The Factory

This film moves on at a good pace, the characters are played well and the story is pretty good too. And although I was watching this thinking I've seen this kind of story before I was interested in how it would turn out. You know, the story where a father is on a case which ends up involving him because the daughter becomes a victim, but just as you think you've worked out how it will go, BAM, a massive plot twist which you never see coming! If you say you did see it coming, then you're a genius! I'd heard about this movie over a year ago and then it went off the radar but when it turned up I had to see it, and I an so glad I got to. A truly great film and that plot twist just made the movie so much more enjoyable. I'd watch it again as it was that memorable. So I give this movie an 8.5 out of 10.

The Factory (2012)

Well, this is a pretty well made movie with some terrible holes in the plot and the writing. So it ends up being just "stupid" in the way that you are pulled along and want to believe the plot and then it's just not believable. Those few large flaws blow out the whole movie.

Too bad. The photography in particular is really good. And the ambiance in snowy Buffalo is terrific. In fact, the constant snow and all the dark scenes with flashlights seems inspired by "Seven" where it's all rain and flashlights. "The Factory" however isn't as well made as a Fincher movie, naturally enough (few movies these days are). And the basic story here is a little contrived from the get-go, even without the holes in the plot.

The idea of a pair of cops pursuing a mysterious serial killer is a cliché of the movies, of course (including "Seven" which didn't invent the idea). And it could work here. A ridiculous coincidence halfway through throws the movie, and the characters, into a tizzy (one of the characters even bemoans his bad luck). But the basic whodunnit is intact and the great filming makes it pulse along pretty well.

The main character is John Cusack who holds his end up well--he's probably a better goofy dad than a relentless cop but he's decent at both. The supporting cast around him is good, though the female cop sidekick isn't especially compelling, just going through the paces of a female cop sidekick (this is Jennifer Carpenter). The daughter is another story, a surprisingly complex character and a good young actress (Mae Whitman, famous for her role in "Parenthood" more than anything, I think). It's not a bad cast.

In fact, the film has the bones of being excellent. It's the story, and the specific writing that went into the story, that kills it. No pun intended.

While the pace in "The Factory" is not head over heels fast, then it doesn't really slow down the movie. This movie is built up in a very nice way that slowly builds up suspense and feeds the audience bits and pieces along the way.

What appealed to me about this movie was the storyline, and the way that director Morgan O'Neill managed to entice the audience with the way that the story was presented and still managed to put in some really genius plot twists along the way.

The storyline in "The Factory" was alpha and omega in the movie, but the good cast also helped the movie along quite nicely. It was essentially John Cusack who made me sit down and watch this movie, but it turned out to be Dallas Roberts who ended up carrying the movie with his phenomenal performance as Carl.

I can't claim to be familiar with the true story upon which this movie is based, but the events that took place in the movie were portrayed nicely and realistic. And the fact that some of this actually happened to a certain degree is just disturbing.

"The Factory" might be slow paced, but it is an outstanding movie that really should be watched if you enjoy crime thrillers. Quite a unique movie experience.

After watching this movie, I had to wonder if this genre isn't simply exhausted: basically, psychopath kidnaps daughter of someone he shouldn't have. We all buy into this for one reason. We know that we'll eventually get a pay off in the form of revenge. Make the psychopath as evil as possible so that later we will relish his destruction. We will even overlook inconsistencies and absurdities in the plot as long as we get paid off for it. Well, I'll leave it up to each viewer to determine whether this film paid off, for me, it didn't.

This movie can only work if you accept the amazing coincidence that forms the basis of the story, but then you find that you have to accept a lot more coincidences. What I think happened was that the initial screenplay had logical inconsistencies which the writer(s) attempted to plug which led to more inconsistencies and so on. So you get a lot of contrived scenes and 'wow, look what I found, what a coincidence" scenes. I have a feeling that the whole ending was grafted on as an afterthought and then the screenplay was readjusted to it.

I watched this movie primarily because John Cusack was in it and that gave it a certain credibility. He does okay. There's nothing much in the way of interacting with other characters. They could have been played by mannequins and the movie would have been about the same.

Much of the movie seems like a series of scenes grafted on from other movies like "Taken", "Taxi Driver" and a few others. My advice for potential viewers is to watch those movies instead. The Factory needs too many renovations.

This film has quite polarized reviews from suspicious 10 star glowing reviews to 1 star reviews of 'Most Horrible Movie Ever' and other similar variations.

Okay... I really had to think about how I would rate this one because MANY times I read horrible reviews of films that are made very well, but the 'reviewer' just didn't like it so obviously it's just crap. I honestly thought that technically and quality and acting wise that the film was made very well; the pacing and editing, etc. were indeed quite gripping and intense. The overall premise was mildly intriguing because as you went along you were genuinely curious as to WHY this guy was doing this. And of course as ALWAYS Cusack's performance was good (although, quite honestly he DID look like he was kinda sleepwalking through most of it)

Now, as far as the 'Ending'... Well... Firstly it DID catch me totally by surprise; I was actually sitting here saying 'NO WAY!' out loud. But, that is a double edged sword because it was so incredible that many here found it almost ridiculous. I wouldn't put it that strongly but I personally think it could have been worked a little better than just kind of attached onto the end of an otherwise competent film; and then the continuing scenes after that also not really quite matching the quality of the rest of the movie.

So, again, is it well made? Yes. Thus my somewhat generous rating of 6. If a film is put together well (except for perhaps the last 10 minutes) I think that that should be acknowledged so that others reading reviews and trying to decide whether they should bother to see it will know that. It is really great? Well, no... But, if you can take the ending with a teaspoon or two of salt and just enjoy the intensity, pacing, and entertainment value of the majority of the movie, then you might like it.