Film: Prisoners

A Thanksgiving party turns sour when two young girls vanish in broad daylight.

One of the Fathers (Hugh Jackman) decides that when the Police release the main suspect in the case he will take matters into his own hands.

What follows is a disturbing tale of the lengths a Father will go to to protect his little girl.

Meanwhile cop Jake Gyllenhall (Donnie Darko) is also attempting to find the girls.

The two men clash over the case but they have the same objective. Who will get to the bottom of it and where are the girls?

At a lengthy 2hrs 30mins Prisoners is a slow burner in the mould of the Jack Nicholson child abduction thriller The Pledge and it’s just as intriguing. The clues are there for a keen viewer to spot (I did) but even then there are one or two unexpected twists.

Often uncomfortable but always compelling Prisoners is up there with Gone Baby Gone in this particular genre. Catch it in cinemas now.

Ric’s rating: Highly Recommended.

Film: Under Cover

A cop masquerades as a high school student in order to find those responsible for the death of his friend in this 1987 thriller.

David Neidorf (Platoon, Best Shot aka Hoosiers) is Detective Sheffield Hauser who along with female cop Laroux (Jennifer Jason Leigh) infiltrate the high school drug scene.

Things take a surprising turn when evidence points to a baseball team member that Hauser has befriended. Is he responsible for the other cop’s death?

Following an excellent showing in Best Shot (UK title for Hoosiers) and a brief but noteworthy appearance in Platoon, Neidorf takes the lead in this Golan-Globus production. What he lacks in charisma he makes up for in charm as he easily falls into the role of awkward teenager despite his appearance.

“How many high school students do you know that are bearded and balding?” yells his LT at the initial suggestion of the assignment.

Jennifer Jason Leigh (Single White Female) also puts in a competent turn as Hauser’s undercover partner.

After a string of TV shows and movies Neidorf quit acting altogether in 1995 making this a one-off. I had fond memories of it from back in the day and it still works reasonably well today. Neidorf is very watchable and the dependable Barry Corbin (No Country For Old Men) also turns up as the local Sheriff.

Under Cover is showing on TCM in the UK now.

Ric’s Rating: Good.  

Film: Hush

While out on a long drive Zakes (chalk up one for the silly names count) and Beth (Christine Bottomley) begin to see the shortcomings in their relationship. As the couple bicker Zakes (Will Ash) notices a truck spinning out of control.

The driver quickly regains control of the vehicle but not before the back door swings open briefly revealing a captive woman.

The couple report the sighting to the police and think their involvement is at an end but when Beth vanishes Zakes correctly assumes that the villainous truck driver is the culprit and hurriedly attempts to track him down.

This low budget UK thriller from 2009 combines elements of films like Joy Ride, Dead End and Wolf Creek. Will Ash puts in a cool performance as the panic stricken Zakes and there is good chemistry between him and Bottomley.

The overall result is a tense and entertaining film that is unfortunately let down by the lack of motive for the bad guy and a rather anti-climactic ending.

Ric’s Rating: Good

Film: Territories

When a group of travellers are pulled over by cops for a seemingly routine check they soon discover that these guys aren’t cops and this is anything but ordinary.

They are taken deep into the woods and subjected to a series of tortures typical of those employed against various terrorist suspects in recent years

It soon emerges that one of the captors is a veteran soldier who spent time working with detainees at the notorious Guantanamo Bay.

A tense opening half hour soon becomes a plodding unpleasant affair with few redeeming features. A cool P.I turning up to get to the bottom of the group’s disappearance provides little relief from the gloom.

Rather pointless really.

Ric’s Rating: 40%

Film: Mother's Day

The Koffin brothers have just robbed a bank and during the escape the youngest of the trio was shot. The fugitives head to the family home home so that their Mother can tend his wounds.
Unbeknown to them their Mother has lost the house and they turn up all guns blazing during the new owner’s housewarming party.

So begins the best home invasion film since Panic Room. Rebecca DeMornay (The Hand That Rocks The Cradle) puts in a scintillating performance as the feared Matriarch who goes about the business of violence and intimidation using an outwardly friendly manner which makes her all the more unnerving.

Another plus is the gradual revealing of secrets between the party-going friends. This creates great tension between them while they also attempt to survive the increasingly violent incident they are caught up in.

Saw II, III & IV director Darren Lynn Bousman has delivered a nail biting thriller that surprisingly flew pretty much under the radar.

Highly recommended.

Ric's Rating: 86%

DVD: Unstoppable

Denzel Washington (Glory) and Chris Pine (Star Trek) attempt to stop a runaway train in this thriller from director Tony Scott (True Romance).

Washington and Pine have good chemistry as the veteran and rookie train drivers and they get good support from Rosario Dawson as the controller.

No depth to the story here, they have to stop the train before it crashes and potentially causes major damage to a town, that's it. What elevates the film is the characters, you actually care about these guys as their personal troubles are revealed while they put their lives on the line.

Very entertaining.

Ric's Rating: 80%

DVD: Brotherhood

A college fraternity initiation prank goes wrong in this thriller that follows in the tradition of "boys night out goes bad" films like Stag (Kevin Dillon, Mario van Peebles) and Very Bad Things (Cameron Diaz, Christian Slater).

As events spiral out of control Adam (Trevor Morgan) urges the group leader Frank (Jon Foster) to get their injured friend to hospital but Frank wants to keep a lid on things because prank or no prank, authorities could mean jail time for them all.

This is an exciting, fast paced film that has you hooked from the get-go and contains some cool unpredictable twists that raise the tension levels every few minutes.

It's a straight to DVD gem that is totally gripping with Morgan and Foster perfectly cast in their opposing roles.

Fans of boys night out movies such as those previously mentioned will enjoy this and if you happened to see and enjoy the 1993 film Judgement Night with Emilio Estevez and Denis Leary then you'll love it.

Ric's Rating: 78%

Film: Splice

Interesting creature feature from the Director of cult movie Cube.

Two scientists create a creature from the DNA of numerous different animals and use it for medical research. When they are told they cannot use human DNA in their latest creation they decide to go ahead and do it anyway.

When the creature, Dren, is born she is spirited away and kept in hiding as she rapidly matures.

I then expected some sort of monster on the rampage film but this is not the case. What we have is a study of Dren's strange relationship with her "parents" played by The Pianist himself, Adrien Brody, and Sarah Polley.

It's a fine entry into the genre but it does take it's time to get to the point.

Thought provoking but not suitable accompaniment for a six pack.

Ric's Rating: 67%

DVD: The Chaser

Korean serial killer movie inspired by true events.


Joong-ho is a pimp who was formerly a police detective and some of his girls are missing.

The entire film is based aroung Joong-ho's search for the latest missing girl who has unfortunately been hired by a homicidal maniac.

Good performances all round and some pretty nasty scenes but I expected more from The Chaser. There are no twists here and no grand plan to the killings, once our man is revealed the chase is on and that's it.

Does it end happily? Well, by the time it got there I didn't care much.

Hopefully the upcoming Hollywood remake will (unusually) be an improvement.

Ric's Rating: 48%

DVD: The New Daughter

Kevin Costner plays John James a newly single Dad in this thriller based on the short story by the excellent John Connolly.

Upon moving into their new house James notices his daughter Louisa (Ivana Baquero) begin to behave strangely. Thinking it's just hormones he leaves her alone and concentrates on his younger son who is struggling to come to terms with his Mother's departure.

Being a John Connolly story all is not as it seems as Louisa is drawn to a strange mound in a nearby field and James begins to suspect that this is more than just teen angst.

The first two thirds of the film are excellent, Costner is fantastic as the Dad struggling to get things right but it all gets a bit silly when the Mound Walkers appear.

Costner fans will love it and Connolly fans, I suspect, will be slightly disappointed.

Ric's Rating: 64%

DVD: Spiral

Every once in a while a little film comes along that makes me glad I still
have faith in the straight to DVD market.

Avatar's Joel David Moore is dazzling in his portrayal of Mason, a shy, troubled man who's only friend happens to be his call centre boss Chuck (Zachary Levi).

Chuck constantly tries to bring Mason out of his shell but he prefers to paint and listen to jazz over truly interacting with other people until a chance encounter with a co-worker (Amber Tamblyn) brightens up his life.

The two become friends as Mason sketches Amber and persuades her to pose for him. She doesn't know the troubles that lurk in his mind.

All violence is implied here, there is none on screen, this helps crank up the tension as the cracks in Mason's psyche begin to show.

Excellent performances all round and a few unpredictable twists make this an excellent little known film. Seek it out, you won't regret it.

Ric's Rating: 84%

DVD: Long Weekend

More like an eternity as we join Jim Caviezel (The Count Of Monte Cristo) trying to save his marriage on a romantic getaway.

These are thoroughly loathsome characters and I was wishing a grisly demise for them both within 10 minutes.

The theme of nature fighting back against the damage caused by humans is lost as it just takes too long for anything to happen and when it does you don't care.

There is something compelling about watching a warring couple and the performances are ok, they just can't save the dire material they have to work with.

Give this a miss unless your a big Caviezel fan.

Ric's Rating: 24%

DVD: Triangle

Melissa George (Amytiville Horror, Paradise Lost) stars in
this horror/mystery type thriller.

She plays a single mother struggling to cope with her autistic young son who decides to treat herself to a day sailing with some friends.

After a slow start this film becomes very interesting as people begin to be bumped off and we are thrown into a very strange environment indeed.
Unfortunately it all becomes a bit muddled and leads to a rather silly ending.

This film borrows heavily from Memento and could have been so much better if a true purpose to it all was revealed.

A big surprising consolation is that this shows that Melissa George can actually act, she delivers a good performance and should now go for some serious parts instead of all these dodgy horrors.

Ric's Rating: 51%

Film: Orphan

As a rule I just can’t take “scary kid” films seriously but there are exceptions to every rule and Orphan proves to be just that.

Kate (Vera Farmiga) and John (Peter Sarsgaard) decide to adopt after they lose their third child to miscarriage.

Enter Esther (Isabelle Fuhrman), a nine year old from Russia who seems like a very intelligent and caring little girl. Esther’s own agenda is slowly revealed through a fantastic and disturbing performance by Fuhrman who along with Farmiga rise well above the usual standard of acting in this type of film.

This is more of a thriller than a horror and is recommended if you enjoy your “scary” films with some thought behind them.

Rick’s Rating: 74%

DVD: The Last House On The Left

Ultra -violent remake of the 1972 Wes Craven shocker.
Having never seen the original I can judge this one on its own merits.
We join teenager Mari (Sara Paxton) and her parents Emma (Monica Potter) and John (Tony Goldwyn) as they take a trip to their country home for a break from their hectic city lives.
Mari prefers to go see her friend instead of staying home with Mom & Dad and that’s when the trouble starts.
They run into Krug (Garret Dillahunt) who has just escaped from prison and his two equally dangerous cohorts.
The film is very distinctly in two halves and the first half, which concentrates on the girls plight, is very violent and often uncomfortable to watch but this gives the story a real kick and makes for riveting stuff.
The parents dominate the second half as they too encounter Krug and his gang while having no idea what has happened to their daughter.
Real rooting for the good guy moments and tension that most horror/thrillers just don’t deliver these days make this a must for fans of the genre.
Highly recommended if you enjoyed The Hills Have Eyes remake, The Devil’s Rejects or had the stomach to sit through Irreversible.

Rick's Rating: 76%