Close Your Eyes
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Movie Reviews of Close Your Eyes
Movie Review: compelling psychological thriller
Summary: 3 Stars
***1/2
Written and directed by Nick Willing, "Close Your Eyes" (aka "Doctor Sleep") is a taut, highly effective British thriller that supplements its crime drama scenario with generous helpings of the supernatural and paranormal.
Michael Strother is a hypnotherapist who has returned to England with his pregnant wife and young daughter after seven years living in the States. Strother is asked by one of his patients, a policewoman named Janet Losey, to bring his professional expertise to bear on one of her most baffling cases, that of a little girl who's managed to escape the clutches of a serial killer but who has been rendered mute by the experience. Strother's involvement leads to complications not only with the highly skeptical police force who are less than thrilled at the prospect of having a hynotherapist working on the case, but with his wife as well who fears that any untoward publicity might reflect badly on her husband's career. Of even more concern is the fact that Strother's involvement might also be making him and his own family a target of the killer.
It would hardly be cricket to reveal much more of the plot here, so I'll just say that "Close Your Eyes" boasts a better-than-average storyline, intriguing characters, an effective back story involving Strother's past in America, and enough genuine suspense to help us ride up and over some of the inconsistencies and absurdities inherent in the material. And if the resolution comes out as a bit flatfooted - well, that doesn't wind up being too much of a handicap since weak endings seem to be just about par for the course when it comes to these types of films anyway.
The prime selling point of "Close Your Eyes" is that it makes us care about the characters, particularly Strother, who elicits our interest and sympathy from the start. Goran Visnjic and Shirley Henderson make an engaging crime-fighting team with just the right amount of unrequited sexual chemistry bubbling under the surface to add to the tension.
As a director, Willing frequently interrupts the narrative with free-floating flashes of dreams, memories and hypnotic suggestions, reflective of what is occurring in the minds of the characters. The effect is sometimes confusing but almost always effective in ratcheting up the level of mystery and feeling of dislocation necessary for the story. The film is a bit gruesome and gory at times, but the prime focus almost always remains on the character's interactions and the unraveling of the plot. This is a solid, well-crafted thriller.
Movie Review: MESMERIZING YET MURKY
Summary: 3 Stars
CLOSE YOUR EYES is a compelling thriller that involves hypnotism and the occult. Dashing Goran Visnjic (ER, SPARTACUS, THE DEEP END) plays a smoke cessation hypnotist who is called upon the help penetrate the silence of a little girl who survived kidnapping by a dangerous serial killer. Shirley Henderson effectively plays the cop who lures him in with a blackmail threat to expose some tax evasion possibilities. Visnjic of course has a secret past, along with a very pregnant wife (the marvelous Miranda Otto from LORD OF THE RINGS). Evidence points to a centuries old philosopher named Paladin who believed the soul of man is hidden behind the eyes and can be transferred, almost in a computer-like fashion. This is where the plot gets a little muddled and murky, with a resolution that doesn't totally wrap things up. It's open-ended climax is also kind of a bummer, but CLOSE YOUR EYES is still a tense and atmospheric thriller, buoyed by good performances from Visnjic, Otto, Henderson and Fiona Shaw as an invalid writer.Movie Review: Good film that warrants a closer look
Summary: 3 Stars
Close Your Eyes is a creepy little film. And that is what it is intended to be - a creepy little thriller.
We have a hypnotherapist who can help people quit smoking. He and his family have just moved to London from the U.S. because of some problem which we are not immediately told about. During a session with a female detective, he accidentally reveals his ability to see into people's minds. She blackmails him into assisting her on a serial murder case where one young girl managed to escape from the killer. The kid's in shock and not talking and they need to catch the killer before he kills again.
It has a good pace, and excellent production values along with very good acting. It's not a big budget or big name picture, but frankly I find that blockbusters are usually lackluster. It's the workmen films that really deliver - and this does.
Check it out.
Movie Review: Sleeper
Summary: 3 Stars
Close Your Eyes (aka Doctor Sleep) has all the makings of a horror sleeper. I hadn't heard anything about it, and thought the DVD box looked interesting, so I picked it up. I'm used to renting bad movies that have great packaging, so I didn't hold out any great hopes for this one.
Surprisingly, this movie has some taut moments and manages to sustain a fairly creepy vibe throughout. There are some logic gaps in the story, and most of them have to do with police procedure, but even with those problems the movie ends up being very watchable. I was left a little unfulfilled by the ending, but overall it's a better than average thriller. Should have been a sleeper hit.
Movie Review: Keep Your Eyes Open!
Summary: 3 Stars
Yes, the story is a little weak. Yes the execution is a little tired. Indeed, the thrills and chills are somewhat predictable and the chick performing opposite Goran Visnjic is like a poor man's Natasha Richardson or Helena Bonham Carter.
But my dears, does any of this matter when Goran Visnjic smoulders in every scene? Stop worrying about the art and just enjoy the view! Trust me, as soon as you do, you won't want to close your eyes.