you've seen Identity you know what I'm talking about.
The movie moved very slowly and the thing that I was most disappointed in was the fact that the movie just wasn't scary at all. I was laughing at Depp's antics more than I was feeling frightened at plot developments. There were a few things that I liked. I like the way the movie ended, not the surprise ending, but the way the story ended. Mainly because it is something that you rarely see in movies. Also Depp was very entertaining. I would give this movie 2 1/2 stars, but I like Johnny Depp so I will give it three.
Rating:
Summary: Pleading for a Success
Review: With my very favorite actor being Johnny Depp and one of my most frequented authors being Stephen King, I should be looking forward to this movie. But I am a little worried- most of the Stephen King movies I have seen have either changed, mutated, horribly mauled, or simply thrown out the book they were based on. "Secret Window, Secret Garden" was a suspenseful, stereotypical King tale of some guy who thinks the world is cracking up and then finds out it's just him going crazy. Johnny Depp ought to perform as magnificently as usual for the role of Mort Rainey (yet another strange name for Depp to excel with), and if the filmmakers did their best, this should be a truly creepy and enjoyable film. Hopefully these fellows aren't those who filmed "The Langoliers" and "Maximum Overdrive", the latter directed by King.
Rating:
Summary: THE MOVIE MAY WELL REMAIN A SECRET
Review: Yet another Stephen King yarn (or, yawn) that shares such a striking resemblance to Misery that I had to look hard to confirm it wasn't. The only difference -- this writer is held captive in his *own* home by an obsessed fan who insists he rewrite the ending to one of his novels. Plus, the disappointing end, not because it follows a familiar formula but because it lacks the thrill one has come to expect from King. J. Depp is perhaps the only reason to watch this forgettable excuse for a movie but even he is sleepwalking half the time..
Rating:
Summary: Another King Film
Review: Just seeing the preview got me hooked on this film. I can't wait until it comes out. I've read the short story: Secret Window, Secret Garden and I must say I was impressed. I haven't seen it yet, but the film appears to follow the story of a writer who's just survived a nasty divorce only to find himself accused of plagarism and fighting for his life against a stranger calling himself John Shooter. That's how it is in the book. Hopefully they'll keep the shock ending intact, because it seems to be that no matter how hard they try, King films always fall apart near the end. Maybe this film will finally break the screen and clear King's name from failure to blinding success.
Rating: 
Summary: "The Dark Half" Revisited
Review: Yes, Timothy Hutton did a film very, very similar back in 1993. Remember "The Dark Half" (Stephen King also wrote it)? To add insult to injury, Timothy Hutton also has a role in this film. I guess this is the director's way of rubbing the film's lack of originality in some of our faces! Think about it! What has Hutton done lately to earn a role in a Depp film? The only thing really spooky about this "horror-ibly" predictable film is the fact that it was only rated one percent higher than its predecessor over at Rotten Tomatoes! Spooooky! I guess the apple really doesn't fall too far from the tree!
In all honesty it wouldn't be a bad film if one hasn't already seen "The Dark Half" (or Fight Club for that matter). The acting isn't that bad and it does provide a couple of "uncomfortable" moments. Even so, it is still far from being great and barely stands in the shadow of being a good one! If you desire to watch a film that has the potential to make you fidget in suspense and make your eyebrows raise a little, watch one of these: Numbered but in no real order... 1. The Eye: The Japanese are proving that they are now the new kings of the "spooky" suspense genre!
2. Ju-on: Also Japanese, also in the theaters.
3. Uzumaki: Japanese due out July 6th of '04. All about the freaky!
4. The Changeling: Yes, even the Canadians can pull one off once in a while. Admittedly, this one came out more than a while ago!
5. The Haunting: Not the Zeta-Jones one but the good one from the 60's!
6. St. John Wort: More Japanese creep!
7. Black Sabbath: A little Italian spooky suspense!
8. Vertigo, The Birds, North by Northwest, Psycho and any other Hitchcock thriller!
9. The Bad Seed
10. "The Dark Half" or "In the Mouth of Madness". Neither one is an exceptional movie but they will expose how uninspired this film really is!
Rating:
Summary: Great Movie With Interesting Plot Twists
Review: I was disappointed at first that this movie wasn't as scary as it suppposedly was supposed to be. At least that was how the media had potrayed it. It was actually quite humorous in a lot of parts. Once I got past that it wasn't scary, (okay maybe a FEW parts made me jump), I found the movie quite interesting. I especially loved the TWO revelations. Once I understood those revelations, I was absolutely floored. The plot is great, the actors were great, and the whole movie is great. Some people might have been upset that the beginning was a little slow. I was happy, though, since I ended up having to get my friend some popcorn so she would stop bugging and so nothing big had happened yet. And although there wasn't many scary parts, there were many suspenseful parts where I was on the edge of my seat wondering what was going to happen next. What had started out as a trip to go look at the sexy Depp, turned into an intensely suspenseful movie.
| 
