Anna Rydell (Emily Browning) returns home to her father (David Strathairn) and sister, Alex (Arielle Kebbel), after spending time in the hospital following the tragical end of her mother (Maya Massar). Her recovery suffers a setback when she discovers her mother has become engaged to her mother’s former nurse, Rachel (Elizabeth Banks). That night, Anna is visited by the shade of her mother, who warns her of Rachel’s intentions. Together, Anna and Alex try to convert their mother that his current fiancée is not who she appears to be.The floor is punctuated with flashbacks and hallucinations, mirroring the confusion felt by its principal character, Anna (Emily Browning, Lemony Snicket). The film opens with her being dismissed from a mental hospital, where she was convalescent from the hurt of losing her ailing mother in a freak fire. Her father, Steve (David Strathairn, The Bourne Ultimatum), didn’t waste much time later the end of his wife before becoming involved with her old nurse, Rachel (Elizabeth Banks, W.). Now Anna and her sister Alex (Arielle Kebbel, The Grudge 2) must grapple with their new soon-to-be-stepmom—who appears to be just barely older than either of them—and the stronghold she has on their father.But naturally, family discord proves to be the least of their problems. A series of baffling, ominous dreams lead Anna to think that the events of the disastrous fire were not accidental, and that Rachel is not who she seems to be. She and Alex are quickly convinced that their house is in danger, and they set out to discover the truth around Rachel and about the last of their mom.There are some genuinely creepy scenes here—many of which work mostly on the strengths of the actors, in particular Browning, who captures Anna’s fragile emotional state without overacting. And while many of the surprises are, in fact, no surprises at all, the movie does manage to see the viewer off guard a sentence or two. Its greatest strength, though, is its brevity—at under 90 minutes, the movie marches toward its coming with ruthless efficiency, and the plot advances quickly, which way that, while you might not be frightened by it, exactly, you won’t be bored by it, either.
Did I wish the movie? Yes, it was a good picture of its genre although it used much of tricks that had been used earlier in many films. The acting was great, the location excellent, the account a little dated and better of all, it was but 90 minutes.
What was amiss with it? Not a lot, but it has no pretensions to Academy success. Perhaps the use of the founder was a little too one-dimensional and I would get liked to have seen more of Matt (but then that’s just me – more, as in, more on-screen appearance, and more, as in, more naked flesh) played by Jesse Moss; I will maintain an eye out for more of Jesse.
Do I commend it? Yes, its not particularly scary for a horror film and lots of the surprises are not really surprises. The conclusion was great, right out of left field. However the last scenes were a bit of an anti-climax. Go see it.

Author: Earwig’s Thoughts