Blur

I thought that the hideous red face on the main character's canvas looked familiar so I looked it up and, yes, it's almost line for line the famous sketch "Head studies" by Leonardo da Vinci at the Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest. Of course, it could be just a coincidence, but I think it's a subliminal message, something like, "Go to the museum, go to the museum, don't waste your money, don't waste your money..." Anyway, it starts out interesting, with good acting on the part of a group of interesting practically unknowns. Then it ever so slowly gets spookier and cornier in a grossly subtle and confusing fashion. They use lots of contrived false leads to nowhere in particular until the end, when it slaps you in the face and blatantly says to you, "You should have gone to the museum, you wasted your money..." I just wish I could spoil the ending for you, but for the most part, it was so boring that it's a blur.

We know its low budget. We know it was all filmed on one location. But that's what made me wonder about something. With all the money saved on the filming costs, couldn't somebody have kicked in a little for some acting lessons? This was so hard for me to watch ... actually, I turned it off at the 60 minute mark. I challenge you to make it further. What does it say if you make it further? Either you are really bored. Or, you were able to laugh at it. Sadly, I was neither bored enough to watch it nor was I able to laugh at its stupidity. I will say the paintings weren't bad. Especially the one from the film's poster. Sadly that was the best part of the film. Remember, this was me going to watch a movie, not a guy going to an art show.

I am always intrigued to watch low-budget films and to see how, if at all, they make up for the tight budget. For a low-budget film and a director's debut, this film exceeds any marginal expectations and delightfully presents a chilling tale through a very unique, visual approach. From the beginning of the film, director Nick Briscoe, captures the mood with a style that is very much reminiscent of Hitchcock in the way the camera slowly tampers with the feelings of the characters who remain at an unusual, or at times, uneasy distance from the audience. As a result, it is a technique that, much like the master of suspense created, divides voyeurism from paranoia. However, in Blur, Briscoe tells the story through visual images which represent more than just the aforementioned characteristic. As the story takes us through a mystified vision of the main character's paranoia and sexual illusions, we are presented with the idea of an identity becoming blurred. During the scene at the party, with everyone dressed up and wearing masks, references toward Greek mythology are presented and suggests the main message of the story. However, what makes this low-budget film impressive, is that the story succeeds in creating ambiguity, forcing us to find a specific message found through visual representations, and by looking underneath the surface.

Even though it may seem like a simple story, there is a strange complexity in the way the film is structured.

Highly recommend it!

Although I was sketchy while first recommended via NetFlix, I decided to check it out. Let me first say, I am a HUGE Nicole Rayburn fan, I think she is highly underrated and i will watch anything she is in. Yes, I've seen "Candy Stripers" and "Boo!" The film starts out with this great title sequence showing these great art pieces... with vivid vibrant colors. We then are taken into the art infused work of Adrian Jonas, who is painting one of his pieces in preparation for his big show in SoHo. The day takes a turn for the worst when Adrian has a vision that something bad is going to happen.

The film is not what I expected, i seriously thought I was going to be watching a bad horror movie, with bad acting and bad dialog. I was pleasantly surprised when I was proved wrong.

The film is both intelligent and intriguing. I was taken into this world of this artist who could possibly be on the verge of something extremely creative or extremely terrifying.

It almost felt documentary-style. Almost like I was peaking into someone's private life, where I shouldn't be. Salvatore Xuereb was just astonishing, he really took the role to the next level and gave you such a great feeling. Wendy Carter was also great as the wife who may be in danger. Jana Kolesarova was a true gem and a surprise when she came onto screen. She really was the true standout for me personally. And of course, Nicole Rayburn was my personal favorite. I hope this girl does more, I really enjoy her.

At the end of this film, I was in shock. I couldn't believe what I just saw and I was blown away. After second viewing, I pieced more information together and I was extremely excited and enthusiastic.

I would recommend this film to everyone. This is a film that you want to talk about after you've seen it.

This is an indie film doing what an indie film should do: shocks, breaks the rules, and entertains. I hadn't heard too much prior to watching other than a recommendation from a buddy, but I was impressed with the film. The production value and the talent of the actors were both great. Very interesting artistic shots and great use of wide-angle lens. The actors also were a treat: fresh talented faces. The story was well written, predictable at some points, but never uninteresting. It had a really nice pace to it building the suspense into a crisp three-act structure. I loved the art work. The art played such a substantial role throughout the film. The hallmark piece was stunning. It played along with the story really well. I was also impressed with the editing sequence during the party scenes. It was very cool. A bit out of the ordinary, but very effective. The style was quick jump cuts reminiscent of Breathless or more recently Brick. MOST IMPORTANTLY: The last 15 minutes made the movie! It went from a suspense thriller to all-out horror--Beautiful representation of complex human emotions and behaviors. It is absolutely worth checking out.