34 reviews
For SyFy, Finders Keepers is not so bad and is a long way from their worst. As a movie in general though, it does have some good things and looks like some effort went into it but it doesn't quite come together. Starting with the positives, the movie actually looks good(and for a SyFy movie that is quite a compliment), with some very effective lighting, crisp editing and unobtrusive camera work. The music does create some atmosphere, not an exceptional one by all means but it fits the movie and doesn't try to be too obvious, the doll is very creepy-looking and there are some scary moments. A few performances come over quite well, the best of the lot coming from Kylie Rogers who is both adorable and terrifying, while Jaime Pressley is a sympathetic and somewhat touching mother figure. Most of the acting is not particularly strong, consisting of a lot of under-acting with Patrick Muldoon phoning it in, and Tobin Bell is wasted.
Finders Keepers as said has some moments that are scary and suspenseful, they only came in spades rather than the movie being continually creepy. Most of the movie was lacking in scares and atmosphere for me, it was more predictable than suspenseful, the gore and scare factor were too toned down a lot of the time and a lot of moments that should have been scary came across as silly instead. The characters are almost impossible to root for and connect with, they are very underdeveloped and you get frustrated with how stupid some of their actions are as a consequence perhaps of focusing too much on the relationship between Rogers and Pressley's characters and side-lining everybody else which was a large part of why most of the acting did not register.
The direction is technically competent but when it comes to maintaining momentum, atmosphere and making the characters and chemistry interesting it fails, and the dialogue is often horrid, the worst of which enough to make one cringe. The story had bags of potential and effort clearly was made to it with a very original idea, but it was a case of trying to do too much and not explaining enough, making it feel muddled and underwritten. Some of the plot twists border on idiotic, as seen in the senseless ending, and the story feels too padded out in places. And I wish they did more with the doll, it is a very creepily-designed character but there is a real sense that the writers weren't sure what it was, offering at least four different explanations as to what it really was but it was never made clear which one it actually was. Overall, for SyFy Finders Keepers was watchable but was in personal opinion was very lacking. It is not as though there isn't any talent on display here because there is, it is such a shame that that just didn't come across here. 4/10 Bethany Cox
Finders Keepers as said has some moments that are scary and suspenseful, they only came in spades rather than the movie being continually creepy. Most of the movie was lacking in scares and atmosphere for me, it was more predictable than suspenseful, the gore and scare factor were too toned down a lot of the time and a lot of moments that should have been scary came across as silly instead. The characters are almost impossible to root for and connect with, they are very underdeveloped and you get frustrated with how stupid some of their actions are as a consequence perhaps of focusing too much on the relationship between Rogers and Pressley's characters and side-lining everybody else which was a large part of why most of the acting did not register.
The direction is technically competent but when it comes to maintaining momentum, atmosphere and making the characters and chemistry interesting it fails, and the dialogue is often horrid, the worst of which enough to make one cringe. The story had bags of potential and effort clearly was made to it with a very original idea, but it was a case of trying to do too much and not explaining enough, making it feel muddled and underwritten. Some of the plot twists border on idiotic, as seen in the senseless ending, and the story feels too padded out in places. And I wish they did more with the doll, it is a very creepily-designed character but there is a real sense that the writers weren't sure what it was, offering at least four different explanations as to what it really was but it was never made clear which one it actually was. Overall, for SyFy Finders Keepers was watchable but was in personal opinion was very lacking. It is not as though there isn't any talent on display here because there is, it is such a shame that that just didn't come across here. 4/10 Bethany Cox
- TheLittleSongbird
- Nov 12, 2014
- Permalink
I happened to learn of this film while checking a trailer for another (good ol' YouTube recommendation). Apparently, it's an original TV film made by a channel called Syfy, a fact made obvious by the lighting and cinematography, and perhaps the fact that NONE of the main characters are credited here on IMDb without clicking the "see full cast" link!
Anyways, nothing original about the story... violent murder in a house, reasons unknown, evil haunted doll recovered, rinse and repeat. Deja-vu? Bluntly so... I must say I liked the acting, especially by 10 year old Kylie Rogers as little Claire. Having to play such a role when you're only 10 isn't easy (though not half as challenging or impressive as other young lead roles like in Mama or The Ring), and I think Rogers showed some real talent.
The story develops nicely, but not more than that. The doll is pretty creepy though! Not easy presenting scary dolls nowadays after the high raft set by Saw and The Conjuring. Certain scenes were really amateur, for instance when one of the characters trips on a wire it is painfully visible that she simply ducked and rolled down the stairs... Why give stuntman Steve Austin the first credit when other stunts were so miserably performed? Beats me.
All in all, this is the kind of film you can definitely enjoy, but only if you set your Horror meter to mediocre and below. I enjoyed watching it, and I liked the fact that it lacked any sex, gore or extreme violence, making it suitable for younger Horror fans. It isn't terrible, but it's far from great. As always, I recommend you ignore my (or anyone else's) opinion and judge for yourselves!
Anyways, nothing original about the story... violent murder in a house, reasons unknown, evil haunted doll recovered, rinse and repeat. Deja-vu? Bluntly so... I must say I liked the acting, especially by 10 year old Kylie Rogers as little Claire. Having to play such a role when you're only 10 isn't easy (though not half as challenging or impressive as other young lead roles like in Mama or The Ring), and I think Rogers showed some real talent.
The story develops nicely, but not more than that. The doll is pretty creepy though! Not easy presenting scary dolls nowadays after the high raft set by Saw and The Conjuring. Certain scenes were really amateur, for instance when one of the characters trips on a wire it is painfully visible that she simply ducked and rolled down the stairs... Why give stuntman Steve Austin the first credit when other stunts were so miserably performed? Beats me.
All in all, this is the kind of film you can definitely enjoy, but only if you set your Horror meter to mediocre and below. I enjoyed watching it, and I liked the fact that it lacked any sex, gore or extreme violence, making it suitable for younger Horror fans. It isn't terrible, but it's far from great. As always, I recommend you ignore my (or anyone else's) opinion and judge for yourselves!
- nitzanhavoc
- Feb 19, 2015
- Permalink
I didn't expect much from Jamie Pressly as a serious actress but I must say she wasn't terrible, not great but better than expected at least.
Story albeit predictable is somewhat enjoyable BUT yeah the big issue here is not the acting or or the plot which from a killer doll movie you really can't expect much from anyways.
Looking at the cover of course it made me think "ooh wee another killer doll movie like Chucky, this can be good fun if nothing else".
BUT, the doll doesn't actually move on screen it's all done behind camera or shot in a way where you can only see for instance a knife being moved around and the stabbing victim etc, you don't actually get to see the doll doing of the stabbing or making any funny remarks (like Chucky would have) while doing it.
Had it shown that this would have been a vastly more enjoyable experience, I understand that it would be hard to make it look realistic but I'd rather have them do it poorly looking than just to avoid it completely.
Story albeit predictable is somewhat enjoyable BUT yeah the big issue here is not the acting or or the plot which from a killer doll movie you really can't expect much from anyways.
Looking at the cover of course it made me think "ooh wee another killer doll movie like Chucky, this can be good fun if nothing else".
BUT, the doll doesn't actually move on screen it's all done behind camera or shot in a way where you can only see for instance a knife being moved around and the stabbing victim etc, you don't actually get to see the doll doing of the stabbing or making any funny remarks (like Chucky would have) while doing it.
Had it shown that this would have been a vastly more enjoyable experience, I understand that it would be hard to make it look realistic but I'd rather have them do it poorly looking than just to avoid it completely.
- Seth_Rogue_One
- Sep 26, 2015
- Permalink
- victor-188-890652
- Mar 13, 2015
- Permalink
This film is so painfully awful. Basically, a family is murdered by their son who is possessed by a doll. 5 years later a divorced mother and her 9 yr old daughter move in. The kid finds the doll and then this absolute lazy joke of a film starts.
In short, both parents are going through a tough time with the divorce and now their 9 year old is throwing tantrums and being the most irritating rude child you could imagine. The daughter in this movie is just a brat, plain and simple. The director wants you to feel sorry for her but she screeches her way through an hour and half that I'll never get back.
There is a rinse and repeat in the film about 10 times. In short, everyone the little brat comes into contact with whether directly or indirectly, verbally or visually, she kills them. Well the doll kills them. So anytime someone appears on screen that's not her mother, father or Tobin Bell who is wasted in this movie by having 2 scenes as a child psychiatrist, they are gonna die. Some of them, under the same circumstances as people earlier in the film. Honestly it is laughable how both parents after finding out about at least a dozen murders don't decide to something other than stare in disbelief at their annoying little psycho daughter.
Save yourself the time and watch any other horror you come across
In short, both parents are going through a tough time with the divorce and now their 9 year old is throwing tantrums and being the most irritating rude child you could imagine. The daughter in this movie is just a brat, plain and simple. The director wants you to feel sorry for her but she screeches her way through an hour and half that I'll never get back.
There is a rinse and repeat in the film about 10 times. In short, everyone the little brat comes into contact with whether directly or indirectly, verbally or visually, she kills them. Well the doll kills them. So anytime someone appears on screen that's not her mother, father or Tobin Bell who is wasted in this movie by having 2 scenes as a child psychiatrist, they are gonna die. Some of them, under the same circumstances as people earlier in the film. Honestly it is laughable how both parents after finding out about at least a dozen murders don't decide to something other than stare in disbelief at their annoying little psycho daughter.
Save yourself the time and watch any other horror you come across
- aaronjconroy
- May 20, 2017
- Permalink
Alyson (Jaime Pressly) and her daughter Clair (Kylie Rogers) move into a home, but unknown to them, it has an evil past. The people who lived there before them were murdered by their 8-yr old son who had become possessed by an evil doll. Now, Clair has become possessed by the same doll, which she found inside a vent in her room.
I have to say I was impressed by Jaime Pressly's acting in this. This is the first time I've seen her in a straight out dramatic role. Granted, I haven't seen that many things with her, but she was very good in this. However, I didn't like her hairstyle. The front of it wasn't bad, but the almost shaved back of her head was very odd to see on a woman, and they must have had about 4 different scenes where they had a close up of it. Kylie Rogers did a very good job as well as the troubled and possessed Clair. Patrick Muldoon portrayed Alyson's ex-husband. I haven't seen him in anything since Starship Troopers. He was more of a side-character in this, as the movie was much more focused on Pressly and Rogers.
I gave this a 4-star rating. I wouldn't want to see it again, because I'm not a fan of possession movies, but I enjoyed it enough to sit through it. I have to say that parts of this kind of reminded me of The Conjuring. For something from the SyFy channel, this was surprisingly watchable.
I have to say I was impressed by Jaime Pressly's acting in this. This is the first time I've seen her in a straight out dramatic role. Granted, I haven't seen that many things with her, but she was very good in this. However, I didn't like her hairstyle. The front of it wasn't bad, but the almost shaved back of her head was very odd to see on a woman, and they must have had about 4 different scenes where they had a close up of it. Kylie Rogers did a very good job as well as the troubled and possessed Clair. Patrick Muldoon portrayed Alyson's ex-husband. I haven't seen him in anything since Starship Troopers. He was more of a side-character in this, as the movie was much more focused on Pressly and Rogers.
I gave this a 4-star rating. I wouldn't want to see it again, because I'm not a fan of possession movies, but I enjoyed it enough to sit through it. I have to say that parts of this kind of reminded me of The Conjuring. For something from the SyFy channel, this was surprisingly watchable.
- chrismackey1972
- Oct 31, 2014
- Permalink
Woman buys house then realises it is haunted. Or something is. She has a child, in this case a daughter, but if you've seen a similar offering in which the woman has a son or the man has a son, or there is a family or a whole bunch of them, you might be forgiven for experiencing a sense of déjà vu. Guess what comes next, and you get only the one guess. Of course, murders, lots of them!
There is no secret about the root of the evil as from the off we are made aware of the reason the house is haunted, there had been a massacre there, one committed by a ten year old boy, who also murdered the two police officers who were sent to investigate the initial disturbance, or whatever it was.
Kylie Rogers who plays Claire was only 10 years old when this film was released. If her role does not constitute child abuse then an adult willingly sitting through 80+ minutes of this constitutes self-abuse (no, not in that sense, you reprobate). Indeed there is no sex to speak of in this film, not that a rape, an orgy or even a knee trembler could have made it appreciably worse.
There is no secret about the root of the evil as from the off we are made aware of the reason the house is haunted, there had been a massacre there, one committed by a ten year old boy, who also murdered the two police officers who were sent to investigate the initial disturbance, or whatever it was.
Kylie Rogers who plays Claire was only 10 years old when this film was released. If her role does not constitute child abuse then an adult willingly sitting through 80+ minutes of this constitutes self-abuse (no, not in that sense, you reprobate). Indeed there is no sex to speak of in this film, not that a rape, an orgy or even a knee trembler could have made it appreciably worse.
- jamie_lee_stock
- Dec 20, 2014
- Permalink
My hopes were not too high before watching this but I was surprised that it is actually pretty good.
It's a familiar tale, family move into a house with a horrible history and bad things happen. We have seen it all a hundred times but thanks to a good cast and some nice directing this still manages to satisfy.
There were a number of well handled tension filled scenes that prove that horror isn't and shouldn't be all about the gore. Although it's fairly predictable I still felt pretty tense at times watching it. The cast all did a good job but a special mention must go to the little girl who plays the young daughter Claire ( Kylie Rogers) who is genuinely chilling as the possessed girl.
For a small budget horror film this is a good film and is certainly on a par with many of it's higher budgeted rivals.
It's a familiar tale, family move into a house with a horrible history and bad things happen. We have seen it all a hundred times but thanks to a good cast and some nice directing this still manages to satisfy.
There were a number of well handled tension filled scenes that prove that horror isn't and shouldn't be all about the gore. Although it's fairly predictable I still felt pretty tense at times watching it. The cast all did a good job but a special mention must go to the little girl who plays the young daughter Claire ( Kylie Rogers) who is genuinely chilling as the possessed girl.
For a small budget horror film this is a good film and is certainly on a par with many of it's higher budgeted rivals.
- MattyGibbs
- Mar 13, 2015
- Permalink
- princess_za1974
- Aug 29, 2015
- Permalink
Moving into a new house, her daughter's connection to a strange doll left at the house soon turns deadly when they find a series of deaths connected to the being and must try to save her before it's too late.
This was actually quite a bit of fun and had a lot really going for it. The most important is the one that drives the whole film, as the doll itself is genuinely creepy and chilling with a defined look and air about it that really has the appearance of something malevolent out there. That goes a long way here towards making these actions all the more creepy and chilling by not only emphasizing what's going on but also doing it along with the notions of it being committed by a creepy doll. That this leads to several highly enjoyable scenes as the couple try to leave their apartment knowing that someone is in their with them leading into the final confrontation in the bedroom, the diner stalking and finally the big confrontation in the house at the end which not only adds a rather impressive amount of action to the proceedings so that there's a lot to really like throughout this. From the numerous amount of time spent here trying to determine if what's going on here is really just the doll or rather it's the girl committing everything, this subplot actually does a whole lot more than the rest of the film centered around the doll as there's enough life in this angle that it really does seem believable that one of them is the real case here which is quite fun and makes the film wholly enjoyable as it tries to weave all the different encounters that could provide such answers. That, in effect, leaves the film with a slew of exciting confrontations centered around a chilling main villain and augmented by enough creepy side-plots, actions and decent death scenes to make for a really exciting effort, though there's one rather big problem here that does keep this from a perfect score. Early on, the behavior of the girl towards her parents as well as people out on the town really should've been handled better so that it doesn't reek of ineffective parenting on their part due to how uncontrollable she is. There's numerous occasions where the parents were totally justified in at the very least slapping the girl or even providing a crueler source of discipline toward her to be more accountable for her, yet none of this really happens which causes them to look quite ineffective at their responsibilities. Otherwise, this one tends to come off rather well.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Violence, Language, Brief Nudity and children-in-jeopardy.
This was actually quite a bit of fun and had a lot really going for it. The most important is the one that drives the whole film, as the doll itself is genuinely creepy and chilling with a defined look and air about it that really has the appearance of something malevolent out there. That goes a long way here towards making these actions all the more creepy and chilling by not only emphasizing what's going on but also doing it along with the notions of it being committed by a creepy doll. That this leads to several highly enjoyable scenes as the couple try to leave their apartment knowing that someone is in their with them leading into the final confrontation in the bedroom, the diner stalking and finally the big confrontation in the house at the end which not only adds a rather impressive amount of action to the proceedings so that there's a lot to really like throughout this. From the numerous amount of time spent here trying to determine if what's going on here is really just the doll or rather it's the girl committing everything, this subplot actually does a whole lot more than the rest of the film centered around the doll as there's enough life in this angle that it really does seem believable that one of them is the real case here which is quite fun and makes the film wholly enjoyable as it tries to weave all the different encounters that could provide such answers. That, in effect, leaves the film with a slew of exciting confrontations centered around a chilling main villain and augmented by enough creepy side-plots, actions and decent death scenes to make for a really exciting effort, though there's one rather big problem here that does keep this from a perfect score. Early on, the behavior of the girl towards her parents as well as people out on the town really should've been handled better so that it doesn't reek of ineffective parenting on their part due to how uncontrollable she is. There's numerous occasions where the parents were totally justified in at the very least slapping the girl or even providing a crueler source of discipline toward her to be more accountable for her, yet none of this really happens which causes them to look quite ineffective at their responsibilities. Otherwise, this one tends to come off rather well.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Violence, Language, Brief Nudity and children-in-jeopardy.
- kannibalcorpsegrinder
- Oct 19, 2014
- Permalink
Where to start...the story is awful, the acting is diabolical, even with some fairly known celebrities. The whole film made my eyes feel like they were going to fall out with the amount of rolling they had done.
No chemistry between characters, pitiful connections throughout the storyline, ridiculous deaths that had no explanation, an inatimate object teleporting from one place to another.
Don't waste any time in your life watching this absolutely absurd film. No horror, no jump scares, no real gore, just a run of the mill, trying to make a quick buck, unsuccessful horror movie that will have you feeling embarrassed for watching it.
No chemistry between characters, pitiful connections throughout the storyline, ridiculous deaths that had no explanation, an inatimate object teleporting from one place to another.
Don't waste any time in your life watching this absolutely absurd film. No horror, no jump scares, no real gore, just a run of the mill, trying to make a quick buck, unsuccessful horror movie that will have you feeling embarrassed for watching it.
- yeaitsarronbaby
- Dec 7, 2018
- Permalink
So terrible. Just a flat, boring, predictable film. No shocks or smiles or good performances.
- homage1138
- Oct 30, 2018
- Permalink
This movie is a ridiculous unrealistic piece of SH!T that seems to try to be scary. The parents are incredibly stupid. Cat lady should've issued a police report. Wish the director had enough of a brain to give better reactions while filming. Kylie Rogers was okay but I wish her character was more realistic. The director should take some advice from James Wan or Stephen King. The best horror movie directors i've ever seen. Movie wasn't scary isn't worth the watch and is simply but, a piece of SH!T . I bet keeping up with the kardashians is better than this trash. No offense to the director but try making the characters more realistic, better reactions, and better police. If its set in the modern world, than have it be set IN THE MODERN FUKING WORLD
- thespiderpablo
- Aug 7, 2016
- Permalink
Could have been a good idea if it was executed better. The doll looks creepy but leaves the question of why any child would go near it? It's kind of a plot hole that the Mother even let her have in it in the first place.
Furthermore, the child actor is really unlikable and bratty. The mother allows her to get away with awful behaviour, it makes it so hard to identify with her or have any sympathy. Most of the acting is either okay or horrible. There aren't many good uses of cinematography or lighting either. Settings that are used are also dull, just another spooky house.
A good point is the idea of the doll controlling the girl, they get kinda creative with how it effects her. But I would say skip this boring horror!
Furthermore, the child actor is really unlikable and bratty. The mother allows her to get away with awful behaviour, it makes it so hard to identify with her or have any sympathy. Most of the acting is either okay or horrible. There aren't many good uses of cinematography or lighting either. Settings that are used are also dull, just another spooky house.
A good point is the idea of the doll controlling the girl, they get kinda creative with how it effects her. But I would say skip this boring horror!
- rebeccalucy
- Oct 31, 2017
- Permalink
- nogodnomasters
- Aug 29, 2018
- Permalink
If I had known beforehand that Finders Keepers was a made-for-TV movie, distributed by SyFy, I probably would have given it a wide berth. As such, the film is, for the most part, a rather tepid tale that provides very few scares—yet another in a long line of derivative horror films that revolve around a creepy doll.
Jaime Pressly stars as Alyson Simon, mother and estranged wife, who moves into a new home with her young daughter Claire (Kylie Rogers). Life takes a turn for the worse for Alyson, however, when her little girl becomes obsessed with Lilith, the strange looking doll hidden that she discovers hidden under a floor vent. It's not long before Claire begins to exhibit very strange behaviour while those around her start to turn up dead.
This plot is so well-worn that it practically writes itself, with the girl and the doll becoming inseparable while her parents try to figure out what the hell is going on. Several characters are introduced simply to become victims: Tobin Bell as child psychologist Dr. Freeman, Marina Sirtis as nosy neighbour Janine, and Justina Machado as occult expert Professor Elena Carranza, whose nasty death scene—eyes plucked out and set alight—is easily the highlight of this otherwise forgettable fright flick.
Jaime Pressly stars as Alyson Simon, mother and estranged wife, who moves into a new home with her young daughter Claire (Kylie Rogers). Life takes a turn for the worse for Alyson, however, when her little girl becomes obsessed with Lilith, the strange looking doll hidden that she discovers hidden under a floor vent. It's not long before Claire begins to exhibit very strange behaviour while those around her start to turn up dead.
This plot is so well-worn that it practically writes itself, with the girl and the doll becoming inseparable while her parents try to figure out what the hell is going on. Several characters are introduced simply to become victims: Tobin Bell as child psychologist Dr. Freeman, Marina Sirtis as nosy neighbour Janine, and Justina Machado as occult expert Professor Elena Carranza, whose nasty death scene—eyes plucked out and set alight—is easily the highlight of this otherwise forgettable fright flick.
- BA_Harrison
- Sep 21, 2017
- Permalink
- mr_waterfall
- Dec 17, 2016
- Permalink
- michaelRokeefe
- Jul 9, 2025
- Permalink
- mbyrne16648099
- Apr 16, 2019
- Permalink
Finders Keepers (2014) review. Had to write this, so nobody will loose their time watching it. . That movie is an explosion of clichés. ------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- Who makes these low quality "movies" so yeah, i feel better now