The Dark Red

I had a hard time keeping my attention on this movie. All I could think of was the poor directing! It's the director's job to make things interesting, and this isn't.

The story is shown is a strange manner, jumping back and forth with no rhyme nor reason. You think you've figure out some part, and it jumps to something, and someplace, else.

And the gaps in the story, you can drive a truck through! Even the ending comes and goes without explanation.

The main character is boring and low key throughout the entire film, like the drugs the docs at the asylum have her doped up, but, nope, that's her acting! Even her voice has no inflection. There were a few scene when she was okay, but they flashed by.

Sorry but this really is a lousy movie with little to recommend it. And, my review is pretty jumpy, too, like the movie. Duh!

Sybil Warren has been confined to a psychiatric hospital. She claims that her unborn baby was stolen by her fiancé's parents who gave her a forced caesarean section because they believe the baby is 'special'. She herself claims to have certain telepathic powers. Is she telling the truth or is she schizophrenic as the doctors believe? Either way when she gets out of hospital she will go after those she believes wronged her.

This isn't a bad film; it isn't great either; it is one of those average films one watches without regretting but probably forget about soon afterwards. The set-up is interesting and for most of the film there is some ambiguity about Sybil's state of mind. The end is less surprising but quite entertaining. The cast is solid enough and the rural settings are pleasant. Overall certainly not a must see but it passed the time well enough.

There are some good ideas here. It really could have been a very good film with more work. The central premise is underdeveloped, however, and the script lacks any real spark. Although the build up is a little slow, the final reel should have been full of fireworks, but instead it was a bit of a damp squib. I liked the ideas, though, and I'd love to see someone have another go at making this.

To me The Dark Red wasn't that great, it's all been done before but then in a better way. It could have been better though if it wasn't that slow at times, and if they would have edited it better because to be honest there are some scenes that need a lot of editing. Some scenes are just too long or unnecessary, and that makes the story a bit boring to watch at times. I fought against sleep a couple times, and that would not happen if the story had my full attention. It's not that I was sitting at edge of my seat, not at all. The Dark Red is just an average movie not really worth your time.

There are a few ways that this story could have gone, and all of them could be labeled "predictable", so I am not sure that is a good reason to say this movie is "bad". If you found it boring, I guess you just didn't find it suspenseful, that would be a better criticism. On the whole though, there is one film I would compare this to from the 80's, but were Io do that, if will literally take all tension away that you may otherwise have. So yes, this isn't an original story, but it is well-executed and very well-made.

I enjoyed the entire film, it wasn't slow, it was moderately pace, but it doesn't reveal it's hand all at once, it is a thriller/mystery, that is kind of how they work. It was mostly well-acted, so I am not sure what others mean when they say ti isn't. Were there a couple of less then stellar moments acting-wise? Yes, but on the whole, it was very well acted.

Coming from someone who watches a lot of low-budget films, I can say pretty definitively that this film is very well-made, the cinematography, lighting, sound, and script are all quite well-done. There are actually a lot more closeups in this film than most, and that is a dangerous thing, meaning, if the acting is really horrible, those closeups are very risky, as previously noted, there are a few dodgy moments acting-wise, but those moments are very brief. The closeups are well-done, and do a good deal to enhance the tension in the film, so the risk payed off.

There are some interesting themes here, such as the choices we make being generational, and sometimes we repeat the same things our parents did without even realizing it, but even knowing that, the question is whether or not it was worth it? I do think that this film poses at least a few good philisophical questions, also in regards to who we let into our lives, how people who are "damaged goods" might have both a higher and lower guard than "regular" people, but I supposed these themes will likely go over most people's heads, I don't mean that to sound like I'm smarter, I just mean to say, instead of being impatient, and focusing on the few flaws this film has, take the time to look past those flaws, they are small overall, and take the time and pay attention to what is going on in the subtext of the script, because there is actually a good deal of subtext here.

God Bless ~Amy