La cura siniestra

Gore Verbinski, the man who gave us the first "Ring" movie, the "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise, "Rango," and "The Lone Ranger" is now back with this Hitchcockian Gothic psychological thriller designed to keep you guessing till the very end. Even though its final 20 minutes somewhat go off the rails a bit, overall A CURE FOR WELLNESS is stunning, bold and hypnotic.

Dane DeHaan plays an ambitious young executive, Lockhart, sent to retrieve his company's missing CEO who's decided to stay at a remote wellness center in the Swiss Alps. What is supposed to be an easy assignment turns into a journey of slowly but surely uncovering the center's dark past, uncovering the real reasons as to why the guests keep staying there, longing for the cure, as Lockhart himself starts to question his own sanity.

You will fall in love with the cinematography by DP Bojan Bazelli. Even if you're not a fan of mystery or suspense, Bazelli's cinematography for "A Cure For Wellness' will leave you floored, the word breathtaking doesn't even begin to fairly describe it. There are shots through the tunnel, around the castle, and even during some of the film's most disturbing moments, they draw you in, gorgeous in every possible way. And the fact that they actually filmed a big chunk on location at Castle Hohenzollern in Germany does help because the place becomes a supporting role.

Ever since "Chronicle," Dane DeHaan has been an actor that's caught my attention because I do believe that this rising star has what it takes to be great, A CURE FOR WELLNESS allows him to showcase a tease of that potential. His performance reminds me of Leo DiCaprio's in "Shutter Island" and Jack Nicholson's in "The Shining" where to a certain extent, you're not certain if they'd eventually cross that line or remain on this side of the fence. A CURE FOR WELLNESS is trippy, it's intriguing, it's filled with all kinds of odd imagery, it's definitely not for the faint of heart. It's a sensory experience type of a film, the kind that also evokes all sorts of questions about society and what it means to live well and the ambition for purity. But again, as I said earlier, the final 20 minutes do go off the rails a bit, by that time the film feels like it runs longer than it should and furthermore it gets ruined by its desire to leave us on a happy note. A CURE FOR WELLNESS will find its audience, but it's an acquired taste.

Lockhart (Dane DeHaan) is a corrupted young executive. The board is pushing for a merger and they send Lockhart to retrieve CEO Pembroke from a mysterious wellness center in remote Swiss Alps. Both the board and Lockhart agree to pin his indiscretion on Pembroke. Upon arriving, Lockhart senses some strangeness from Dr. Volmer (Jason Isaacs) and the various people. He gets into a car accident with a deer and wakes up with a cast on his leg being cared for in the wellness center. He is taken with strange beauty Hannah.

I find the brooding moodiness intriguing. I love the body horror aspects. It could have stayed a simple horror which would be much better. It goes off into some slightly questionable directions. It should be much harder for Lockhart to leave the hospital. The tension would be higher if he's forced to stay. Trying to escape is a great way to raise the intensity. The movie plays with the reliability of Lockhart's perception but that could be sharper. DeHaan as a lead continues to struggle with a tinge of personal demon. Overall, I love the mood and the style but the story could be improved.

This film feels like a Black Mirror episode - but one that treads water for almost two and a half hours without ever reaching its main idea. 250% longer, but only a fraction of the satisfaction.

I really wanted to immerse myself in its atmosphere and ideas, the idea of a David Lynch/Cronenberg style Shining/Shutter Island film seems great. But the film really tests your patience. The main character is icy and unlikable, the other characters are similarly distant. Stuff happens, a lot of stuff, some of it great looking, but with nothing to tie it together or the any character depth to engage with, it ends up feeling like you're being taken through a film students visual exhibition that doesn't end soon enough.

It really doesn't live up to the amazing film that the trailer suggests, a pattern that seems to be more and more common with films these days. Similar to Passengers, I wonder if moments were shot just to make the trailer more powerful in selling the film.

I was really excited about this movie when the trailer came out, I could not wait to see it. But after reading multiple bad comments about the film, I got worried.

But I must say, nothing to worry about. The movie is kinda weird maybe, but if you watch the trailer you know what you're settling in for, I suppose.

The story develops itself kinda slow, but that didn't bother me cause I was intrigued by the story. The movie has good actors, a great setting and atmosphere.

It kinda reminded me of Shutter Island, I think because of the whole "mystery island with a weird cure-institution"-thing.

Gore Verbinski has created a visually splendid thriller/horror film, which creates a wonderfully foreboding atmosphere. However, what could have been a great film is marred by a convoluted screenplay that falls to pieces in its final act, and is riddled with plot holes. I waited patiently for all the pieces of the puzzle to fall into place (and with the running time approaching 2 and a half hours, it's quite a wait), yet ultimately I was left somewhat confused and underwhelmed by how it all played out.

I still recommend it for the wonderful cinematography and chilling atmosphere. But with some liberal editing and a tighter screenplay we could have had a real classic on our hands. Shame.