Awake - Anestesia cosciente

I'm not going to put any spoilers in this review, but this is certainly a movie with some great twists and turns. I haven't been this excited about an upcoming release since The Sixth Sense or Memento. Hard to believe this is the director's first feature (although it's possible he cut his teeth in the commercial or music video world... I'm not sure) I mean, certainly the film has a few problems, some of the moments didn't ring exactly true to me and the music was a touch maudlin at times. But when this film gets it right, it gets it really right. I was on the edge of my seat from the second act on. It's the first film I've seen in awhile that manages to balance a genuine emotionality with a strong thriller aspect. Even Hayden Christensen, who I think we all had our doubts about after Episodes I-III, puts in a memorable and affecting performance. Definitely a film to see and a director I'll be keeping my eye on.

There is never a dull moment through out the entire movie... When we first meet the various characters in the movie we quickly form first impressions of them...a young couple in love, a dominant mother not wanting to let go of her son, a friend you can trust, and then halfway through realize that oh boy...were we wrong or what?! I had goosebumps when the protagonists heart is cut open and he could still feel and hear the doctors!!! A part of me hopes that this never happens to someone i love!!! Love makes the world go around. And yes, money too :( The story centers around a business tycoon ,Clayton,who has to undergo a heart transplant. But due "anesthetic awareness" he is awake and can feel and hear the doctors during the surgery. But what is more painful....feeling or hearing? Watch it!!

Awake is a surgery thriller released in 2007. Hayden Christensen and Jessica Alba were both major stars starring in mainstream films at the time. Both likeable actors whom receiver plenty of backlash for their "lack of acting talent".

However in this film, they both deliver convincing performances. Terrence Howard also has a supporting role and plays it as he has done many times before.

Awake is elevated by its twists near the end. As watching, we may get more of a sense as to what is occurring but in general these turns are quite unpredictable. The way everything gets pieces together was entertaining.

The scenes regarding Hayden in the "out-of-body" experience are quite telling. The use of flashbacks and scenes re-showing him with the cameras from the perspective and point of view of his character are quite clever. In the end, it was left making an engaging enough thriller with a relatively small runtime, and it didn't need to be long.

Thanks to what was the craziness of how hot hot hot Jessica Alba was this past year, a lot of people, including me, really didn't wanna see a movie with her. Yes, she's beautiful, but can she act? The eternal question where I finally saw something, Awake, she actually did a decent job. I rented Awake the other day and watched it, this was actually a lot better than I thought it was going to be. I have to say, this was a first, I really did not see that conclusion coming. It was awesome to see a movie that had a clever script, was it realistic? I wouldn't necessarily agree, the movie and story does have it's flaws here and there, but if you let them slide, it's a fun little thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat.

Clay has everything: money, a loving mom, a company of his own, a world in his hands, and a beautiful woman, Sam. But unfortunately, his heart isn't so lucky, so much so that he needs a transplant, and his trusted friend Jack Harper is going to do the transfer for him. But his mom is begging him to re-consider and have another surgeon do the operation, but Clay says she just has to trust his instincts, which may be the biggest mistake he can make.

Awake is a pretty cool movie, the actors, some things are over done, but it's a thriller, it's supposed to keep you scared and tense, so I am willing to over look the non-existence of reality, I think this movie meant to be that way. I also just hate to say it, Jessica Alba is decent in the movie and covers herself well in her role as Sam. But the top performance of the film was without a doubt from Howard, he was so convincing and almost made you feel bad for him, well, I don't want to give too much away, you'll just have to see what I mean. But I do recommend Awake, it's a good movie, I'm impressed.

7/10

Reminded me of one of those films you would rent from blockbuster for a Saturday night watch with the family. First the leads are very much early 00's style, both pretty, very likeable but whom ultimately always play a slightly modified version of themselves in all their films and this is no exception. Well, fine by me. The supporting cast are all recognisable faces that when first popping up, made me point and whistle at the screen from my arm chair. The film is well paced which is the true beauty of a good 90 minutes thriller. The story at first is quite interesting and even slightly terrifying considering that it is a real condition and you certainly go through a rollercoaster of emotions with all the different characters which ultimately is the films strongest suit. HOWEVER (and it is a big one) the story is very silly, with a stupid amount of plot holes that will leave you going "huh?", but that's what makes it fun! Currently I'm slightly fatigued of the current trend of long, deep, stylised, social commentary films coming out, and all I want is a story that will allow me to switch off after a long day and "Awake" let me do just that!