Session 9
|
List Price: Our Price: $7.33 You Save: $7.65 (51%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $5.81 (click here) Category: DVD See more DVD releases |
|---|
Buy this DVD movie at online store in your country
Canada
Canada
Movie Reviews of Session 9
Movie Review: A Truly Creepy, Well Done Film Guaranteed to Keep You on Your Toes
Summary: 5 Stars
Few films are capable of producing an atmosphere that is truly haunting in its own regards, despite any of the onscreen action that may be occurring. Well, Session 9 is one of those films. The overall filming environment simply reeks of an eerie, haunting tone, setting up the feelings for the forthcoming events that are bound to unfold. The film takes place in an abandoned Psychiatric Hospital, Danvers State Mental Hospital in Danvers, Massachusetts.
The hospital has been abandoned for several years, closing in 1985, but the owners suddenly decide it's time to clean the building up after all these years. They begin by hiring an asbestos removal crew. Enter Gordon Fleming and his team known as The Hazmat Elimination Company. Gordon and his teammate Phil are given a tour of the abandoned hospital, in order to secure a bid for the removal job. Upon receiving the tour, the audience is greeted with disturbing environments at every turn. From dark corridors, to abandoned lobotomy tables along with other surgical and mental tools, the entire hospital radiates with a supernatural feeling.
The feeling grows as the tour is almost completed, with Gordon and Phil being shown the floor in which the hospital kept its most dangerous inhabitants. At the end of the hallway on this floor, the two see a small wheelchair laying in the darkness at the end of the hall. However, getting to the end of the hall may be more difficult than it seems, seeing as Gordon is told that the floor is weak in this hallway due to water damage. Mesmerized by the wheelchair, Gordon is greeted by a voice with a haunting tone saying "Hello, Gordon".
Gordon puts a bid in with the owner that they can complete the project in a week, despite the fact that Phil states it's a two week job, stating that he desperately needs the cash since he recently became a father, and then gathers his team for the first day of work. Things start off slow enough, with the team members simply enjoying themselves and taking the job slowly. However, as the days progress, things become a little disturbing, and it seems like all of the workers are slowly losing their sanity.
Mike (one of Gordon's crew members) becomes obsessed with a series of audio files he found which contain mental evaluation sessions that the doctors performed on a woman named Mary Hobbes. Each night, Mike listens to several of these sessions. Each session slowly reveals more and more about Mary and her alternate personalities, however it also appears as if the events within the film are also determined by the number of sessions that Mike has listened to. After each session is played more disturbing events begin to occur at the hospital.
By the time Mike reaches session 9, the final session given to Mary, it is obvious that all of the workers have lost their minds. With their actions becoming more disturbing with each passing day, until the dramatic build up at the end, the film keeps the audience on their toes, slowly watching in anticipation of the next haunting occurrence. The evil entity that existed within Mary all those years ago has found a new host.
The overall presentation of the film is extremely well done. The acting is spot on for delivering a believable, spine-shivering viewing experience. The pacing is perfect and does a fantastic job at showing the slow transformations that each asbestos removal worker is experiencing with each passing day without feeling too drawn out. The ambiance and entire atmosphere of the film simply radiates of supernatural and haunting tones. The hospital environment alone is capable of producing spine shivering chills, but the ending is chilling and twisted, revealing the true evil that resided within the hospital all these years, just waiting for a spirit weak enough that it could control. An overall amazing film from start to finish, one that should not be overlooked if you're a fan of horror and psychological thriller movies like "The Shinning".
Movie Review: I could only watch it once.
Summary: 5 Stars
Horror movies usually don't faze me. Often the only things horrible about them are their bad plots, worse acting, and over-reliance on visual effects. For every classic "John Carpenter's The Thing", there's a dozen grating "Friday the 13th" type splatter-fests. However, "Session 9" belongs in the rare category of a horror movie that does justice to its genre.
The story is simple: A privately-owned HAZMAT company is tasked with cleaning up a deserted insane asylum. The boss agrees to the contract under desperate financial circumstances, and it's one more burden on his already fragile psyche. Soon, the facility's oppressive atmosphere begins to affect the team, and terrible events occur.
I don't want to reveal too many specifics, since ignorance is a plus when viewing "Session 9." A movie has to be something special to push my primal emotional buttons, and this one does it in spades. As I watched the story unfold, a creeping sense of dread began to grow within me, for a couple of reasons. First, I cared about the characters enough to hope (and fear) for their safety. That's a credit to the actors' fine performances within a well-crafted plot. Second, laughable CGI monsters or other such cinematic cop-outs aren't on hand to provoke cheap thrills. The use of sound and lighting to create an oppressive atmosphere of impending doom are masterful. I often felt unsettled by the asylum itself, a real-life abandoned facility that was a character in its own right. Finally, details are used to great effect, if one looks out for them. For example, a number of ordinary snapshots figure into the plot. But in the context of their viewing, the over-lit subjects, surrounded by a clutching darkness, add to the overall malevolence and despair of the proceedings. Whoever directed "Session 9" knows how to work a person's imagination, and for that he's to be commended.
A previous reviewer slammed "Session 9" as just another "possession" flick. I don't agree. Yes, such an assumption could be made based on the titular psychiatric session tapes, along with the shocking, brutal climax. But the evil a murderous character manifests can just as well be the depraved side of human nature. Somehow that's scarier than an overt supernatural threat. Add the unnerving use of voice effects that made me imagine events more terrible than if they were shown, and I was freaked out enough to hope for daylight. As a result, I've avoided a repeat viewing of "Session 9." It's almost too real for comfort.
If you want a fluff "horror" movie for fun and a couple of amusement-ride scares, then go get the "Scream" trilogy or its ilk. There's nothing wrong with that. But if you're looking for true horror, something that will make you turn on the lights and find a friend for comfort, then "Session 9" will do. However, you may discover that it does its job a bit too well. "Session 9" is a thinking person's horror movie. Just make sure you avoid thinking about it in the dark.
Movie Review: Session 9
Summary: 5 Stars
Written by Brad Anderson & Stephen Gevedon; Directed by Brad Anderson (ASIN: B00005UQ9F)
The best rule for a horror story is "Don't show the monster." Alfred Hitchcock knew it. Robert Wise (The Haunting, 1963) knew it. Director Brad Anderson has mastered it. Much like the original version of The Haunting, Session 9 also takes advantage of another great rule in horror: "Atmosphere, atmosphere, atmosphere." The camera drifts around corners and into the harsh shadows of Danvers State Mental Hospital, a real hospital and portrayed in its genuinely rundown condition.
Gordon Fleming, played eerily spot-on by Scottish actor Peter Mullan, leads the team of Hazmat Elimination Co. into the vacant corpse of a once prominent mental institution famous for its invention of the pre-frontal lobotomy. Their job is filthy, dangerous and stressful--to strip all the carcinogenic asbestos insulation from the building before its imminent refurbishing one week later. David Caruso, Stephen Gevedon, Josh Lucas, and Brendan Sexton III round out the cast as the rest of the elimination team, each hinting at the shortcomings that have landed them in this hellish job. The promise of a $10,000 bonus hanging just beyond reach, they set out to clean the facility.
But Danvers State also holds its own attractions. For Mike (Stephen Gevedon,) it is the taped sessions with a psychotic patient named Mary Hobbes. For Hank (Josh Lucas,) it is the stash of old coins and trinkets he discovers hidden in the walls. For Phil (David Caruso,) it is perhaps the ultimate ownership of Hazmat Elimination Co. And for Gordon, it is something far more unsettling and not altogether natural.
Perhaps the most imposing character in the film is Danvers State Mental Hospital itself. Shaped like a bat, with a once administrative area branching off into "wings," the farthest reaches of this enormous creature were reserved for the most severely psychotic cases...cases like Mary Hobbes.
An effective use of foreshadowing, steady rise in tension, masterful cinematography and a group of solid character-actors makes Session 9 the best film to grace an otherwise flagging genre since, well, The Haunting.
The DVD (from USA Home Entertainment) contains the 100-minute feature film in letterbox, Deleted Scenes (including a wisely rethought alternate ending,) Story-to-Screen storyboard comparisons, Director's Commentary (with blessed on/off feature,) a chilling theatrical trailer, and the fascinating featurette, "The Haunted Palace," a look at the very real location and some of the art inspired by it.
This review is for the Region 1 encoded DVD with English Closed Captioning and Dolby Digital Stereo.
Movie Review: Session 9
Summary: 5 Stars
Written by Brad Anderson & Stephen Gevedon; Directed by Brad Anderson (ASIN: B00005UQ9F) Reviewed by Shikhar Dixit
The best rule for a horror story is "Don't show the monster." Alfred Hitchcock knew it. Robert Wise (The Haunting, 1963) knew it. Director Brad Anderson has mastered it. Much like the original version of The Haunting, Session 9 also takes advantage of another great rule in horror: "Atmosphere, atmosphere, atmosphere." The camera drifts around corners and into the harsh shadows of Danvers State Mental Hospital, a real hospital and portrayed in its genuinely rundown condition.
Gordon Fleming, played eerily spot-on by Scottish actor Peter Mullan, leads the team of Hazmat Elimination Co. into the vacant corpse of a once prominent mental institution famous for its invention of the pre-frontal lobotomy. Their job is filthy, dangerous and stressful--to strip all the carcinogenic asbestos insulation from the building before its imminent refurbishing one week later. David Caruso, Stephen Gevedon, Josh Lucas, and Brendan Sexton III round out the cast as the rest of the elimination team, each hinting at the shortcomings that have landed them in this hellish job. The promise of a $10,000 bonus hanging just beyond reach, they set out to clean the facility.
But Danvers State also holds it own attractions. For Mike (Stephen Gevedon,) it is the taped sessions with a psychotic patient named Mary Hobbes. For Hank (Josh Lucas,) it is the stash of old coins and trinkets he discovers hidden in the walls. For Phil (David Caruso,) it is perhaps the ultimate ownership of Hazmat Elimination Co. And for Gordon, it is something far more unsettling and not altogether natural.
Perhaps the most imposing character in the film is Danvers State Mental Hospital itself. Shaped like a bat, with a once administrative area branching off into "wings," the farthest reaches of this enormous creature were reserved for the most severely psychotic cases...cases like Mary Hobbes.
An effective use of foreshadowing, steady rise in tension, masterful cinematography and a group of solid character-actors makes Session 9 the best film to grace an otherwise flagging genre since, well, The Haunting.
The DVD (from USA Home Entertainment) contains the 100-minute feature film in letterbox, Deleted Scenes (including a wisely rethought alternate ending,) Story-to-Screen storyboard comparisons, Director's Commentary (with blessed on/off feature,) a chilling theatrical trailer, and the fascinating featurette, "The Haunted Palace," a look at the very real location and some of the art inspired by it.
This review is for the Region 1 encoded DVD with English Closed Captioning and Dolby Digital Stereo.
Movie Review: an extraordinary film - intelligent, authentic, and frightening
Summary: 5 Stars
In "Session 9", Brad Anderson offers far more than a fleeting, horrifying experience. Even though the main focus remains on psychological terror, he is not afraid to reach deep into social realism as well (an immigrant's dream gone wrong). Many factors contribute to the overall superior quality of this film: 1) The place itself - the abandoned Danvers Mental Hospital - is terrifying with its peeling walls, dark tunnels, kitchen meat hooks, lingering asbestos threat, and most of all, its history of patient abuse and lobotomy procedures - all this in a vast, labyrinth-like scale. 2) Unlike most directors of horror films these days, Anderson does not rush the plot or attack the audience with unbelievable monsters, overdone gore, and other nonsensical features that satisfy only lazy thinkers seeking uncomplicated, instant gratification. When the Hazmat Elimination Co. workers enter the hospital (ready to complete a difficult, yet well-paid job), led by their boss Gordon (Peter Mullan), Anderson lets the suspense build up slowly, giving away a hint only here and there. At the same time, everything is perfectly coordinated and attention is paid to the smallest details - every character has a secret (except for Jeff whose fear of dark is revealed at the beginning), natural sounds and sights are used in strange circumstances (e.g. loud crickets in the afternoon, a spider's image and a bird's peep tied to each new level of Gordon's disturbing thoughts) , the workers' white suits and the plastic partitions around them intensify the unsafe, claustrophobic ambience, and let's not forget the equally effective, frightening musical score! The camera work is fantastic - there is a number of outstanding close-up shots throughout the film. Every actor has greatly contributed to the ultimate success of the film, but Peter Mullan as Gordon deserves an extra applause - an excellent actor without a doubt, his multiple, intense facial expressions remain etched in my memory. 3) And then there's the real case of Mary Hobbes and her multiple personality disorder - the few photos of her shown throughout the film make the horror uncomfortably and effectively authentic. (The voice-over actress for her three voices - Mary, Princess, and Billy - did a frighteningly great job.) And the voice of the evil itself - Simon - kept cleverly at the distance until the end when Gordon's and Mary's personal stories converge with a horrifying force. This film is a true gem if one takes the time to understand it - minute by minute, day by day, session by session - until the ultimate session 9!