Hunted

This is what you need to know about this movie, besides the fact that I recommend it as solid thriller: Kim Basinger, suburban mother of 2, lives with abusive husband. On Xmas she decides to go buy some stuff at the mall and while she's out, a series of bad things happen - getting her into serious trouble.

I wouldn't read more before watching the movie. Not because there are any great twists, but because it's worth watching without any, even minor, spoilers. It's also filled with irony - sometimes it reminded me of Predator and Home Alone - being a horror movie only in the sense of the cat-and-mouse game hunt.

In a role that's surprisingly physical, Kim Basinger does a good job as the protagonist. I can't help but remember what Kim went through with her marriage problems and all, and somehow connect this movie as a catharsis of sorts for her.

"While She Was Out" might not be very well-known, but it should, in my opinion. It's a refreshing take on a genre that's been tirelessly explored, and most important of all, fun.

6/10

An abused housewife (Kim Basinger) goes shopping for wrapping paper on Christmas Eve, and finds herself alone and confronted by a gang of thugs who wish to do harm to her. But she finds herself to be stronger than she thought, and fights back.

Right off the bat, I didn't much care for this film. I found Basinger to be the wrong woman for her role, and not particularly good at what she was doing. The story of an abused wife is certainly terrifying in its own way and I felt for her character... but I never found Basinger believable. The box cover quotes a critic raving about her performance, but I just didn't see it.

From there, we run across stereotypes and clichés. Why is this taking place on Christmas Eve? The film is released in April... and do we really need another Christmas movie anyway? We have yet another dead cell phone, pretty much standard in films today. And then we have a woman who is alone in a big city, somehow able to find secluded woods... there's no one around? Really? But let's just ignore these things.

Another critic points out the "politically correct" casting choices for the thugs -- why are they all racially different and lead by the white man? I guess I don't have a problem with this, but I am forced to wonder if the writer consciously thought that it was important to mix the racial makeup of the group. Which is over-thinking the story, really.

The use of the toolbox was a nice touch... others have compared it to Batman's utility belt (I guess Basinger recalls her time as Vicki Vale). I don't know how realistic it is to carry a toolbox along when you're trying to run away silently from thugs, but I can't deny the nice splashes of blood that come from driving tools deep into a bad guy's head. Which, as a horror reviewer, was a nice surprise from the generally more tam "thriller" genre.

Overall, I found the film predictable and not containing the best acting. There are a few memorable scenes and the ending wasn't exactly what I expected... so that's good. I'd say the film might be worth a rental if you want a bit of suspense on a rainy Friday night, but there are better options out there if you really want to be "thrilled".

Considering the cast,you'd expect better with that said..

The opening shot of driving on the road was nauseating,perhaps because the cinematography was horribly shot in low-light.

There was no real back story on the main character,basically she is an abused wife & mom.. We see her go to a mall casually looking around at stuff & a life,she wished that really existed while buying wrapping paper.

Not sticking up for the thugs but the minute she(Della)stuck that poorly worded note on the windshield,you knew that she brought on anything to come.

Also how does a suburban upper class wife & mom,become a survivalist.. Again,what's her backstory.

Than once done after she kills everyone instead of stopping for help she goes home,her car dies & she walks the rest of way.. Once home basically husband is upset for her being away long,not why she was after seeing she had blood or anything & than follows-up"what did you get me?" Where she responds & shoots him.. Roll credits!

Skip this! Was low-quality,full of plot holes & clichés.

Della Myers (Kim Basinger) is an upper-class housewife that lives in a private condominium in the suburbs with her twin children and her abusive husband Kenneth (Craig Sheffer). Della gives all the attention to the twins, neglecting their house and her appearance and upsetting Kenneth. On the Christmas Eve, she drives to the local mall in the night to buy wrapping paper for the gifts, and she does not find any parking space available. When she sees an old car parked on two spots, she leaves a message to the owner calling him "selfish jerk". When the mall closes, Della's car is hold by the driver of the old car and she is threatened by four punks – Chuckie (Lukas Haas), the Afro-American Huey (Jamie Starr), the Chinese-American Vingh (Leonard Wu) and the Latin Tomás (Luis Chávez). When the security guard of the mall protects her, he is shot on the head by Chuckie, Della speeds up her car trying to escape from the criminals. However she crashes her truck nearby a forest while chased by the gang. She takes the toolbox and hides in the wood, fighting against the gang to survive.

A couple of days ago, I saw the trailer of "While She Was Out" and I was anxious to watch the DVD. Unfortunately the trailer is better than the movie, and I am totally disappointed with this dull and implausible collection of clichés. Della Myers is presented as an insecure and neglectful housewife and inexistent as wife; the motherhood is her only interest in her concept of family. She is chased by four mean criminals but she defeats them with a toolbox that seems to be the Batman's utility belt. Therefore, the plot is so absurd that irritates. The gang of criminals is formed by the favorite cliché of American movies, with an Afro-American, a Chinese-American and a Latin together with an American lord to be politically correct. Kim Basinger has a decent acting, but their children are too young for a fifty-five year-old woman. My vote is four.

Title (Brazil): "Enquanto Ela Está Fora" ("While She Was Out")

The genre of suspense films really takes a dive in this one. The big problem is IMPLAUSABILITY. I realize that you need to create difficult situations which would cause suspense and the tense feeling of whats going to happen next, but this movie was so predictable, and is just not believable. I find that the more I watch this kind of movie, the more I am continually saying things to actors to direct them away from danger. Continually making bad decisions just borders on being plain stupid. If they took the time to make it more realistic, I might have enjoyed it a little. Having said that, you might be better off staying away from this one.