The Popkorn Junkie

Okay, here's the premise. You've got a female psychiatrist working in a woman's mental institution, who loses her memory and awakens as a patient. She has no idea why. She learns that she killed her husband, but she has no clue as to why she would do such a thing. She later learns that she is not alone.

Halle Berry stars as the said psychiatrist Miranda Grey, with Penelope Cruz playing her primary patient and later roommate, Chloe Salva. Then there's Robert Downey Jr who I hear took time off a rehab project to work on this very special film (sarcasm) in which he plays another psychiatrist-- just a hunch, but I think we've got that type of character covered. Nope, I spoke too soon. There's Dr. Douglas Grey, who is a psychiatrist and also the previously said husband who gets axed. Okay, that's the last of the psychiatrist characters. The only other character worth a shoutout would be John Carroll Lynch's (who is known best as Drew Carey's gay-mimi-lovin bro on the Drew Carey show) Sheriff Ryan. Have I said how Miranda is not alone? Well she isn't alone! She's not alone, man! She's being possessed by the ghost of a 12 year old girl, named Rachel! Holy hell, son of a monkey nut! That's scary! More sarcasm. Actually, there are quite a few scary shots in this, which redeem the movie and make it worth spending $8.50 (or whatever you pay) on, but in terms of any other redeeming qualities...there aren't many. Penelope Cruz is WASTED, and I do not mean high like Robert Downey Jr! Her character is underused and pointless. We're led to believe that she's important to the story and she isn't. The plot is decent, but only because of the semi-good twist towards the end, which I won't go into, because that totally make the movie useless to everybody. Yes, you should see this film. Wait until it's about to leave the theaters, which may be in 2 weeks, just so the room won't be so crowded. Go alone. Watch it alone. That coupled with a dark room will probably scare you. If it doesn't, then don't say I didn't warn ya.

-- James ( 2 out of 4 pops )

Talk about this film with other Popkorn Junkies

Other Junkie's opinions.....

Matt ( 1 1/2 out of 4 pops )

In my conversations with my peers, I'm the only one amongst them who seems to have a distaste for this film. Is this going to make me give it a second viewing for benefit of the doubt? Hmmm....I don't think so. Sometimes films surprise me and they end up a lot better the second time I see them, but most of the time first impressions don't lie--at least in my personal moviegoing experiences. Plain and simple, nothing excited me about this movie! We've got Halle Berry fleeing from prison guards, strolling slowly through corridors with flickering fluorescent lights, a crazy inmate (Penelope Cruz) who knows some vital information--wake me up when something ORIGINAL pops up. Halle Berry is a tremendous actress, who deserves much better scripts than this, but she still gives a powerhouse performance. She's about the only saving grace in the film. When it comes to plot twists, I'm not difficult to satisfy. That I'll admit. But by the time the twist ending popped up--I really didn't care! The plot is dumb, confusing and not worth dismantling. Not to mention the tone is incredibly bleak. If a film is bleak, but entertaining and well-made, I come out satisfied. If not, I come out with a bad taste in my mouth and nothing else. This is the first film I've seen in quite a few weeks, so watching crap like this doesn't exactly tempt me to go to the movies more often. Maybe it's good that school and work is preventing me from wasting my time and money on such trash.