IMDb RATING
6.3/10
3.3K
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A man enters a roadside diner run by a young woman and claims he is being chased by murderers.A man enters a roadside diner run by a young woman and claims he is being chased by murderers.A man enters a roadside diner run by a young woman and claims he is being chased by murderers.
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Wow...I tell you what I really liked this movie when i saw it. I was sitting home watching lifetime and this happened to come on. I was so enthralled by this movie i couldn't turn away from it. I love Josh Lucas in this movie. I had always been a huge fan of him, like it Sweet Home Alabama. But in this movie you got to see him act in a different way, he actually got to take on a darker roll. I didn't think that it would work but it totally did! This movie was full of twists and turns. Reading the other comments everyone says that they didn't like the ending but i thought that the ending was pretty good. How they made it switch on and on from person to person. It was a little bit hard to follow but in the end it made it all that much more worth it. I would definitely recommend this movie!
...and to put it shortly, it's not as intriguing as Pitch Black but far more enjoyable than Lantana on the other hand.
yes it's true, this is only B-grade low-budget suspense thriller where nothing is as it appears to be (speaking of immediate succession of events) but nonetheless I really liked Radha Mitchell in her role, I really liked the humble setup and I really liked the ending where the story bends into a full circle (well, almost).
maybe it's not an art film of the year with heart-breaking scenes where father and son meet after years of nerve-wrecking separation or something but it's quite enjoyable if you give it a chance. I did and wasn't disappointed.
7/10
yes it's true, this is only B-grade low-budget suspense thriller where nothing is as it appears to be (speaking of immediate succession of events) but nonetheless I really liked Radha Mitchell in her role, I really liked the humble setup and I really liked the ending where the story bends into a full circle (well, almost).
maybe it's not an art film of the year with heart-breaking scenes where father and son meet after years of nerve-wrecking separation or something but it's quite enjoyable if you give it a chance. I did and wasn't disappointed.
7/10
I saw this one years ago and it was a nice discovery.
This is a pure film. All built on its characters and storytelling development.
It's a B movie from Australia - which makes me happier, this is a country that I used to live in - that has nothing but a good story to tell and a good acting.
All set in basically three or four locations in which the art direction and the cinematography took the best out of them, transforming the loneliness and the emptiness of the places in a excellent element of the film.
The editing is very intelligent, always helping the twists of the movie getting more intense and also giving that motion and never letting the tension down.
Bottom line, it's a "old-time-kind-of-movie" in which no rush is seen and things happen when it has to happen.
8/10.
This is a pure film. All built on its characters and storytelling development.
It's a B movie from Australia - which makes me happier, this is a country that I used to live in - that has nothing but a good story to tell and a good acting.
All set in basically three or four locations in which the art direction and the cinematography took the best out of them, transforming the loneliness and the emptiness of the places in a excellent element of the film.
The editing is very intelligent, always helping the twists of the movie getting more intense and also giving that motion and never letting the tension down.
Bottom line, it's a "old-time-kind-of-movie" in which no rush is seen and things happen when it has to happen.
8/10.
The people who have written most of these comments are disappointed of the ending. I say that the ending takes the film a step higher! You don't have to analyze everything and you don't have to come up with meanings that you believe is the idea of the film and then hate them. At least it won't make anyone happier. There is no background music in this film, as I recall, and there are very few people. That sets the mood, and it's a pretty frightening one. Pressuring even. The filming is great, or so I think anyway. My best tip for those who are going to see this movie is that you shouldn't have expectations. This film won't give you all the answers you perhaps will be looking for but it gives you a feeling of something, and if you ask me it's just what films are for - Making you think and/OR making you feel something. In this case, the mood. Beautiful. Top score.
In 1997, Scott Reynolds made an impressive writing and directing debut with "The Ugly", although his story was a bit too shallow and his direction a bit overly flashy. This time, with his compelling, perspective-shifting script and taut direction, he achieves moments of true brilliance - so many, in fact, that it's hard to pick just one (the little girl who witnesses a violent struggle but doesn't understand it? The sink that may not hold the weight of a man? The killer silently stalking his victim in the toilets, using an admittedly old trick?). This man could very well develop into the Hitchcock of the next generation - the movie even has its own McGuffin to propel the plot (the computer disk). The first half is essentially a mystery, with plenty of twists; when the truth becomes (somewhat) clear, the movie becomes a full-blown thriller, and it offers one absolutely astounding suspense sequence after another. Don't miss it. (***)
Did you know
- TriviaGas pumps would not spew gasoline from underground tanks, they are pumps.
- GoofsThe sign on the doctor's office says "Surgery". This is a term used in the UK, as well as New Zealand, for a doctor's office.
- Crazy creditsFilmed in sunny Foxton, the Hollywood of the South Seas
- ConnectionsReferences Week-end sauvage (1976)
- How long is When Strangers Appear?Powered by Alexa
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- NZ$3,000,000 (estimated)
- Runtime
- 1h 38m(98 min)
- Color
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- 2.35 : 1
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