Rating: 
Summary: Best Thriller of 2000!
Review: I saw this movie on December 22, 2000 in L.A. and I loved it. This movie is a mixture of What lies beneath and The sixth sense and it's as good as both of them. It entertains you from start to end and the special effects are wonderfull. It is beautifully crafted and very well acted, Cate shined her role through as all of her movies, Ribisi I think deserves at least a nod at the academy awards, Greg and Hilary were good as always, Katie Holmes was incredeble... her best role to date... she was very convincing with the character she had to play (the town biatch), and even keanu reeves (who I hate) did a good job. A great movie, I recommend it to all the Raimi lovers. See this movie!!!
Rating:
Summary: The Perfect Mix
Review: The Gift was, for me, the perfect mixing of ingredients for a film. Director Sam Raimi has never failed to please even in his intentionally campy, intentionally bad projects like Evil Dead and the Hercules/Xena TV programs. Give the man a budget and an incredible cast to work with, and I expect greatness in return. I was not disappointed. Cate Blanchett's appearance in any film is reason enough to give it a try. Her performance in The Gift is wonderful. An Australian actress most known for her role as Queen Elizabeth I, Blanchett shows that she is capable of playing any role offered her by portraying a widowed psychic from the south (the deep south). Her accent never waivers and her performance elicits nothing but the fullest sympathy from the audience. I had mixed feelings about Giovani Ribisi's appearance in the film, considering some of his earlier film choices, but Ribisi delivers in a big way here as a rather pathetic time bomb of a character trying to remember what happened in his past to result in violent episodes of freak-out. Ready to snap at any moment, he still somehow comes across as kind and gentle because of his protectiveness for Blanchett's character, the only person who has tried to help him. I now forgive him for appearing in The Mod Squad. If you recognize Keanu Reeves for the lackluster performer that he is, you may enjoy his portrayal of an abusive, cheating husband in this film. He gives the audience more than enough reason to hate him here. Although his acting is the weakest in the cast, his run-in with the psychotic Ribisi is one of the highlights of this picture. His performance never reaches the low levels of some of his other films like Speed, Johnny Mnemonic, or Dangerous Liasons, but I don't understand why he would be cast alongside an otherwise untouchable ensemble. Perhaps Raimi also enjoyed the scene involving Ribisi's explosive encounter with Reeves. It is possible to guess the ending beforehand, but the movie spotlights enough suspects that it does cast doubt in the viewer's mind until the final scenes play out. If you are interested in intelligent, dark, and slightly odd films (the films of Tim Burton, David Lynch, and Stanley Kubrick come to mind), you will want to investigate this film on DVD. If you are a big fan of horror/thrillers but can't wait for the barrage of teenie-bopper slasher films to end, this movie should be arriving at your doorstep (as it will mine) in mid-July... a perfect summer "gift."
Rating:
Summary: Movie review (not DVD) but GREAT MOVIE!
Review: Being a thriller and a horror movie buffster, I have to say that this is one of the best movies I have seen in a long time. Probably one of the best movies of the new Millennium so far. The fact that it didn't get more attention despite outstanding performances from it's fabulous cast will remain a mystery to me. All were worthy of recognition, most especially Cate Blanchett and Giovanni Ribisi. This movie is a definite reccomendation from me for any of those seeking a smart and spine tingling thriller. Don't miss it!
Rating: 
Summary: OK - but not great!!
Review: Reading the other reviews on this page made me wonder if I had seen the same movie as them! Yes, The Gift was creepy, but it started slowly and took a hell of a time to get going. Maybe this was to build up the suspense, but it just made the movie drag and go on forever! In spite of this, all performances were good. Cate Blanchett is an excellent actress, as is Katie Holmes who is finally breaking away from her Dawson's creek image. The real star of this movie though had to be Keanu Reeves. Granted he didn't have much screen time, but the time he did have he made good use of, giving one of his best and most realistic performances to date. However, even the performances by all the actors in this movie could not save it! Aside from a few creepy (not scary!) moments, it dragged and to be perfectly honest I was glad to get out of the cinema!!
Rating:
Summary: Wonderfully Spooky
Review: I loved this movie so much, I saw it 4 times at the cinema. The all round cast of Keanu Reeves, Cate Blanchett, Hilary Swank, Greg Kinnear, Katie Holmes and Giovanni Ribisi gave it just the right mix to make it work. I was very impressed by Keanu Reeves' performance as Donnie Barksdale, an overbearing, wife-beating redneck. I could tell Keanu rose to the challenge of such a demanding role. The abuse to his poor wife Valerie [Hilary Swank] was very realistic and Keanu had me scared. I enjoyed Ms Blanchett as Annie Wilson. You can realy sympathise with her situation ~ losing a husband so young and having 3 boys to look after, trying to make ends meet by card reading. It didn't come across as hammy at all. She is a TOP actress. The overall effects of the film are outstanding [Good 'ol Sam Raimi] and you don't notice this film was made on a shootstring budget. The accompanying soundtrack is a MUST BUY. Although, not all the songs listed are in the actual film, it doesn't matter. It just enhances the enjoyment of this film. One of the best soundtracks around. GO BUY THIS MOVIE!!
Rating:
Summary: good movie
Review: I liked this movie, but I'm giving it 5 stars becuz Katie Holmes is a fine piece of tail with a great body that she wonderfully displayed in this movie, and that is why I originally saw this flick in the first place. Keep takin them clothes off katie, you prized piece. Seriously this movie is real cool though in a What lies beneath type of way, but Evil Dead 2 is the Sam Raimi movie I own and love to watch, it's one of my favorite movies and it is so friggin funny.
Rating:
Summary: gift ...of vision of future...
Review: A wonderful treat for mystery lovers... Fantastic star cast is the icing on top of an excellent plot. The cast led by Cate Blanchett is accompanied by Hilary Swank, Katie Holmes, Keanu Reeves, Greg Kinnear and Giovani Ribisi. Rabisi, for his role as a emotionally disturbed man who finds solace in the character of Cate Blanchett, deserves at the very least an Oscar nomination. Keanu Reeves also gives a performance worth noticing of an abusive husband to Hilary Swank. Katie Holmes up to the mark as the promiscuous, rich young woman of the small little town in Georgia, where the movie is set. As Holmes' fiancé Greg Kinnear plays a perfect southern gentleman with brilliant ease. The supernatural psychic powers of Cate Blanchett's character are the connotation of the title of the movie. The movie revolves around the disappearance and then murder of Holmes' character. The mystery unfolds as Blanchett gets premonitions leading to the real culprit. The film is grasping frame by frame. It is very delicately handled as required by the scripts involving paranormal activities, this is a worth see and own movie.
Rating:
Summary: great movie!
Review: i saw this movie not long ago, and i thought it was great. at first it was a bit confusing for me, but then the fog cleared and it was great. jessica king (katie holmes) gets murdered and she gets found in the pond of some guy (keanu reeves) who beats up his wife (hillary swank) and they all think that he is the murderer. but is he? the person that first found out where jessica was was the town's local phychic (cate blanchett) and she claims that its not keanu reeves character. it was a great movie and i recommend it to any one who likes murder-mystery.
Rating: 
Summary: Splendid Horror/Thriller
Review: Sam Raimi has definitely coming of age directing this movie. This happened to be the person who produced the TV series, Hercules, & who used to direct the B-movie, Return of the Dead. This movie was written by Billy Bob Thorton, who together with his newly wed wife, Angeline Jollie formed the scariest couple in Hollywood. But there's no denying his talent in writing such a good story. This movie was filled with A-list stars and they all mastered their Southern accent drawl in this instance. My initial concern was whether Sam had the capacity to keep the tension thru the whole movie, the ability of him to draw depths from characters that the actors and actresses were performing and I'm pleased to say that he did with flying colours. This movie reminded me of "What Lies Beneath" and "Stir of Echoes". It was taken place in the Deep South where Kate Blanchett's character was a widow living on the breadline with three children, and also a card reader and a psychic. She had Giovanni Ribisi's (Saving Private Ryan, gone in 60 Seconds) character and Hilary Swank's (Boys Don't Cry) character under her care. Giovanni was a mentally ill car mechanic whilst Hilary was the abused wife of Keanu Reeves' character. Keanu played a red neck (unconvincingly) and who had a chip on his shoulder against Kate for constantly encouraging Hilary to leave him for a better life. So, he started to threaten Kate's family hoping that Kate wouldn't consult Hilary anymore. One day, it just happened that Kate's son was involved in a school brawl & that's when she met Greg Kinnear's (Sabrina, As Good As It Gets) character who was the School Principal & his soon to be wed fiancee (Katie Holmes of Dawsons Creek). Being a psychic, Kate felt strongly that Katie was to die soon. Soon after, in a party, Greg & Kate started to feel affection for one another whilst Kate accidentally bumped into Katie who was flirting with a male stranger in a toilet. It wasn't long before Katie was found missing. Greg came to Kate for help through spiritual means & thru many flashbacks, she determined Katie's burial place, beneath a pond in Keanu's compound. Then, the movie changed mode into a court room drama reminded us of "A Time To Kill". The witness testified that the night before Katie was missing, she was spotted having a fight with Keanu. As Keanu changed his testimony & he had a wound inflicted by Katie, he was jailed for good. But the story wasn't finished yet as Kate had got more premonitions that Keanu might not be the killer afterall. Could it be Hilary who killed Katie to frame Keanu so that she could then lead a good life, could it be Katie's lover who killed her in the heat of passion, could it be Greg who found out of his fiancee's promiscuity and killed her in a rage, could it be the Prosecutor of the case who happened to be the stranger in the toilet with Katie the in the party to conceal his secret? The overall direction of the movie was quite splendid by providing viewers with sufficient clues to keep us guessing until the big climax in the end. The ending was quite satisfactory with a twist. Well acted, well directed, great quality as you would expect from a DVD. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Supsenseful Character-Driven Thriller!
Review: Annabelle 'Annie' Wilson (Cate Blanchett) is struggling to make ends meet and to make a life for herself and her two sons after her husband died suddenly. A small-town Georgia psychic, Annie tried to warn her husband about the upcoming accident, but he laughed it off. Haunted by what might have been, Annie turns her efforts to helping her clients. Buddy Cole (Giovanni Ribisi) is a sweet, good-natured mechanic who is always willing to help Annie out, but he sometimes lashes out for apparently no reason at all. Annie cannot get Buddy to start looking internally to fix the problems and she cannot always give Buddy the time and attention that he needs... Valerie Barksdale (Hilary Swank) is an abused, undereducated woman who is terrified to leave her husband. Fearful for Valerie's life, Annie encourages her to leave her redneck husband, Donnie (Keanu Reeves), but Valerie is too frightened. When Donnie discovers what Annie has been telling Valerie, he targets Annie and her three boys and does his best to terrify them into leaving his family alone. When a friend drags Annie off to a country club event, Annie is surprised to discover that the sweet school principal, Wayne Collins (Greg Kinnear) who has been so helpful with her boys is engaged to Jessica King (Katie Holmes), the local princess. It is too bad, because Annie feels the first sparks of passion for Wayne, something she hasn't felt for anyone since her husband died. When Jessica shows up murdered a short time later, Annie starts hoping that maybe something will develop with Wayne. But when no leads and a lack of clues lead the local police to Annie's door, however reluctantly, Annie finds that Jessica's ghost is ready and eager to be found - and now the killer is after her... The Gift was a moody and atmospheric psychological thriller that was made all the more suspenseful by the wonderful acting and slow-paced story that drove it. Cate Blanchett is stunning in the lead role and is completely believable as a small-town Southern woman, desperately clinging to the life that she knows. She is surrounded by a talented supporting cast, led by the surprisingly convincing Keanu Reeves as an abusive husband and ignorant redneck. Hilary Swank and Giovanni Ribisi have long since perfected the sympathetic victim role and Greg Kinnear is likeable in his supporting romantic role. The scenery was perfect and saturated with the emotions of the characters. Though there are plenty of holes in the story and some random sidelines that could have been cut out, the wonderful acting in this film should not be missed. Well worth your time to rent on a stormy evening - be sure to turn the lights down low...
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