Directed By: Steven Soderbergh
Written By: David Koepp
Cinematography: Peter Andrews
Editor: Mary Ann Bernard
Cast: Lucy Liu, Chris Sullivan, Callina Liang, Eddy Maday, West Mullholland, Julia Fox, Lucas Papaelias, Natalie Woolams-Torres
Longing for a fresh start, the Payne family jumps at the chance to purchase a 100-year-old suburban dwelling to recover from a traumatic experience. But houses, just like people, can get ill. As subtle disturbances gradually expose its sinister supernatural malady, the unseen intruder floats effortlessly through corridors and rooms to watch the tenants' every move. After all, the quiet entity was here first; good luck forcing it out. With their security and sanity hanging in the balance, what will it take for the Paynes to rid the house of the Presence?
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When it comes to Stephen Soderbergh‘s movies technically they are tight and they come out very often so you’re never left wanting for the new or the next one and while for the most part they play conventional they are usually experiments of themselves cinematic ones which is sometimes what makes them feel a little more removed from reality or from a conventional cinematic standpoint. As he usually is one man band as a director, director of photography and editor, seemingly having an in-house Screenwriter as he tends to collaborate with noted Screenwriter David Koepp recently constantly.
With this film, he uses more his technical style to the achievement for the film, which is very few cuts as most of the film is long takes uninterrupted with the camera constantly flowing and giving him a chance in a reason to use wide angle shots, whereas the film is supposed to be a ghost story And we see everything transpired more from the point of view.
It allows us to step in the viewer as the spirit kind of invading the space of these characters and leaving us to more be voyeurs in their world and lives as we see snapshots of them
Though one can understand why an audience might dislike this film as there is a storing a plot, but you’re not aware that they’re supposed to be one as at first you’re thinking or going with the flow and believing this to be more of a cinematic experience experiment and then slowly a plot comes interview at first it seems just like Random facts or that this is going to be a film more about a haunting or a haunted house, but as it goes along, everything begins to come together as secrets are revealed in a revelation is made. The film is unpredictable
There are clues early on, but you believe them to be random though later on in the film and on subsequent viewings and start to notice them more as they were laid out, even if one storyline which becomes a major one seems a little ridiculous. It works within the cinematic landscape
As at first, it seems like we’re more gonna get a domestic family drama rather than a true haunted house film and this film doesn’t truly have any scares, but there is tension Phil throughout if you really pay attention and get into it so this isn’t your typical haunted house film Sometimes that genre or premise is so wide open there many things you can do with it and this film takes that opportunity to do so
There’s really nothing wrong with the film. It just feels very sterile. You had accomplished by the end. You don’t truly feel anything. Luckily it sure and it is a marvel at times if you’re really into filmmaking, but maybe as like it goes it stays so cold that you wonder by the end, what was that or was it worth it?
I believe so, though also to a certain extent, it feels like typical Soderbergh isn’t a bad thing as after a while you do come to care about the characters and one of them who you can’t really stand an about face towards the end that is believable.
Grade: B-
