For starters, there is no political or social agenda in this film. That right there is worth the price of admission as far as I'm concerned. Outside of that, I'm not sure why so many people found this movie to be that bad. You've got murder. You've got intrigue. You've got suspense. You've got misdirection. You've got a plot twist. You've got the supernatural. I mean, what more do people want? To be spoon fed every little detail?
The actors were all very capable - nobody is going to be winning any awards for their performances, but at least nobody was just phoning it in like much of today's garbage. The story was interesting, but I'm not sure what the occult shop really had to do with anything. It seemed like that was a scene that could have been left on the cutting room floor, but.. it didn't detract any from the movie, so...
My only objection - and I find this in ALL of the movies made today - NOBODY knows how to freaking light a scene anymore! I swear this whole section could be used cut and paste in the review of almost everything coming out these days. Room lights are nothing more than nightlights. In indoor scenes that are shot in broad daylight , the ONLY light in the whole room is from a window or glass door and that somehow fails to spread ANY light to the rest of the scene. Not to mention the fact that the actors are filmed in front of the light source with no fill light whatsoever, so the entire person is in deep shadow.
If you want to give it a failing review grade on lighting (or lack thereof)... go right ahead, but otherwise, the movie is well worth watching.
