OK, the highly anticipated prequel. The original movie is really great, and I’ve heard good things about this one, too. Let’s check it out.
Esther is locked up in some high security medical/mental institution in Estonia. But not for long. Leaving a trail of dead bodies, she finds her way to Moscow and then to Connecticut, after convincing the authorities that she’s the daughter who was stolen from a family there four years ago. As mentioned in the movie, Esther is a master con artist.
Things in Connecticut are uncomfortable at first. And actually, things don’t really improve. So much so that the family and the other people who interact with Esther start to suspect that something is fishy. And it’s not too long before Esther starts to suspect that they’re on to her. And which point her modus operandi would normally be just to start bludgeoning people to death.
Ooooo, but BIG OL’ plot twist in the middle! Totally changes the whole dynamic of the film. But of course you know all the shit’s gonna hit the fan for everybody involved, and hopefully it’s gonna be nasty.
But then there’s the big finale. It’s ok, not that big of a deal. The whole ‘you’re a monster’ line? How would that character turn on a dime like that? No way in hell. That never would have happened, especially considering the state of mind that character would be in following the events that just happened. It’s like the writers painted themselves into a corner.
So it’s pretty ok, but sorta ho hum. Doesn’t quite live up to the hype. And it’s not really a horror movie. It’s a drama with a psychotic serial killer and some graphic murders. The horror in horror movies isn’t in how graphic the killings are. It’s in the fear. The fear that you feel for the good guys or the bad guys or the situation or whatever. And there isn’t much fear in this one. It’s not meant to be this way. Because it’s not meant to be a horror movie. It’s a big chess match where the winner is the one who outsmarts the other by the end of the movie. That’s all well and good, and this one is very nicely done. I just wish it was a horror movie.
Technically, everything is really good. Except way too much low end in the soundtrack.
B-movie Roundup 