Mirrors
2/4
Starring: Kiefer Sutherland, Paula Patton, Amy Smart, John Shrapnel
The version being reviewed is the unrated one. For the record, the theatrical cut is rated R for Strong Violence, Disturbing Images, Language and Brief Nudity
"Mirrors," a loose remake of the Korean horror film "Into the Mirror," is one of the movies that can be defined in this simple sentence: good premise, bad execution. The idea that evil mirrors can force you to do horrible things or influence behavior towards violence or other such scary actions is intriguing and has a lot of potential. Unfortunately, director Alexandre Aja has co-written a script that could charitably be called anemic and uses poor shot selection to tell his story.
Ben Carson (Sutherland) is a cop who is wrestling with some serious demons. While on the job, he accidentally shot an undercover officer. Now on leave, he has stopped drinking and is taking a job as a security guard for the Mayflower shopping mall...or what's left of it. Five years ago, this premier shopping center was destroyed by a devastating fire, but the company wants security guards to patrol it while the insurance claim is sorted out. Ben views the job as a offensive step down, but he'll do whatever it takes to get his life back on track. But it turns out that the Mayflower has its secrets: specifically, mirrors that can force him to do terrible things, and can follow him to any reflective surface. And they have a very specific task for him to do, or else his family will die.
The acting is okay. Kiefer Sutherland is uneven, probably because the role requires him to act gruff and intense at times while emotional and sympathetic at others. He isn't able to form a bridge between the two. Paula Patton is miscast. In the dramatic moments as Ben's emotionally scarred wife, Amy, she's good. But she's no scream queen. Her talents lie in drama and comedy. Amy Smart is on hand as Ben's supportive younger sister, Angela, but she doesn't have much screen time (this film might have been better if Patton's and Smart's roles had beet switched).
I wasn't exactly a fan of Alexandre Aja's breakthrough cult hit, "High Tension." I found it to be too violent for its own good, and it was ruined by some questionable music choices and a boneheaded cliche of an ending. "Mirrors" isn't exactly an improvement, but it's at least not as sadistic. However, I am still unconvinced that Aja has much talent as a filmmaker. His shot selection is at times befuddling. Sometimes we can't see things that we should because the camera is too far away, and other times it's unclear whether what its happening is an image in the mirror or not. The plot is also similar enough to "The Ring" that it earns the ungainly moniker of "rip off," and Gore Verbinski did it much better six years prior.
"Mirrors" isn't a terrible movie. It is watchable, and the story keeps things going, if only to find out what the mirrors want Ben to do and why. But it could have, and should have, been so much better.
Starring: Kiefer Sutherland, Paula Patton, Amy Smart, John Shrapnel
The version being reviewed is the unrated one. For the record, the theatrical cut is rated R for Strong Violence, Disturbing Images, Language and Brief Nudity
"Mirrors," a loose remake of the Korean horror film "Into the Mirror," is one of the movies that can be defined in this simple sentence: good premise, bad execution. The idea that evil mirrors can force you to do horrible things or influence behavior towards violence or other such scary actions is intriguing and has a lot of potential. Unfortunately, director Alexandre Aja has co-written a script that could charitably be called anemic and uses poor shot selection to tell his story.
Ben Carson (Sutherland) is a cop who is wrestling with some serious demons. While on the job, he accidentally shot an undercover officer. Now on leave, he has stopped drinking and is taking a job as a security guard for the Mayflower shopping mall...or what's left of it. Five years ago, this premier shopping center was destroyed by a devastating fire, but the company wants security guards to patrol it while the insurance claim is sorted out. Ben views the job as a offensive step down, but he'll do whatever it takes to get his life back on track. But it turns out that the Mayflower has its secrets: specifically, mirrors that can force him to do terrible things, and can follow him to any reflective surface. And they have a very specific task for him to do, or else his family will die.
The acting is okay. Kiefer Sutherland is uneven, probably because the role requires him to act gruff and intense at times while emotional and sympathetic at others. He isn't able to form a bridge between the two. Paula Patton is miscast. In the dramatic moments as Ben's emotionally scarred wife, Amy, she's good. But she's no scream queen. Her talents lie in drama and comedy. Amy Smart is on hand as Ben's supportive younger sister, Angela, but she doesn't have much screen time (this film might have been better if Patton's and Smart's roles had beet switched).
I wasn't exactly a fan of Alexandre Aja's breakthrough cult hit, "High Tension." I found it to be too violent for its own good, and it was ruined by some questionable music choices and a boneheaded cliche of an ending. "Mirrors" isn't exactly an improvement, but it's at least not as sadistic. However, I am still unconvinced that Aja has much talent as a filmmaker. His shot selection is at times befuddling. Sometimes we can't see things that we should because the camera is too far away, and other times it's unclear whether what its happening is an image in the mirror or not. The plot is also similar enough to "The Ring" that it earns the ungainly moniker of "rip off," and Gore Verbinski did it much better six years prior.
"Mirrors" isn't a terrible movie. It is watchable, and the story keeps things going, if only to find out what the mirrors want Ben to do and why. But it could have, and should have, been so much better.
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