Tag Archives: Thriller

If there’s one call you make this month, it’s The Call #film #review #movie

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A gripping thrill rollercoaster of a ride, The Call is an interesting insight into the world of the Los Angeles 911 emergency services.

Starring Oscar winner Halle Berry as Jordan Turner a veteran 911 operator, we watch her journey as she takes a life altering call from a teenage girl played by Little Miss Sunshine herself Abigail Breslin. Not only does this call mean Jordan has to try and guide this girl to safety, she also has to confront a killer from her past and overcome her fears. Screen Shot 2013-09-17 at 08.36.57

Cut back and forth between the abduction and ‘The Hive’ (the department for 911 emergency assistants who work away like busy bees) the audience are taken on a tense ride and education as to what it really means to be a 911 operator. Making judgments between protocol and human instinct is a fine line in lifesaving situations, as we see through this film. Halle Berry is back to her finest in the majority of this film, as she showcases a mix of emotions that make the audience empathise with the difficult job she is faced with. Just like her character we understand the stress of the job and the natural (probably female) instincts that she has when faced with a child being abducted, and the consequences that lie ahead should Jordan as the operator put a foot wrong.

We also see a fantastic performance from Abigail Breslin as the victim. We follow her day as a normal girl shopping in a mall with her friend, and then once left alone, gets drugged, abducted and thrown in the trunk of a car by her kidnapper. The most tense and exciting part of the film is the interaction between the victim and Jordan. From the trunk she manages to make a 911 call which initially goes through to a rookie who finds herself way out of her depth and then gets passed on to Jordan. From this point on, you as the audience find out some really clever tricks to try and get yourself rescued from a kidnapping, using everything you can find to discover where you are travelling to, what the car looks like and most importantly anything you can do to pop open that trunk and jump out.Screen Shot 2013-09-17 at 08.37.28

Breslin shows here that she has matured from a child to young adult actor seamlessly. Matching Halle Berry’s ranges of emotions, you watch her go from despair to sheer determination to get herself out of this situation alive. It’s this that makes the first three quarters of this film so engaging to watch…

…And then, sadly, in the last fifteen minutes or so, the film takes a tumble, so prepare yourself for this. After an hour and fifteen minutes of an intense, edge of your seat adrenalin filled thrill ride of a film, The Call sadly falls into the depths of B-Movie status and takes a route so completely left field of the original plot its not only difficult to watch, its also totally disappointing. It’s a shame that the film leaves you with such a sour taste at the end, it had so much promise, but there is still the opportunity to remember the immense film you had watched just before this semi-car crash.

Regardless of it’s ending, The Call is still very much worth a watch. For the majority, it’s an intelligent, intense and exciting film with great performances.

The Call hits cinemas on the 20th September 2013.

3 Stars.

 

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The deep dark world of Human Trafficking depicted in our film of the week – Eden #EdentheFilm2013

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Based on a true story, Eden follows a young Korean-American girl, who in 1994 was abducted and forced into prostitution by domestic human traffickers, as time passes she realizes that her only way to survive is to join forces with her captors.

A compelling watch, Eden is the kind of unexpected hit that you find yourself unable to pause and return to – it has to be watched from start to finish in one sitting. The reason, well, you spend the first half of this film trying to work out just what is going on, as you begin to go on this hellish journey with Hyun Jae (Jamie Chung). The fact that this is a true story makes it all the more grisly.

Screen Shot 2013-06-18 at 09.33.00Cleverly you are sheltered from any graphic detail in terms of what the girls actually do when they’re brought to various parties, nightclubs and pornography film sets. Instead you are a second pair of eyes for Hyun Jae, figuring out as she is, what is going on, why she’s here being held in a 10 x 10 storage unit and what her fateful future holds. What is brilliant about this film is that you really don’t know who to trust, and that there are twists and turns at every opportunity. The film really doesn’t turn out how you expect it to, and you are playing a complicated guessing game at every throughout.

The cast is solid and led by an impressive Jamie Chung who carries the film with ease. She plays both the innocent and later the intelligent influencer very well and provides a stark contrast to not only her capturers but also the other girls kept in confinement with her, some of which have grown accustomed to this way of life and begin to play the game for what it is.Screen Shot 2013-06-18 at 09.32.10

Supporting Chung are Beau Bridges who plays Bob Gault, a ruthless and corrupt Federall Marshal who runs the organization with little mercy; and Matt O’Leary who plays the troubled Vaughan, who’s past and wrong life choices have led him to this destination. All of the characters have their distinct traits which you can identify with and pin point straight away. Bob Gault requests no sympathy from the audience, he runs this operation under the façade of a pillar of the community and underneath it all profits unremorsefully on the actions of the girls.  Vaughan has moments in which he battles with his conscience over what he’s doing and you can immediately spot his vulnerability, as does Hyun Jae, which keeps you gunning for our female lead as she patiently figures out how to get the better of those who keep her.

Full of suspense and intrigue, Eden is a highly watchable film with notable performances and a gripping storyline. A thriller from start to finish and well worth a watch when it comes out in cinemas on the 19th July

 

Trap for Cinderella – New Trailer Alert #film #filmtrailer #britishfilm

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Fancy something a little bit different this film season, then try Trap for Cinderella. It doesn’t look like the easiest watch, but definitely looks gripping, exciting and with some fantastic acting from Tuppence Middleton and Alexandra Roach. Here’s the official trailer, more details to come soon!

A bit more about the film

Micky is a fun-loving photographer, living a party lifestyle in London until a chance encounter with a childhood friend changes her world forever. The opposite to life-and-soul Micky, Do is a quiet bank clerk, with little by way of a social life. Yet much to the annoyance of her DJ boyfriend Jake, Micky is all too delighted to reacquaint herself with Do, embracing her old friend with typical gusto. But when they return to the tranquil French villa where they spent so many happy summers in their youth, tragedy strikes. A fire engulfs the building, leaving Micky badly burnt and blighted by amnesia. Unable to even recall her own name, Micky is forced on a shocking journey of self-discovery. For nothing – friends, relatives, lovers and even herself – is as she remembers it.

The film features a compelling soundtrack from critically acclaimed artists and writers signed to Universal Music Publishing including Crystal Fighters, James Blake, The Chemical Brothers, Metronomy, Joker ft. Jessie Ware, Crystal Castles and more.

Trap for Cinderella is released in cinemas on 12th July