Os Esquecidos

Well, at least the movie has Julianne Moore. It also has a dozen plot holes and a handful of dangling threads. But there's Julianne Moore. There's a crackpot plot twist of "Twilight Zone" or "X Files" proportions. And then there's Julianne Moore. Okay, she's not the ONLY good thing in 'The Forgotten'. Without giving anything away (and be careful of reading reviews because to explain this movie is to spoil it), a significant member of the multi-cultural cast is whooshed away in a terrific GOTCHA moment. I usually hate those, but it worked like gangbusters this time. You knew something might happen, but not THAT. I haven't been as surprised by such a GOTCHA since Sam Jackson was torn apart by digi-sharks in 'Deep Blue Sea'.

A psychological drama is what we get in the first 30 minutes as Telly (Moore) struggles with the recent death of her young son, Sam. Her husband (Anthony Edwards) and her therapist (Gary Sinise) are trying to convince Telly that Sam never existed. She made him up. Hmmmm. Had 'The Forgotten' stayed on that track with one of the best actresses in Hollywood leading the way, I'd probably be saying nice things about the movie. For some reason, director Joseph Ruben and writer Gerald Di Pego decide to awkwardly cross genres and turn this into some sort of half-assed sci-fi encounter. Government conspiracy abounds with deceptive villains and their cheesy, villainous ambitions.

I've been vague because there are plenty of twists & turns that are best left unrevealed for those who want to see this flick. The mother/son story is poignant, but 'The Forgotten' doesn't want to be about such interesting stuff. Too bad. So Sinise gets to do nothing and Edwards does less. [He gave up 'ER' for wimpy supporting parts in B movies?] Dominic West---who's just as dull as the other men in this movie---co-stars as a father who apparently lost his daughter in the same Sam-killing plane crash. Or did he? Hmmmm. Hey, did I mention that Julianne Moore is good? A fine leading performance and one super-duper shock aren't enough to save this misguided pseudo-thriller. And let's not speak of that wuss-out ending...

This is better than average sci-fi, with a nice serving of mystery thrown in the pot as well. Add ingredients like good actress Julianne Moore (who is always hot), and a decent supporting cast, good special effects; and any parent who is sympathetic to having their child kidnapped (all of us?), and you have a guaranteed success. The pacing of this film is very interesting. It starts very slowly; and some may actually tune out before the plot unravels. Be patient. It does speed up. Better to have a film speed up in the middle until the end, rather than the other way around. There are enough duds that start off with a bang, and then leave us grasping for straws. This is not one of them. See it. And no, it is not really an X-Files or Twilight Zone episode; it can stand on its own.

Yeah sure I'll be in the minority a lot of people bash The Forgotten not me it's the perfect amount of weird! The kind of movie that makes me wanna say wtf in a good way; definitely some X-Files Esq. Julianne Moore did an extraordinary performance! Oh man the alternate ending is effed up the way it should've been.

Telly Paretta is seeing a shrink as therapy for losing her son in a plane crash, only she never had a son but is convinced she had. All the people in her life don't remember Sam including her husband. When she confronts the alcoholic fathers of another child from the flight they set out to discover the truth and the truth is "out there".

Part X-Files and part Lifetime movie of the week, "The Forgotten" seems to really channel Chris Carter's hit TV show, look it even has a redhead. The story is interesting and Julianne Moore's performance is sincere but you can't help but think that something is missing. The clever twist is good but they could have easily expanded the storyline and made it more "something".

Good but not great, "The Forgotten" seems to lack its own identity due to the derivative nature of the storyline which needed a bit of assistance from Fox Mulder.

Screenwriter Gerald Di Pego comes up with an interesting new slant on a well-trodden movie idea: grieving woman is obsessed with the child she lost to a plane crash, and refuses to accept it when her husband, neighbor, and psychiatrist all tell her he never existed. Conspiracy thriller with science-fiction overtures steps a little bit into "Close Encounters" territory, but manages to hold the viewer with strong individual scenes and a lovely, matter-of-fact lead performance by Julianne Moore. However, the editing goes slack by the film's midsection, with Moore constantly on the run and Di Pego's script scrambling to explain itself whilst keeping the audience in suspense. It's a gambit which doesn't quite pay off. Supporting characters played by Anthony Edwards and Alfre Woodard are unceremoniously shafted, while the tepid final act (more running) leaves a bushel of unanswered questions and unrealized ideas behind. The chilly cinematography (grayish blues and whites) is artsy and distracting, and the overall result smacks of too many cooks. **1/2 from ****