L'otage d'une vengeance

The film was pretty slow at the beginning. I had never watched Michael Madsen perform before. I thought he had a sour face! But did I change my mind? This film really grows on you. And I ended up loving it. Slater and Madsen played so well together. She was the weak feminine actress who against her will fell for this unknown man. And he was this strong willed he-man! This is a film of my liking: a thiller mixed with romance, that´s the best. I sure hope it comes out on DVD, so I can buy it.

Just goes to prove it, if you can't beat them, join them. Helen Slater finally did it, appearing nude on film. An interesting movie made all the better by Slater's performance.

I watched this on cable after rejecting a couple of films that I thought would have promise. At first, I had little hope for this one, either. When Mickey doubted that Alex was really an actress, so did I! But it was too early to go to bed, and I couldn't bear to go back again to "Comtaminated Man", I stuck it out, right through all the plot turns and miscellaneous characters that wound up getting involved in it. The best thing about it was, I never found myself saying "Gimme a break!"---the place where the totally unbelievable turn of events finally bombs a bad plot. This one held together. A nice little film.

There is a murder in the Hollywood hills. Alex Weaver (Helen Slater) is a struggling actress working as a waitress. She replaces her friend to housesit for the needed cash. The cops are next door investigating the murder. The Rankins mistakenly take her bag. Exterminator Mickey (Michael Madsen) unexpectedly comes and assumes Alex to be the owner. He's looking to get something from Rankin and takes her hostage. Will Stryker (Jeffrey Tambor) is the Rankins' new neighbor.

There are a couple of scenes where it is a little too convenient. This should be an intense kidnapping thriller. However there are a lot of false notes being played. The music cues are wrong but that's not the half of it. Madsen is being too cool and lacks the intensity of a real criminal. The romance is awkward and fake like a bad romance novel. It's incredible that Mickey would fall for it. It's completely set up wrong. Jeffrey Tambor is a nice turn but the movie keeps trying to go back to the romantic tones. There is no chemistry to work with here. Just when the movie is coming to an acceptable end, it becomes silly as Helen Slater overacts unconvincingly.

Saved by an intelligent script and some good performances, A House In the Hills chronicles a housesitters descent into the maelstrom of violence and lies at the heart of the California Dream (well, the Southern California one, at least). It's not Htichcock, but it's miles better than your average Showtime filler. Jeffrey Tambor delivers a particularly rich performance as next door neighbour Willie, and the rest of the cast is up to the task. Apparently filmed in Luxembourg, of all places.