the uninvited Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Bride Wars
One minute, she's struggling with addiction and family drama in the winning Rachel Got Married. The next, Anne Hathaway was skyrocketing to the dredge, terrible marriage stereotyping, and wedding wars with Kate Hudson. Jeffrey M. Anderson said there's one worthy minute in the film, but the "rest of the time, for 88 out of its 89 minutes, it's a movie totally devoid of life." Also on Blu-ray. Skip it.

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The Uninvited
One would think that a film with David Strathairn and Elizabeth Banks would be worth a moment or two, especially since they're not running to the horror/thriller genre every day, but as Jette Kernion said in her review in February: the story is weak, Banks' lines are "stilted and almost laughable," and Strathairn's performance "made me want to go home and put on one of his better movies to forget about his nearly wooden character in this one." That's enough reason to Skip it. Also on Blu-ray.

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Martyrs
Movies that make Saw look like Sesame Street aren't the type I usually have in my queue, so I'll leave this entirely up to Scott Weinberg: "It may be one of the most ferocious horror films ever made -- but Martyrs is also quite effectively chilling and consistently disturbing ... frankly I think it's one of the most fascinating pieces of 'hardcore' horror cinema you'd ever want to see." Buy it ... if you have the guts.

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Nothing But the Truth
Another political drama in Rod Lurie's stable, Truth boasts the likes of Kate Beckinsale, Alan Alda, Vera Farmiga, Matt Dillon, taking the Valerie Plame case and morphing into an amped up drama with intrique based around missile strikes on Venezuela. Eric Snider said from TIFF: "Still, for all its strengths, Nothing But the Truth falls under the umbrella of good but not great." Rent it.

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Also out: Frost/Nixon: Complete Interviews, What Doesn't Kill You (also on Blu-ray), While She Was Out

Warning: This post contains major, movie-ruining spoilers for My Bloody Valentine 3D and The Uninvited. Don't read it if you haven't seen them, or if you have any intention of ever seeing them.

January leftovers My Bloody Valentine and The Uninvited have a few superficial things in common. They're both remakes (of a 1981 Canadian slasher film and a 2003 Korean thriller, respectively), they're both set in rustic little towns, they're both meant to scare you. But as those of us who have seen both films know, they also share a pretty significant plot device. We'll talk about it in the next paragraph, after one last spoiler warning.

Both films end with the surprise revelation that the protagonists, both recently released mental patients, are the real villains, and that they're so crazy they don't even realize what they've been doing. This is convenient, because it means the audience -- seeing the story through the protagonists' eyes -- has been in the dark, too. In My Bloody Valentine, the masked killer turns out to be Tom (Jensen Ackles), who has spent most of the film trying to stop the masked killer, unaware that it was himself. In The Uninvited, Anna (Emily Browning) has been convinced that her dad's girlfriend is trying to kill her. But as it turns out, Anna has been imagining it all, including conversations with her sister, Alex (Arielle Kebbel), who actually died a year ago. When "Alex" kills Dad's girlfriend at the end, it's really Anna holding the knife.

Neither of these films is the first to use the old split-personality-murderer trick, and the fact that they've been released two weeks apart is just a coincidence. But what does it say about modern scary-movie making?

It's awesome, somehow, that Liam Neeson (along with some nifty marketing, it's true) can open an action movie to the tune of $24.6 million. Maybe it's the fact that Taken's debut at #1 comes after two depressing weeks when Paul Blart: Mall Cop inexplicably dominated the charts (and indeed, Paul Blart continues to rake in big bucks, falling off only 35% to second place). Taken opened in just about every other part of the world in 2008 and has already grossed nearly $70 million worldwide; put this one into the win column for Luc Besson and his production team.

The Uninvited's third-place, $10.5 million bow is a disappointment -- to Dreamworks, but also to me, since I think it's superior to most of the PG-13 horror that's been doing so well lately. (Certainly it kicks The Unborn's ass six ways from Sunday.) I think the advertising was a bit too stately, emphasizing Elizabeth Banks in creepy mode rather than the shock effects that tend to draw the crowds. Not a tragedy for the relatively inexpensive film, but perhaps a missed opportunity.

New in Town was defeated by a beatdown of scathing reviews, a wimpy, girly-man 1900-screen release, and a marketing effort that wasn't up to the task of capitalizing on Renee Zellweger's star power. Zellweger eats $6.75 million for breakfast.

For the first time since January 9th, Slumdog Millionare made less than it did the previous weekend, but it's up to a not-too-shabby $67 million cume. I wouldn't rule out $100 million before it leaves theaters.

The full top 10 after the jump.

It appears that The Uninvited is being marketed as a horror movie, but it doesn't seem to be quite sure what it is. Sure, there's some gore, and some "jump" moments where a hand shoots out to grab someone or a shadowy figure lunges at a character. But there are also stabs (no pun intended) at an old-fashioned family melodrama and at a supernatural thriller. Unfortunately, the film doesn't live up to the potential of any of these genres.

The movie opens with a dream sequence from Anna (Emily Browning), about the night her mother died. When Anna related the dream to a doctor in the mental hospital where she's confined, he pronounces her well on the road to recovery and sends her home to her family. While she's happy to see her father (David Strathairn) and sister Alex (Arielle Kebbel), Anna immediately locks horns with Rachael (Elizabeth Banks), her father's fiancee. It seems that only about a year ago, Anna's mother was dying of some lingering disease and Rachael was her nurse ... and a mysterious fire killed Anna's mother. Anna can't remember what exactly happened on the night of the fire, and no one else seems to know. The suspense is focused on just how wicked Rachael might be, and what the two sisters can do to find out the truth. In addition, Anna has supernatural and gruesome dreams ... but maybe they're not dreams at all.

Two weeks in a row with Paul Blart at number one, dropping a mere 32%? Did NOT see that coming. Of last week's two new releases, Underworld: Rise of the Lycans did the best, taking the number two spot. Inkheart only took in $7.6 million, placing it in seventh for its first week. Here's the top five:

1. Paul Blart: Mall Cop: $21.6 million
2. Underworld: Rise of the Lycans: $20.8 million
3. Gran Torino: $16.2 million
4. Hotel for Dogs: $12.8 million
5. Slumdog Millionaire: $10.6 million

We've got three new releases this week covering laughs, thrills and scares.

New in Town
What's It All About: Renee Zellweger plays a Florida executive who finds herself transferred to Minnesota in the middle of winter where she finds tons of snow and perhaps the love of her life in Harry Connick Jr.
Why It Might Do Well: The film has two likable leads and I'm sure this will be huge in Minnesota.
Why It Might Not Do Well: As of this writing the film is getting a devastating 0% rating on Rottentomatoes.com.
Number of Theaters: 1,900
Prediction: $7 million

Taken
What's It All About: Liam Neeson stars in this thriller about an ex-soldier on the trail of the slave traders who have taken his daughter.
Why It Might Do Well: Lots of people are probably as curious as I am to see how a Jedi Knight handles conventional weapons, and I think this will be the one to knock Paul Blart out of number one.
Why It Might Not Do Well: 52% at Rottentomatoes.com is a bit underwhelming.
Number of Theaters: 3,000
Prediction: $15 million

If I seemed distressed about Paul Blart: Mall Cop handily winning its debut weekend, imagine how I feel about it spending two weeks at #1. Its family film bona fides helped it edge out Underworld: Rise of the Lycans (at least in the estimates), despite the latter winning Friday. Underworld's $20.70 million opening is the weakest of the franchise, dipping just below the first film's $21 million and change; it's a good thing they saved money by ditching Kate Beckinsale in favor of Rhona Mitra, though I sense that the fourth film may go straight to DVD.

The other new wide release this weekend was Inkheart, and it's the year's first genuine flop. Kid-friendly, pervasively marketed fantasy based on a popular book seemed like a recipe for success, but it didn't take, with the film opening to $7.7 million in a not-terribly-crowded marketplace. Possibly not enough whole-family appeal.

Oscar nominations were announced on Thursday; that, combined with a screen count boost, combined with already steamrolling word-of-mouth rocketed Slumdog Millionare to its first double-digit weekend and an 80% gain over last week. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button -- the nomination leader -- managed to hold the line from last week without the benefit of a screen count increase, which is good news.

A pal of mine passed along this new international poster for David S. Goyer's supernatural thriller, The Unborn, which Empire Magazine recently premiered. The Unborn stars Odette Yustman (Cloverfield), who finds herself haunted by one freaky little spirit if the freaky little trailer is to be believed.

In the most petty terms, I give this one the benefit of the doubt over next month's other PG-13 horror flick, The Uninvited. This one was rated PG-13 for "intense sequences of violence and terror, disturbing images, thematic material and language including some sexual references"; that one can only boast "violent and disturbing images, thematic material, sexual content, language and teen drinking". Try and tell me you wouldn't rather see the former based on that assessment alone.

Other than that, I really just wanted to share this nifty poster with you and yours this holiday season. Co-starring Gary Oldman, Cam Gigandet, and Odette Yustman's Sweet Booty (also of Cloverfield), The Unborn opens on January 9th.

Bruce McDonald's Pontypool, which is a horror film that played TIFF but not in the regular horror section, now has a trailer. Get the info and a trailer link over at Twitchfilm. Flick looks pretty cool to me. Speaking of promo clips, Shock has one for Jamie Blanks' remake of Long Weekend, which is viewable right here.

Ji-woon Kim's very good A Tale of Two Sisters is about to spawn a remake of its own. It's called The Uninvited, it stars Elizabeth Banks, and MTV Movies Blog has an exclusive clip. And Bloody-D has new photos from Dread, the upcoming Clive Barker adaptation, while Arrow has some new shots from this weekend's Splinter.

Dread Central reports that Dominic Sena's graphic novel adaptation Whiteout, which stars mega-hottie Kate Beckinsale, has been pushed back to next September. And Shock has some news on the DVD front regarding Eden Lake and a handful of old-school WB double features.

And yes, the guy who directed the mega-harsh Martyrs will now be the guy behind the Hellraiser remake, says THR. Lastly, here's a pretty cool list of relative obscurities from the genre freaks at Bloody-D.

Saw some movies last weekend. Some trailers, too. One was for a kidnapping thriller called Taken. A young woman is kidnapped, presumably for ransom, but little do the criminals know that their captive's father is some sort of secret agent badass who will stop at nothing to get his daughter back. Distressingly standard-issue stuff. Even worse, arguably, was The Uninvited -- just the title is so trite it practically begs you to forget it. I mean, this is at least the twelfth movie called The Uninvited. (For the record, there have only been seven Takens.) The plot concerns a teenager who returns home following the death of her mother to find that dad has shacked up with a new girlfriend who, it would appear, is a serial murderess. Also, there are ghosts, J-horror style.

This is not promising. Ordinarily I'd drag myself to these movies out of a sense of obligation, or skip them altogether. (Well, Luc Besson's involvement in Taken would probably ensure a viewing.) But wait -- who are those actors? What is Liam Neeson doing lending his gravitas to a Jason Bourne-style figure with a personal vendetta? And is that Elizabeth Banks, taking time out from being charming and hilarious to play an evil step mother/serial killer who threatens to choke Emily Browning with a pearl necklace?

All Hallow's Eve is approaching once again, and my favorite part of the holiday is all the corresponding movies that turn up on television and in theaters. October is already over a week old, so it's time to get into a Halloween frame of mind.

The Unborn
When I last saw Odette Yustman she was one of several New Yorkers fleeing for her life from a large beastie with nasty pointy teeth in Cloverfield. The Unborn has her facing a different kind of evil, specifically the spirit of her twin brother who died in the womb, or perhaps it's an evil entity that hoped to enter the world through him (it's a little hard to tell). There are some nightmarish visuals on display here, and the crawling thing with its head twisted around both sticks with me and makes me wonder if it's an homage to the spider walk scene in The Exorcist. The often cool Gary Oldman also stars and the film is written and directed by David S. Goyer, so I think there's something good and creepy here.

Just Buried
Not a horror flim this one, but rather an extremely dark comedy. Jay Baruchel (who I will always remember as the Led Zeppelin loving nerd from Almost Famous) plays a young man named Oliver who has inherited a funeral home troubled by a fierce competitor and a lack of business. The plucky young female mortician in his employ insists he can't shut down the funeral parlor and the two embark upon a path to drum up business and squash the competition by causing a few untimely deaths. Could be a nice slice of morbid fun here. Check out Scott's review of the film.

The Uninvited
A young woman returns home from a stint at a mental hospital following her mother's untimely death, to find that her father has a new girlfriend (Elizabeth Banks). There's also a ghost who is apparently trying to tell our former mental patient heroine that the girlfriend killed the last family she lived with. This is a much darker role than I'm used to seeing Banks play, and she seems to handle it well. This is a remake of a South Korean film called A Tale of Two Sisters (Janghwa, Hongryeon) which was once recommended to me but has languished in my Netflix queue for several years. The trailer has some creepy moments and I'll probably check this one out. Here's Eric Snider's take on the trailer.

Let the Right One In
If you're going to attempt a vampire movie these days then you damn well better do something different with the idea, and it looks like the people behind this Swedish bloodsucker opus are clear on that concept. A bullied 12 year old boy finds both friendship and a tool for revenge in his new girlfriend who happens to be a vampire. Scott caught this one at Tribeca and penned a pretty strong recommendation, and the flick will be playing on October 24 in New York City. Sadly, the rest of us are going to have to wait for the eventual DVD release.

House
No, it's neither that 80s horror flick starring William Katt or that doctor show on the Fox Network. This House is a horror flick in which two couples find themselves trapped in a remote house and stalked by a lunatic calling himself the Tin Man. This one seems to meld classic slasher stuff with elements of slaughterfests like Hostel and Saw, none of which really appeals to me, and the cast isn't particularly interesting. I think I'll let this one slide.

New this week on AOL Moviefone:

• Paul Blart: Mall Cop - Kevin James plays a man who finally gets his dream job as a working in mall security. Check out the trailer right here:
  
  
  
• The International - Clive Owen plays an interpol agent targeting corruption in the world's largest banking institutions.
• Passengers -Anne Hathaway stars as a grief counselor who suspects foul play when the plane crash survivors she is working with begin to disappear.
• Valkyrie - Tom Hanks Cruise stars in this historical drama about a plot to assassinate Hitler.
• Fears of the Dark - Animated horror anthology. Here's the preview:
  
  
  
• Bedtime Stories - Adam Sandler is a Dad who finds the bedtime stories he's been telling his kids are becoming reality.
• Notorious - Biopic of rap star Notorious B.I.G.
• The Pleasure of Being Robbed - Indie film about a young woman and her elaborate acts of theft.
• I've Loved You So Long - A woman returns to her family after fifteen years in prison.
• Hank and Mike - Two recently fired Easter Bunnies find that changing careers is tougher than they thought.
• Talento De Barrio - A Puerto Rican youth must choose between a life of crime and musical supestardom.