Session 9

With a brilliant premise, "Session 9" is a slow build of genuine atmospheric creepiness. More akin to Nicolas Roeg's classic "Don't Look Now" than more recent horror fare with high body counts, director Brad Anderson effectively builds tension in layers of voiceovers and (mostly subtle) foreshadowing to build to a climax of madness, with sparing use of the cheaper horror devices. Unfortunately the characters are not as fleshed out as one would have hoped, so we are left with some unanswered questions (we would have liked to have met Gordon's family and Hank's girlfriend. Why did Mike drop out of law school?). Though the subtle horrors of this film may fail to grasp the short attention spans of younger moviegoers who consider "I Know What You Did Last Scream" to be the de facto standard of the genre, this is a very cleverly executed, if imperfect, thriller.

Everything about this movie impressed me. The script was lean and inventive, the direction stylish without being overblown, the acting top notch. Even the shot-on-video cinematography looked great (with the exception of one or two exterior shots that had a hint of video look to it, most everything else was "filmic" and artistic).

I also appreciate any horror movie that can generate real tension and suspense from imagination and suggestion rather than relying on lame and lazy tricks that populate most horror movies (if something as limp as Urban Legends can be called a horror movie).

First rate film and I recommend to anyone who appreciates a thinking-man's horror film.

No point in mincing words: Brad Anderson's Session 9 is the best horror movie I've seen in a long time. It's intelligent, well-written, it's completely unpredictable, it looks great (I didn't really notice until the second viewing how well the editing and the photography work together), and the soundtrack is downright creepy. Until recently only two films had managed to make me lie awake at night: Dario Argento's "Opera" and Tobe Hooper's "Texas Chain Saw Massacre". Well, now the list includes three films. Honestly, there is no excuse not to see this one, folks. Horror doesn't get any better than this.

I had been hearing about Session 9 for a while now, and I finally decided to give it a go.

First off, I have to say the film has incredibly nail-biting atmosphere. There were actually not that many 'scary' scenes, but it was what I feared would come. But don't let that fool you- this is a film that I will be afraid to think about when I go to sleep. The sound effects are incredibly tense and very creepy, to the point that they are disturbing. Certain images in the film are sure to stay with me for a long time. As far as plot goes, like I expected, I knew there would be a twist at the end, but the film does so many different things with itself that I never knew how it was going to come. When all is said and done, the actual twist isn't even all the surprising, BUT the final 20 minutes getting there are very, very tense and I could not look away.

I also want to give a shout out to Peter Mullan, who gives a fascinating performance here. He is the driving force of the film. Also, the cinematography, editing, score, and sound make this perhaps one of the creepiest and unsettling films of its decade. I look forward to rewatching this.

Peter Mullan is truly fantastic here, as indeed are the whole cast, the acting if first rate in this well made, unusual horror.

I'm not sure if classify this so much as a horror, I see it more as a psychological thriller, and a truly good one at that. If I'm totally honest, I didn't fully understand all that was happening, but on a second viewing it made more sense.

I see a degree of originality here, it's far from a run of the mill film.

There is enough to keep you interested, and there are definitely a few twists that you won't see coming.

This is a film if gladly sit down to watch again, 8/10.