Dhawley-2

I didn't see this film when it was released theatrically, but watched the DVD (which included an alternate ending) last night. At the risk of irritating those who liked it, I found it sorely lacking in many ways. While it contained an interesting premise (see other reviews for the story line), for me, it failed on almost every level. As a middle-aged guy who's loved horror and sci-fi films since I was a kid, I personally don't care for 'slasher' type 'horror' films, and have always enjoyed those films with a supernatural bent to them. I was also keen to see the fine actors Sean Bean and Maria Bello (who was so good in 'A History of Violence'). And, while their performances were not Oscar caliber, they both did respectable jobs in their roles. Why, then, did it fail for me? Several reasons come to mind: first, it started off in a promising way, creating an eerie, discordant environment, but quickly bogged down into a pedestrian and formulaic treatment. While I agree that it was somewhat suspenseful, it just wasn't really scary. Sure, the sound effects were laden with creepy music that did heighten the suspense, but with way too much use of unexpected loud noises substituting for chills. After about thirty minutes, it became boring. The character played by Bello was not a very sympathetic person, and seemed to be a study in bi-polar disorder; she kept going from being self-absorbed to a selfless mother brimming with love for her daughter. In my opinion, neither of the female child actors were especially convincing, but Abigail Stone as Ebrill was somewhat better as the returned 'dead' child. Sean Bean did the best he could with his role, and was the most sympathetic of the characters. To sum it up, it is true that this movie was similar to other recent films such as 'The Ring', but I have no big problem with films being derivative, as long as they deliver the entertainment goods. To me, this movie was heavy on style, but woefully light on chills. And finally, weak as the ending was, the 'alternate ending' was even worse. To those that liked this movie, well, we all have different tastes. To me, it was inconsequential and trite, and squandered an intriguing premise.