The Resident (2011) Review

Article first published as Review: The Resident (2011) on Technorati.

Movie: The Resident (2011)
Cast: Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Hilary Swank and Christopher Lee
Rating: 3.5/5

Many horror flicks come an go and leave no mark on your memory. The Resident is an exception in this regard. It is an unconventional scary film in the sense that unlike Paranormal Activity 2  it does not rely on any supernatural phenomenon to create creepiness and horror.

Although many films are based on human disorders and psychotic anomalies, The Resident is still unique in its treatment of the subject where intimacy, love, sex and obsession are all given equal weight-age.

It is a wonderfully presented film about how you can never be sure of who is monitoring your daily routine at what time with what intentions. It also addresses the fact that many sweet gestures can be interpreted in undesirable ways by seemingly sane people causing them to react insanely and dangerously.

Dr. Juliet Dermer (Hilary Swank) moves to a new apartment and after some days feels that she is not alone in the place. She frequently misses the wakeup alarm and feels that some external influence is causing her to oversleep. She finally finds out that her landlord Max(Jeffrey Dean Morgan) has harbored a passionate and raging obsession for her.

The best feature of the film is its presentation of sexual desires, lust and want. The cinematic presentation of Swank's curves and features is sensual to say the least. The translation of both Juliet's and Max's frustrations is immaculate, where Juliet is shown masturbating in the tub and max is shown perving on her naked body through a peeping hole.

Although I don't consider Hillary Swank (who has also co-produced the film) as a particularly attractive woman I must admit that she has looked impressive without clothes. Her full figured body gives a good explanation of Max's perversion and attraction. She has acted very well as the heart-broken, frustrated doctor who really wants to get it on with her landlord but is confused and finally returns back to her ex.

Not giving much away about the film, I must say that it is quite scary simply because it shows how a seemingly sweet person can have a dark side to him that could be triggered by a misguided gesture.

Paranormal Activity 2 :Review

Article first published as Review: Paranormal Activity 2 on Technorati.

Movie: Paranormal Activity 2
Cast: Katie Featherston, Micah Sloat and Molly Ephraim
Rating: 3/5

The much-awaited second edition of the horror sensation Paranormal Activity is a well-made film, for starters. What the film lacks is that, being a sequel, it has lost the advantage that Paranormal Activity had, in that people were fooled into believing that it was a true story!

The movie has all the ingredients of a conventional horror flick. The special effects, the spooky environment, the big bungalow, the Spanish witchdoctor of a maid and a little baby.

Children are the cutest and the scariest of creatures. Be it in The Omen or Chucky, the thought of an innocent creature being a deadly demon has haunted many. The difference in Paranormal Activity 2 is that the child here is at the receiving end! The scenes where the paranormal entity interacts with the child are especially disturbing as one feel sympathy for the little one and anger towards the parents who are intent on leaving the child alone in a room knowing that the house is haunted!

The movie is a prequel of the original and the events start a couple of months before Micah's death in the first film. The rest is for you to watch, as I hate to be the spoiler! In fact, my reviews are short because I believe in encouraging the reader to see the film rather than telling him the story.

The cast has acted well with Molly spicing up the screen. The rest have given good performances, considering all they had to do was react to the special effects. I especially liked the dog, though, since it was the only one concerned for the child.

The film had quite a margin for spicy scenes and sexy punctuations, but it does not dwell in that territory. It would have been awesome if it had made use of the generous assets of the female cast!

Nothing special but it is a scary one especially when seen in a dark room. Certainly worth a watch, but no compulsions.