Inconcebible

Katie (Nicky Whelan) is a mother whom has recently escaped from an abusive relationship. Katie ends up befriending wealthy couple Angela (Gina Gershon) and Brian (Nicolas Cage) and stays in their guest house whilst serving as their nanny. Initially all is well, but the couple start to get suspicious of Katie when they start to learn that she's hiding a dark secret...

The set-up isn't a bad one and in some ways this film reminded me of 'The Hand That Rocks The Cradle', but despite an intriguing set-up the film doesn't contain much in the way of audience involvement. There is some mystery with Katie's character, but the film reveals too much too soon which ultimately kills much of the suspense. The main story also lacks credibility and requires a leap of faith to be able to accept what you're seeing is even remotely believable; a couple allowing a stranger to be their nanny without carrying out any kind of background checks first???

The tempo picks up slightly towards the end, but by this point I'd already lost interest in the story (mainly down to the drawn-out first half of the picture where next to nothing actually happens). I also wasn't impressed by Jonathan Baker's direction which was far too leisurely and I also wasn't impressed by the art-house pretentious feel that the film had as a whole.

The acting isn't too bad though with Whelan and Gershon both being the standout's here. Nic Cage is the big named actor here, but the filmmakers waste him here by just having him hanging round in the background (he's never sufficiently developed and isn't given the chance to make any kind of impression on the picture). The cynic in me thinks that he may have only been cast in the film as a gimmick to make the film appeal to a wider audience.

FINAL VERDICT; skip this one and watch The Hand That Rocks The Cradle instead.

I'm not sure who decided to have Jonathan Baker direct this film, but it was a huge mistake. Considering he was also the producer, he should have just left it at that - and the small role he also had as a member of the cast (Barry). Was it too much responsibility for one novice filmmaker to undertake? Certainly. Was it a mistake to have him in this type of film as his directorial debut? Absolutely.

The pace of this film was *very* slow. Had I played this at 1.5x faster speed, it may have been more enjoyable. His selection of the score was terrible, if not clearly absent in parts that it should have been present.

The story itself, although done before, did hold my attention and I found it interesting, primarily from the only actor that was the most convincing, Nicky Whelan as Katie. Clearly she is the one that held this movie together.

Now of course, Faye Dunaway's small role was performed on point, but that comes expected with an actor of her caliber.

What was disappointing however was the rest of the cast, particularly Gina Gershon as Angela, and Nicolas Cage as Brian.

I'm a fan of Gina, but I felt she struggled with her role in this one, just as Nicolas did, of which I am also a long time fan of his. I have to admit, this is the first film I actually wished Mr. Cage over- acted his performance as he is well know to do so in his previous films.

What's more shocking is how these two seasoned A-list actors accepted these roles. I would assume after reading the script, it sounded much better than it was directed, so thus their lack of excitement and convincement in their roles I blame fully on the director.

Had this film been directed by someone else, I feel it would have been a huge success and much more enjoyable.

At the end of the day, Jonathan Baker can add an undeserved notch to his directors chair, Nicky Whelan can add a well acted and deserved positive entry to her acting resume, and Nicolas Cage and Gina Gershon should hide this notch from their actors chairs.

A generous 7/10 for an interesting script, held together primarily by Nicky Whelan. It's a shame this film ended up as a lost opportunity to be much greater. For that matter, it's inconceivable.

56 year old Gina and 54 year old Nick as new parents. Really? Are you kidding? This is getting silly. I understand the need to draw in eyeballs with known talent but come on. Gina's mother in law character is Faye Dunaway who's only 11 years older. There's only so much soft focus and cake makeup you slather on to cover that. And Nick? Shoe polish in your hair is not a good look. I get it, you owe like a zillion dollars and you have to work like a dog but why not look for parts for a guy your age.

This straight to DVD Nicolas Cage affair is certainly less "Actiony" than what we have grown accustomed to over the past few years. Rejoining Gina Gershon he delves into thriller territory and though the story has been done before they do a decent enough job.

What threw me was the initial swerve, the movie opens one way and quickly u-turns. When the twist came I'll be truthful I didn't expect it.

Also starring former WWE "Wrestler" (And I use that term very loosely) Eva Marie who I immediately mistook for a Kardashian. Credit where credit is due she put in a decent enough performance but being a wrestling fan I see her and I just see a train wreck.

Harmless enough feature which all comes together well in the end even if it does feel somewhat recycled.

The Good:

One Eva Marie scene that every WWE fan will appreciate

Gina Gershon

The Bad:

Eva Marie

Things I learnt from this movie:

Eva Marie is a better actress than a wrestler

Gina Gershon has access to the fountain of youth

Let me first start out by saying....What happened to Nick Cage? I've always been a fan of his early work before he sold out to "the Big Hoolywood Production's", obviously for the $$. He has made some good films over the past 15-20 years, but his no nonsense, more guts then glory approach to his choice of films has died a long time ago. Also, he HAS to own a mirror in at least one of his 25? Homes. Does he see that hair transplants and plastic surgery has ruined his chances of aging gracefully and true to himself looking like a pulled on and stretched out hormonal mess? OK, I had to get that off my chest.

To give a fair and Short review of "Inconceivable", I have to first state this film is suspiciously much like a poor remake of "hand that rocks the cradle", a far superior movie. Of course, there are variations to the plot and story line, however, this is a newer version that attempts (and fails) to deliver an original story with a few more Sub Plots going on but at a VERY..SLOW.....PACE.......

For the guys out there that may see this film (myself included) there is plenty of "eye candy". A few decent gratuitous nude scenes and despite Gena Gershon's age, she still oozes sex appeal. To that end, the film is flimsy, predictable and disingenuous in its delivery. Things are wrapped up too neatly and although there is a very slight twist at the films end, I had predicted it 10 minutes before the truth was revealed.

The acting was sub par, the story, well, Boring. The characters sort of meander through their roles like they can't wait to get back to their respective trailers.

I gave this film a 5 because it was not a total waste of time. It did have some moments that were worth a continued look. But, it just kept crashing into walls every time it seemed it would pick up.

Nick, I see your pumping out four to five films a year over the past several years. I know you are a big believer in......"who ever dies with the most toys at the end, wins", but, for heavens sake, read a script before taking your next film. It seems the days of "leaving Las Vegas and Moonstruck" are 25 years in your rear mirror. Despite uncle Francis getting you into the film industry, I was and always have been a fan of your work. Then you made "face off" and it was pretty much down hill from there.

This is an OK film and even better if you haven't seen "Hand that Rocks the Cradle". But, if you do watch this and have a chance to view "HTRTC", you be the judge. The latter is much much better and very similar.