Vacancy
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Movie Reviews of Vacancy
Movie Review: trapping the Fox's at the Pinewood Motel...
Summary: 4 Stars
Despite being based on a central premise that is pretty extreme, Vacancy (2007) is a tight, and effective high tension thriller, directed by Nimrod Antal (Predators, Armored). Mark L. Smith's screenplay has some twists and turns, but still manages to hold to together fairly well, and maintain a high level of suspense, as a innocent couple battles for their lives. Spoilers follow, so proceed at your own risk.
David Fox (Luke Wilson) and wife Amy (Kate Beckinsale) are travelling at night, when they have car trouble and have to abandon their car at the side of the road. Walking to a motel, they get a room for the night from the manager (Frank Whaley), who seems a little weird. Prank phone calls, and some crazy pounding on the connecting door to an adjacent unit, unnerves the couple. Looking to unwind, David plays some video tapes that are lying around. He makes the chilling discovery that there are cameras hidden in the room, and that people in the video appear to have been filmed getting attacked and murdered in the very same room. It becomes clear to the Fox's that it is only a matter of time, before masked men will appear to kill them.
One of the reasons Vacancy works so well, is because the focus almost never wavers from David and Amy. They are onscreen together for almost the entire film, and you feel that you are right there with them, sharing the experience and almost feeling what they feel. Although under tremendous stress, they manage to hold things together, without getting too hysterical.
Aside from being sickos who enjoy slaughtering people, and making "snuff films", we don't learn much about the killers. Frank Whaley is excellent as the low-key leader, who watches the happenings on the monitors in his office, while his two partners terrorize the couple. It seems ridiculous that the killers don't break into the room and overpower the couple, but their failure to do so, provides the Fox's an opportunity to escape. The underground tunnel system they discover is right out of Hogan's Heroes, but it becomes a suspenseful setting that also provides for a brief change of scenery, as hope for rescue arrives. The film doesn't have many characters, but the few that appear are used effectively. Eventually the attack finally comes, and David is taken out of the picture, leaving Kate to face the killers alone. The finish is quite explosive and violent, and fortunately for Kate, the manager doesn't practice proper gun safety.
Vacancy takes a little while to get going, but it is time well spent, as the audience gets to know David and Kate, a couple who have lost their son, and are about to get divorced. They are not helpless morons, and when the crisis arrives, you are fully behind them. The happenings at the Pinewood Motel may not prove to be as notable as those at the Bates Motel, but Vacancy is a very well done spine tingling tale of suspense, with rock solid performances by Luke Wilson and Kate Beckinsale.
Unfortunately the DVD does not have a director's commentary from Nimrod Antal, who has since gone on to direct bigger films, notably Predators (2010). The success of Vacancy would generate a prequel sequel, Vacancy 2: The First Cut (2008).
Movie Review: Motel Hell
Summary: 4 Stars
Vacancy Director Nimród Antal has a very short resume, and the other 3 films on his list are foreign....Hungarian I think? Add in that writer Mark (Snuffy) Smith's last effort was his 2006 freshman flop Séance, and you'd probably have your expectations set for an average at best, jump-out-of-the-dark, B-Horror movie.
But after watching Vacancy, directing a very good Horror film is clearly not foreign to Antal, and writing a good Horror movie is certainly something that Smith has accomplished with Vacancy.
And another thing Antal managed to do was to get two pretty big Hollywood names (Luke Wilson & Kate Beckensale) to star in roles that I'd have suggested before the film was made that they would likely not have taken.
The suspense is thick in Vacancy, and the plot is simple...my kind of movie. While Vacancy is predictable at times and includes Hollywood's typical incapable local law enforcement, the acting and a good plot make up for the familiarity of the action.
Wilson and Beckensale are a struggling couple that break down on a remote highway and check in to Motel Hell (oops, Motel Hell an entirely different movie available at Amazon in this two-pack Deranged/Motel Hell (Midnite Movies Double Feature) ). With that preface, you can almost write the action yourself without seeing the movie. But I give this movie above average high marks on how well the plot was executed and on how serious the actors took their roles.
The R rating is a bit of a surprise. A PG-13 surely would have been as appropriate; the blood in Vacancy is lighter than some of the blood that I've seen in some PG-13 movies. Perhaps the scares were so good, realistic (shocking?) and unexpected versus jump-out-of-the-dark losers like The Grudge The Grudge , that the MPAA must have thought that they were seeing more than they actually did.
Finally, the movie is only 80 minutes long. See Hollywood?...It's still possible to make a good film and keep it under 2 hours.
Fans of the genre should give Vacancy a try.
Movie Review: Everything was great...except for the ending...
Summary: 4 Stars
This is definitely not a movie to watch all by yourself. This is the kind of movie you watch when you wonder if everything has already been done, and nothing will scare you anymore. Who needs ghosts, devil worshiping murderers, or any kind of the supernatural when you have good old fashioned realistic type of events that COULD happen to you?
Amy and David got off the interstate (BIG mistake) and found that they were having car trouble. Since the mechanics had all gone home for the night, they decided to stay overnight in a creepy motel, since there was nothing else around. The place was run by an equally creepy manager, played by Frank Whaley, who I haven't seen since In the Company of Men.
Even though the hotel was quite dirty and run down, the couple starts to finally relax when someone keeps banging on, not only the door to their room, but the door to the neighboring room. As everyone does in a scary movie, you hear crazy sounds, you investigate, even if you shouldn't. In between trying to find out who is attempting to break in and planning an escape route, David notices some tapes on top of the VCR. Every tape he checks out has people being attacked and killed. Strangely, they all take place in the same room, which is starting to look very familiar...
What follows is an adrenaline filled thrill ride with lots of action, and a few plot holes. VACANCY is a short movie (85 mins) which leaves no extra time for love making scenes or nudity, which some horror film directors feel is necessary to keep us interested. There is no need. This is the kind of movie that leaves you yelling at the screen and discussing with company would YOU would do in that situation. Though I thought that the ending was somewhat weak, I think that the rest of the movie makes up for it. VACANCY 2 will be coming in 2009, and even though it will probably be like a lot of other sequels, that's not going to stop me from watching it.
Recommended if you need a little adventure that will keep you checking the locks and windows for the night.
Movie Review: Really a darn good thriller
Summary: 4 Stars
I saw the previews for Vacancy in the theater and knew I had to see this movie. Well, I missed it in the theater but I bought it on DVD. While it is not without its flaws, Vacancy is a nail biter. It has a script that pairs logic and believability together for the set-up.
For all of us who have seen every stranded motorist film...or Psycho rip-off (which ultimately, this is...), this film is the most intelligent and fresh of them all.
Luke Wilson and Kate Beckinsdale are a married couple on the verge of divorce. We aren't told specifically why (which makes this all the more believable), but glean from information provided, that the death of their only son is causing it to crumble. When the husband slams on the brakes to avoid hitting a raccoon, the car starts making noises...but nothing serious. They pull into a service station to have the noise checked out (since they are in the boondocks) and the ostensibly well-meaning service guy (Ethan Embry, excellent in a small role) helps them out...or does he?
The car breaks down and they must hit the road to go back to the service station to get assistance. Since it's late and the station is now closed they relegate themselves to staying the night in the small town's Rat Pack era motel. And that's when things start to go really bad.
This film builds suspense and tension and uses our own inate fears to forward the frights. While I confess that the first 2/3 of the film are well planned and the frights believable, I found the last 1/3 to be more run of the mill, and far-fetched. That said, it didn't diminsh the frights previously delivered.
Another point that bears telling: This is NOT a gory film. It is not a "gross" film. It is a frightening film with very very limited blood. There is no sex and, if my memory serves me, there is little cursing. It's an exercise in fear that extends beyond the teen slice 'em and dice 'em films.
Check this one out. You'll be glad you did.
Movie Review: Don't Become A Star In Your Own Snuff Film! Stay On The Interstate!
Summary: 4 Stars
After watching horror films like "Wrong Turn," you'd think that American drivers would stop taking shortcuts when traveling through the boonies. Stay on the interstate! Obviously, David Fox (Luke Wilson of "Henry Poole is Here" and "3:10 to Yuma") hasn't learned this. After him and his gorgeous wife Amy (Kate Beckingsale of "Van Helsing" and the "Underworld" trilogy) take a shortcut, their car breaks down near an isolated "Psycho"-like motel where tourists check in but they don't check out. In their "honeymoon suite," they pass the time by whining, complaining and watching low budget slasher flicks. Soon they realize that these flicks are all being filmed in the same room as their own. There is loud pounding on the doors and the fiendish nightmare begins. Will they escape this hotel from Hell?
Reminiscent of such classic drive-in horror movies as "Hotel Hell" and "Mountaintop Motel Massacre, "Vacancy" is highly suspenseful. Wilson and Beckingsale make a very adorable couple whose marriage is in trouble. Having lost their toddler son, Charlie, they are non-communicative and hostile towards one another. However, their relationship strengthens and their love increases as they struggle to survive this grueling night. Performances from Beckingsale and Wilson are believable and touching. You will cheer for them as they flee the maniacs who are determined to film their deaths. Frank Whaley gives a great performance as the evil, psychotic hotel clerk, Mason. You want the pervert to die so badly.
"Vacancy" is highly recommended for those who love horror films involving tourists who are preyed upon by serial killers. Recommended classics from the eighties are "Tourist Trap," "Hotel Hell," and "Mountaintop Motel Massacre." The last one, like "Vacancy," also involves the usage of underground tunnels. Modern horror movies you may want to check out are "House of Wax," "Turistas" and "The Ruins."