Penthouse North

The storyline in "Penthouse North" was fairly generic and predictable, but it still made for an entertaining enough movie. However, it is not the type of movie that you watch more than once.

The story is about a war photographer by the name of Sara, who loses her eyesight while on assignment. Years later, living a reclusive life with her boyfriend, Sara comes home to find her boyfriend murdered and the killer still in the apartment.

Story-wise then "Penthouse North" wasn't particularly innovative or outstanding, but it was entertaining enough for what it turned out to be. It was adequately paced, but didn't really have many 'edge-of-your-seat' moments, which a good thriller should have.

What made the movie watchable was the acting performances of Michelle Monaghan and Michael Keaton.

There are far better and exciting thrillers available, but "Penthouse North" is still worth giving a chance. Who knows, it might just be what you have been looking for.

Penthouse North is a thriller that has slipped under the radar because it wrongly has been branded as unoriginal and generic. Most thrillers are unoriginal. However there are several elements one can focus on to keep things fresh. And I, like many can't get enough of twists and turns especially ones you don't see coming at all. This one does not rely on twists and turns. In a way that is going against the norm. Many thrillers these days are build around surprises which I like. But what I don't like is how they forget to build up to it. Often it comes out of the blue mostly just to shock you without actually having put real effort to make good use of scenery and atmosphere. One of the criticisms towards Penthouse North is that it uses a concept that has been done many times in the Seventies and Eighties. I don't see any reason why it can't be reused in this decade. It's a simple mechanic to limit our main character's movements. And therefore very effective. I am not going to say what it is. And I suggest you don't read about the premise or watch the trailer since the viewing experience will be so much better when you don't know anything. However that does not mean that this film is a little predictable. But what it lacks in surprises it compensates with very good buildup of tension. It's not always evenly paced but it's not boring. On top of that we have some decent to good acting. Michael Keaton for example might not give it all his best in this one. But he is one that never disappoints. At least I have yet to see one where he does. And here it is no different. He brings what is needed to the table convincingly and that is what matters. Penthouse North may not contain real surprises but it is one that is filled with tense moments and keeps your interest as long as it lasts.

Michelle Monaghan and Michael Keaton star in "Blindsided," a 2013 straight-to-video film coproduced by Keaton for reasons known only to him.

Monaghan plays a former photojournalist, Sara, who was blinded by a suicide bomber while covering a war and still suffers from PTSD. If she didn't suffer from it, she would have been by the time the action in this film finished.

On New Year's Eve, the man she is living with, Ryan (Andrew Walker) is killed by a former associate from whom he stole a fortune in diamonds. Sara has been out, and it takes her a while after she returns home to stumble across the body, and the perpetrator (Barry Sloane) is still in the apartment. He is joined by the brains of the organization, Hollander (Keaton) and together they try by various sadistic means to find out where the loot is.

This is really cliché-ridden claptrap, derivative, predictable, and how dare anyone compare it to Wait Until Dark. You know every move the villains are going to make. What's more, you know where the diamonds are hidden. You also know what the end of the film is going to be. It's all too obvious.

Michael Keaton does a terrific job, but this is a generic mean guy role. Michelle Monaghan does okay, but these are all generic characters there to serve the predictable action.

There were a lot of holes in this thing. First off, why not look for the diamonds in the apartment? Or a key to a safe deposit box? How do you know Sara knows where they are? Quite possibly she knows nothing of Ryan's past and therefore nothing about any theft. And what a place to hide them. If this had been shown in a theater, the entire place would be yelling out the hiding place.

Secondly - and this I really didn't understand - this is a 2013 release. Okay, Sara gets into a room and locks the door. She gets on her computer, which takes vocal commands. And she's going to send an email. Well, I hope the person is checking messages.

No cell phone with a quick connection to 911? A phone she can keep on so she can be found, should she not be able to get out her address? Though in the time it took her to get onto her email, she certainly could have.

The woman is blind, and all she has if she needs help is a computer where she can e-mail someone? We know she had one while she was out. I think someone physically challenged would have it on her at all times.

I can't go on. Skip this movie. Rent Wait Until Dark where an entire audience screamed OUT LOUD at one part. They would have screamed here too - at the box office for their money back.

Lifetime Channel movies are getting better...a little. They are using more well known movie actors, like Michael Keaton in this one. Blindsided is still not an award winning script or performance but it's much better than some (mind you I'm a Lifetime movie watcher, no matter how sappy, although I'm using a bit more discretion with my time nowadays) This movie has decent acting & suspense. It's still a bit predictable, but keeps you interested. The lead Michelle Monaghan is believable (and pretty) as a blind woman pursued by criminals, who think she knows where their "goods" are hidden. It reminds me of Audrey Hepburn's, 1967 classic film, Wait Until Dark, a much better movie. If you need something to watch on a slow weekend this will do. If you are a Lifetime movie watcher, this is a good one. 6.5 stars in my humble opinion. Jan 2014 (watched when first aired on TV)

You might like this movie if you enjoyed: Columbus Circle (1996), Brake (2012)

Long Story Short: Sarah (Michelle Monaghan), a former Military photojournalist, has lost her sight due to an incident in Afghanistan. She lives in a penthouse with her boyfriend Ryan (Andrew W. Walker) and feels safe there even though her sister (Kaniehtiio Horn) and brother-in law (Trevor Hayes) constantly tell her that they don't trust Ryan. It turns out that Ryan does have a secret and, which gets Sarah in great danger.

Review: I have never heard of that movie before but I thought I give it a shot, and it was not a bog let down, but I wasn't blown away either. The beginning is very strong and has a few "Edge- of- your- seat" – moments, but it doesn't keep this pace up, especially since there aren't any twists besides one tiny one at the beginning. I am not sure how her past of being a photojournalist in Afghanistan helped developing the story either, as far as I am concerned they didn't even have to mention why she was blind. All these flashbacks from her past seemed like fillers to me. The acting was decent, I saw a few nice skyscraper shots, but I was hoping for a big reveal at the end which didn't happen. Penthouse House is definitely a one- time watch but not a bad one.

Rating: 5.5