Static

Was looking forward to this one as recognised some of the actors and although it started out well, it quickly descended into the realms of bland and predictable. What can I say other than its all been done before.......and been done better!

We watched it to the end because my husband was following it but I will admit that I was so bored that I really couldn't care less about what was going on! Needless to say it was no surprise that the whole thing was finished off with one of the worst endings in movie history! An ending which resulted in much cursing and ranting form my other half as up until this point he had been enjoying it! I'm sure the filmmakers intention was to end with a shocking twist but it just fell totally flat, an achievement in itself considering the already horizontal nature of the plot!

Great if you are having trouble sleeping.......zzzzzzzzzzz...........

A couple hear a knock at the door in the dead of the night.

Starring Milo Ventimiglia and Sarah Shahi.

Written by Gabriel Cowan, Todd Levin, Andrew Orci and John Suits.

Directed by Todd Levin.

I really liked this one. It's creepy and scary and the plot kept me gripped all the way through.

The acting is good and try as I could I didn't see the twist at the end coming, even though there's a big hint in the opening scenes! It's all been done before of course. A young couple in a creepy house in the middle of nowhere and lots of running and hiding seem to be the staple for a lot of psychological horror movies. I wanted to grab hold of the main male character several times to tell him to stop being so stupid every time he ventured off on his own, because you know something bad is only going to happen. But what would a horror film be without stupid characters!

This is the perfect short movie to curl up on the couch to. Just make sure you turn out the lights and close the curtains to make it even more scary.

An enjoyable 7.5/10.

The movie itself is well cast and bland.

The plot is basic and unfortunate.

The ending redeems it.

This all could have been abbreviated to an episode of the Twilight Zone.

STATIC is another murky and derivative 'home invasion' shocker that manages to rip off a half dozen or so films over the course of its running time. It's a rather insipid work that tries hard to build a creepy atmosphere but fails throughout thanks to sub-par direction and poor script writing. If you want to see this kind of film done properly, try the magnificent French thriller THEM.

The protagonists in the film are a young couple grieving the death of their only child. These makes them as mopey and self-centred as it gets, and they make for imminently unlikeable characters. Milo Ventimiglia and Sarah Shahi are undoubtedly talented performers but they can do little with what's on offer here.

The fright scenes in particular are rather dull and murky and too predictable when films like THE PURGE and THE STRANGERS have done it all before. Plus, the cinematography is way too dark, and the film as a whole has a grey and washed out look that makes it depressing to watch. The twist at the climax turns out to be nothing more than another rip-off of a different movie.

I was really caught up until about 30 minutes in. The sense of mystery was very strong. After things start to 'happen' though, I think it loses a bit of the tension that was built up so effectively to that point.

It's not that the movie takes a big dump or anything, but the middle section, although continuing the sense of mystery pretty well, seems to idle somewhat, sort of filling time. I don't mean to make it seem as bad as it sounds; it's mostly very effective all the way through and you really DO wonder what the &$%%#! is going on.

It's relatively easy in one sense to figure out a large part of what 'has' happened because they kind of tip it off to you (I don't wanna get too specific though and spoil anything) The use of sound as another reviewer mentioned is quite effective and good at building the suspense and a feeling of tension. One thing that I personally really appreciated, and this is something that I have a neurosis about so I don't expect this really will matter to most 'normal' people, but whomever was in charge of sound design THANKFULLY had a realistic view of what things normally sound like instead of boosting EVERY sound so unnaturally loud that it literally takes you out of the film. But, these guys really had it right on, so that was good.

Without giving too much away, I suppose that the ending could be considered sort of a 'Hollywood' ending, like another reviewer said here. But, if you are making a film with this kind of story, it's thematically kind of 'story-book' like anyway, so I feel that the ending logically follows. I guess it COULD have been left a bit darker. But, I agree with the film makers, that after all the mystery, suspense, and ultimately, the sadness, that choosing to end it like they did, I feel, is consistent with the overall story (DAMN! it's hard to explain something about the ending WITHOUT giving too much away... :)

Anyway, for the directorial debut and the theme of the film, I think they did a decent job with the story. It you want to be SUPER HYPER- critical, well, you COULD say that through the middle they might have come up with a tad more substance or complexity to draw us in a little more.

All and all, I honestly think that it is a solid, well made film. Depending on your personal taste concerning these types of movies, if your are like me where you appreciate imaginative themes, then you should find it fairly entertaining. BUT... if you are more of a hard core 'Realist' and do not suspend disbelief easily, this may not be the kind of film for you.