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Visitors Review

edebrajjean 2012-05-25 08:10:14

Doctor Trained To Ask Patients Questions Caught In Two Traps Due To Questions About The Motives Of Others That She Doesn't Ask Herself!

Opening music, dark cinematography and the noisy reverberating disquietof "The Resident" promise a killer of a thriller, but the potholes incharacter development promptly thrill it into the ground and reduce itto just another dumb-woman-victim skin-flick killer.Hilary Swank plays physician Juliet Devereau who gave up her dream tofollow a boyfriend to New York whose intentions not to marry her shedidn't question...and then came home and found him in their bed ofnothing with another woman. Eight years of academic schooling andacquisition of no personal wisdom...! Consider: Jeffrey Dean Morgan has bedroom eyes, a lady-killer smilewarm as the sun--and in his portrayal of Max, a George Clooney beardthat says, "Feel me all night long!" Yet Hilary Swank's character ofJuliet Devereau, M.D. buys it that a man of his looks and build fromyears of carpentering has no history with women? Oh, please! The gory emergency room scenes showing Juliet's strength not to flinchat the sight of blood-overdone (patient would be dead at that carelessa physician handling) and ease at sedating a crystal methamphetamineaddict in full overdose mode contrasts against the apartment scenesshowing her weakness not to flinch at the realization that the affableMax (what is his last name, anyway?) smiling his way out of a directanswer to every question is lying through his teeth, giving everyevidence of crooked intent with her? Oh, please! His family bought the building in the 1940s--yet all that exists of hisfamily in 2011 is his eerie grandfather August (what was his last name,anyway?) with a morbid stare? Oh, please! August, played by Christopher Lee has had a stroke, but on seeing alooker like Juliet has nothing praiseworthy to say of Max as apotential love interest for her and visa versa; warning Juliet rather,about being a single woman alone in the apartment surrounded bystrangers before gloomily using "his" loneliness to invite her to comesee "him"...? Oh, please! When asked, Max states his parents died when he was very young, yetmentions no deceased grandmother and wife of August that must haveraised him jointly...yet he wants to know EVERYTHING about Juliet'shistory, even asking her directly if she was avoiding answering hisquestion about her middle name (Bliss)? Oh, please! Again, in his role of carpenter with bulging muscles every woman lovesto watch flex working, Max was too busy taking care of his family'sbuilding to have women involvement (a professed loner), with hisparents been dead since he was a kid, no mention of his lategrandmother and no mention of siblings? Oh, please!Max shows up at Juliet's art function by happenstance--no previousinvitation or mention from her...and in a clear come-on; and gives heranother blanket response he's fixing to get going in a prompt for herto offer him her accompaniment on the walk home? And once back at herdoor, she makes the first move and kisses him...and he rejects herexpectation of "rebound sex" with no explanation in the CLEAREST SIGNALEVER OF TWISTED INTENTIONS FOR HER THAT SHE COULDN'T READ? Oh, please!Unlike August's peculiar lack of praise of/and matchmaking of Julietwith his grandson Max and him with a woman the looks and build of her,Juliet's pregnant doctor friend Sydney appropriately gushes all overMax's good looks and him as a potential love interest for her,encouraging it with an offer to him to join them for drinks? Oh,please! Max says he's not of the text-messaging Twitter crowd--that technologyinvites the sharing of deep dark secrets, and he thinks secrets shouldbe secrets.... WHO WANTS TO BE WITH A PROFESSED KEEPER OF DARK SECRETS?Two seconds later, Juliet asks him what's his secret for not beingmarried, he can't give her a straight answer to the statement he justmade about being secretive; and she missed THAT big a clue he's anemasculated psychotic? Oh, please! Next scene, Juliet, in her weakness and long overdue female need forsex is stripping the clothes off Max that she hasn't listened to anddoesn't know and trust by heart and can't go through having sex withhim, as it violates all the hurt feelings she still has for theboyfriend Jack that she let fool her and wants back. Oh, please! Thus, thirty minutes into the plot, the scene is set for the obsequiousand mysterious character of Max (what was his last name again, anyway?)to show the full extent of his sick obsession with and need to get backat her for her come-on, rejection of him and then taking back of/andbedding down her boyfriend Jack, with Max in jealous rage watching fromthe shadows! Oh, please! If only the writers had given Doctor Juliet Devereau a brain and lether in on the "deep dark secrets" of Max's parents' death, his and hisfather's emasculation by his mother that had fed Max's sickobsessiveness and his need to avenge himself of every woman to kiss andburn him (which is why the murdered August had had no praise of hisgrandson) BEFORE Max's final attempt to kill her...! For then, The Resident's drawn-out ending would have showcased Juliet'sunflinching strength and determination to survive rather than serve asjust another excuse for violence-overkill, since one slam or throw of aman the size, strength and conditioning of Max would have wiped outwith one "twitter" mother and daughter Endora and Samantha Stevens ofTV's Bewitched! Jeannie, blink your eyes and pop me out of here, oh, please!

moviexclusive 2012-05-24 22:22:24

A solid, effective thriller with moments of genuine suspense and a tense, exciting finale

It's probably no more than coincidence, but still it's interesting tonote how the two movies that have boldly dared to open alongsideMarvel's summer superhero juggernaut "Thor" are both about a woman whobecomes the target of someone else's dangerous obsession within theirplace of stay. While the stalker is said woman's new college roommatein the other movie, it is young doctor Juliet Devereau's landlord herein "The Resident"- and a male at that, in contrast to "The Roommate's"female.Juliet is played by Oscar-winning actress Hilary Swank, and while thisthriller could not be further from her "Million Dollar Baby", thebox-office reception to her movies in the years since (e.g. "TheReaping", "Amelia" and most recently "Conviction") hasn't been exactlykind. Nevertheless, Swank is more than a competent actress, and shecarries the movie skilfully with a nuanced performance as the victim ofanother person's mania. Indeed, she lets her audience feel hercharacter's naivety, helplessness and desperation keenly, which makesthe eventual denouement between victim and stalker much moreengrossing.The stalker is the landlord of the building in which she rents anapartment overlooking New York's East River, having just separated fromher boyfriend (Lee Pace). Max (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) at first appears tobe the perfect proprietor, ever ready to attend to any problems in herapartment and hunky enough for Juliet to consider as a rebound guy-that is, until she gets cold feet and breaks it off. Big mistake- turnsout Max ran into Juliet months ago at the hospital she works, decidedhe liked her, and deliberately set things up so she would come knockingto rent the apartment from him.With the villain revealed within the first half-hour of the film,Finnish director Antti Jokinen- who makes her feature film debut- hasan uphill task keeping her audience's attention on Max's increasinglyintrusive and even violently obsessive ways. But Jokinen does anefficient job maintaining the suspense of the film, as we watch Max gofrom using her toothbrush and lying in the bathroom in the day tocaressing her in bed at night after knocking her out with a drugmixture. If the film remains disturbingly riveting, it is because thefilm plays nicely on its audience's own fears of home invasion.Jokinen however reserves any action for the last 20 minutes of the filmafter Juliet discovers Max's horrifying secret. It's an appropriatelyexciting, and vicious even, finale that uses the labyrinth of hiddenpassageways behind the walls of the apartment from which Max hides tospy on Juliet to great claustrophobic effect. Despite the visceralthrills, the conclusion leaves something to be wanting- particularlybecause Jokinen and her co-writer Rober Orr fail to offer strongermotivation behind Max's obsession.There are some flashbacks and "Dracula" actor Christopher Lee's briefsupporting role as Max's authoritarian granddad, but largely the storydoesn't offer enough for us to believe in Max's lunacy. Morgan toodoesn't command enough menace, and seems more comfortable playing MrNice Guy at the start of the film than Mr Crazy Guy by its end. Onewonders if it would have been better if the writers had simply left outMax and Juliet's brief fling and cast someone more credible, likeMorgan's fellow "Watchmen" actor Jackie Earle Haley, as Max.Yet in spite of its flaws, those looking for a littlecounter-programming opposite "Thor" should find this a effectivethriller that has its moments of genuine suspense and excitement. Thisis also legendary horror studio Hammer's third feature film since itsrecent comeback, and its first in 35 years with Christopher Lee- yetanother solid effort after last year's "Let Me In" and should bode wellfor their return to mainstream territory.

dusan-22 2012-05-18 00:03:05

Disappointing

Very stupid story and pretty mediocre acting. This movie was like madefor TV morning program. Plot of the movie suppose to scare you but Iactually laughed. Our heroine was playing with a wrong guy and now hegot crazy. But instead of the creepy scenes and feeling of being scaredof the guy I more felt sorry of him and after a while couldn't stoplaughing. Movie doesn't show any scene of the crazy guy being dangerousor frightening all the way to the end. If I didn't read the plot Iwould think that this is actually a social drama talking about theharmless patient of the local psycho hospital. No plot, no suspense. Nocharacter development at all. Just the guy who observes the woman helikes, getting into her apartment. Slow, dull and not entertaining atall - this is the best explanation of the movie. Disappointing.

2012-05-17 10:11:25

The Return Of Hammer Films--Just One Glance At Hilary Swank Is Enough To Drive A Man Insane

Reviving the legend of Hammer films certainly seemed like a great idea. Renowned for their creepiness and monster mayhem, Hammer was one of the most influential horror players in the film industry for approximately four decades (most relevantly, perhaps, in the fifties and sixties). Their 1958 version of "Dracula" with Christopher Lee is still considered by many to be the definitive film version of this oft told tale. Well, Hammer is back in the game! Their first release was the contemplative vampire remake "Let Me In," a terrific film that owes far more to its Swedish predecessor than to the mystique and allure of Hammer. Their follow-up film "The Resident," however, is pure Hammer--unfortunately, it's late period schlock as opposed to something that's going to reinvigorate the legend. Hilary Swank, with her two Oscars firmly in storage somewhere, plays a New York doctor seemingly defined by the male relationships in her life. After a difficult break-up, she does what any single lady would do--she rents a cavernously creepy new apartment and begins a tentative flirtation with her landlord (Jeffrey Dean Morgan). In a bit of casting fun, Lee is even on hand as Morgan's grandfather--but, in reality, he has very little to do. This is the type of film that is entirely reliant on the fact that someone could be four feet away from you in your creaky old flat and you wouldn't notice. You see, Swank is being watched and the unknown assailant has full access to her apartment. Amidst the copious scenes of peeping, (look, here's Swank bathing and here she is applying liberal amounts of lotion to her breasts--did I mention she had two Oscars) things start to progress to more intimate aggressions. The set-up, when revealed a third of the way through, is fairly preposterous as the entire plot is predicated on about 48 random decisions coinciding exactly. There are several big leaps of faith. Swank feels slightly uneasy--one second later, she has a state of the art video monitoring system installed (there are several large transitions that defy logic) and her pursuer neither notices the new system or the big computer that indicates when video has been shot. The big finale plays out pretty much along expected lines as well. This is an easy film to watch, I suppose, as a brain dead creation. It might have been better served, however, without the baggage an A-list cast brings. After a promising beginning, however, it's hard to take much too seriously here. There have been countless films with exactly the same premise that have preceded "The Resident" with varying degrees of success. The film doesn't offer much uniqueness to distinguish itself--and modern audiences seeking a horror product will likely be disappointed that this is more of a cheesy thriller. Watchable, but forgettable. KGHarrs, 3/11.

Matt_Layden 2012-05-17 11:10:18

No suspense in predictable "thriller"

After her husband has cheated on her, Juliet decides to move out. Shefinds her dream place after looking at only one other place and shethinks the landlord is kind of cute. They have a flirtatiousrelationship, but she soon finds out that there is more to him thanappears. When I first saw the trailer to The Resident, I knew that Jeffery DeanMorgan was the creepy guy stalking her between the walls and spying onher taking baths. The trailer never fully shows Morgan doing this, butthe shots of the attacker clearly are him. Without having to look atthe synopsis, most viewers will know this. So, the mystery to the filmas to who this person is is immediately gone. The rest of the film falls victim to the by the numbers setups of thegenre it tries to fit into. Hilary Swank, who has two Oscars under herbelt stars in the film. She doesn't have the star power that sheapparently should have. None of her films really do well at the boxoffice and she somehow managed to score herself two Oscar wins. Thisfilm feels like a fish out of water role for her. She does nothingparticular worthy of a mention. Morgan plays the creepy stalker, he hassome serious issues. His father killed his mother than shot himself.This must have left some serious damaged issues with him. He wasbrought up by his uncle, played by veteran actor Christopher Lee, in athankless role. The acting was sub-par, the actors taking part here usually star inbetter films. The material is not good enough for them, despite my lovehate relationship with Swank, she deserves better than this. Even LeePace, whom I only know from Pushing Daises deserves a better role thanthe ex-boyfriend. Why Swank's character takes him back after he cheatson her is beyond me, this aspect of their relationship is hardlyexplored. The film seems more interested in the obvious, which isMorgan and his sick relationship with Swank. Which, oddly, wasn'tcreepy enough. For a film like this, I expected a bit more creativity with how Morganwould get around the apartment and not be seen. Instead we are given,scenes in which he hides in the shadows and slowly slips out at theright moment. The last act of the film seems straight out of a slasherflick. I felt like I was watching a Friday the 13th film, where theunstoppable killer is after the heroine. Morgan's character isessentially a normal human being, yet he somehow gets super powers nearthe end, giving the viewer the classic "one last scare" tactic. I always hate when a female character, which is always the case, has aweapon in her hand so she can stab the attacker and she chooses to stabthem in a non-killing strike. The arms, shoulders, legs, back, anythingexcept an obvious death blow is used. Frankly it insults the viewersintelligence and is tiresome. Stop having people get away by stabbingthe attacker in the leg and start having them attack some vital parts. The Resident fails to thrill the audience or create any kind ofsuspense. It's a forgettable film that should have been broken down toit's basic core and restructured from the beginning. The film has a lotof problems and it seems that no one cared enough to address them.

2012-05-16 19:06:08

A misfire

In short if you watch one Hammer comeback film this year, watch Wake Wood [Region 2 UK DVD] [2011] Starring Dan Gordon and Ruth McCabe and not this very average, let-down of a film. To be fair the first half has an interesting build up of tension ...but 'the big twist' comes too early in the narrative and we are left with a very long, very formula third act that goes on forever and is a bit dull. Christopher Lee is wasted too, which is a bit unforgivable. Hopefully Hammer will keep going and do better in future.

2012-05-16 07:42:42

The Resident

Why is there a horse in the lead?(No Pun),makes for a good movie but we have seen these plots before,predictable and repetitive.Did I mention Hillary Swank?She leads on some guy in the movie,and turns out the guy is pretty demented,and of course by the cover you can tell what happens next.Christopher Lee is Great but The return of Hammer Films could have been better.

Trent Reid 2012-05-15 16:45:59

Technically Polished Thriller, Weak on Script

Guillermo Navarro's cinematography and a struggling cast cannotcompensate for the weak script in this predictable thriller. I do nothold it against the picture that they went through other leads,although it is obvious that the role was not written for Swankspecifically. She makes a solid effort at vulnerability, as per thepart, despite the copiously fogged nude scenes making it clear thatthis ex-Karate Kid and $M Baby could put most guys through a wall. AndChristopher Lee is used well, if sparingly, though fans should not comein expecting a huge role for him. I did not, and was not disappointed.***************************SPOILER ALERT******************************But the film is packed with the kind of dialog in which charactersliterally declare their emotional state to the audience, "I am ___ ,because ___." This picks up a little with the intrusion of a hesaid/she said on screen rewind of the events just seen, which are thenreplayed in montage so as to reveal the antagonist's back-story andmotives in a manner more ham fisted even than the dialog. The rewindflashback is exceeded even by a facile, inverse, parallel use of gunsnear the open and ending shots. The score is adequate if derivative,with some droning bells and manipulated strings that match well withthe early use of environmental sounds in the cityscape.Despite these many overplayed elements, Navarro's cinematography ispleasingly smart. A white on black color motif that shifts to red foreffective foreshadowing, it helps relieve the series of lamejump-scares. Institutional colors at her work alternate with warm fleshtones for intimate interiors, and smooth use of the establishedapartment space with more interesting camera movement than your typicalvoyeur thriller.Morgan is also good, and it is promising to see him cast in Bornedal'supcoming film for Raimi's uneven Ghost House Pictures. But overall,this is a disappointing but not terrible film. Maybe hard for Hammerfans to take, as they seem to be harking back to earlier thriller/noirterritory rather than more horrific or explicit films. The castingseems problematic here, and the use of Radcliffe in the upcoming Ladyin Black remake is worrisome as a similar strategy. That film should atleast have a better script, adapted by Jane Goldman, than this did.Hammer has a history of re-adapting classics, featuring actors fortheir name, and doling out the nudity - so it is pleasing to see thisfilm as part of a move in that direction after the unambitious Let MeIn. They do seem to be playing it overly safe with some castingchoices, although perhaps these upcoming projects will push furtheragainst type. Hopefully, they can retain this level of technical glossand apply it to more original or at least cleverly realized work.

dusan-22 2012-05-14 10:34:53

Disappointing

Very stupid story and pretty mediocre acting. This movie was like madefor TV morning program. Plot of the movie suppose to scare you but Iactually laughed. Our heroine was playing with a wrong guy and then hebecome crazy. But instead of the creepy scenes and feeling of beingscared of the guy I more felt sorry of him and after a while couldn'tstop laughing. Our guy does not suggest a dangerous man being scary orfrightening all the way to the end. If I didn't read the plot I wouldthink that this is actually a social drama talking about the harmlesspatient of the local psychiatric hospital. No plot, no suspense. Nocharacter development at all. Just the guy who observes the woman helikes, getting into her apartment. Slow, dull and not entertaining atall - this is the best explanation of the movie. Disappointing.

mbrooks-8 2012-05-13 21:20:54

Lame, boring, and clichéd.

The Resident: ER doctor Juliet Devereau (Hilary Swank) has left hercheating husband and moved into a huge loft apartment, that'ssurprisingly cheap, and too good to be true. Almost immediately Julietstarts to suspect that she is not alone in her apartment, she's not,and it's no mystery to the viewer that it turns out to be the hunkylandlord (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) who is actually a crazed stalker wholatched onto one day when he saw her working at the hospital. He hasspy-holes and secret passages that allow him access to her apartment sothat he can use her toothbrush, masturbate in her tub, sneak in atnight, drug her, and molest her while she sleeps. Christopher Lee has auseless role as the landlord's grandfather that has nothing really todo with the plot, not that there is much of plot. Juliet of coursefinds out what's going on and ends up in a running fight with the evillandlord inside the walls of the building.Questions #1: If you have the hospital run a tox screen on your bloodand urine after you've overslept numerous mornings in a row, and alsofound the lid of needle on the bedroom floor, why wouldn't youimmediately notify the police after discovering that the tests cameback positive for Demerol and Valium? She of course rushes back to herapartment to have long protracted battle with her assailant.Question #2: Wouldn't a doctor know that using a nail gun to shootthree nails into the shoulder of your assailant is not a debilitatingwound?

2012-05-12 07:02:40

Entertaining at best

This review is from: The Resident (DVD) I loved this movie, though if your living alone, it may make you think about what kind of landlord you may have and if you get a really good price on rent, than you may just want to be aware of that. It started off in the typical way, a young professional woman looking for an apartment, the landlord seems innocent, you may even think it's the landlords father who is the culprit, but in that case as the movie moves through you start to see just how the landlord lured and planned certain things and yes he is strange, obssessed, and creepy for a normal looking guy, but than it all unfolds, he is jealous of the boyfriend and now all hell breaks loose. Resident is a great movie and very entertaining.

2012-05-11 22:22:43

I regret I watched this movie

What a waste of time, blood all over. and sickness.Hilary, I wished you did a favor to the cameras and act.This movie spoiled my evening.

2012-05-05 20:21:37

FAILED ( -_-')

"The Resident" is 2011 drama/horror/thriller film that basically puts an emphasis on the saying "if it's too good to be true, it probably is". It is about a woman (Juliet Dermer played by Hilary Swank) that goes looking for an apartment to stay at, eventually finds one that is just too good to be true; affordable, extremely spacious and not only that, the landlord is a good-looking, charming man that cares for his tenants (no, really, a landlord that cares!). The landlord (Max played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan), however, ends up forming a dangerous obsession to Juliet and the movie trailer pretty much sums up the whole thing. Everything you see in the official movie trailer for this movie is pretty much what the movie is like.Two stars is actually a generous rating in my opinion because this movie did not succeed in anything that it was meant to succeed in. The movie failed for a few reasons.Reason 1: I think this reason is ESPECIALLY true for me, but the villain, Max, is too good looking. He plays the role of a sick, invasive, and mentally unstable pervert that peeks through hidden crevices in the wall throughout the apartment. Or at least he's SUPPOSE to seem that way. However, the way he looks and the way he acts never truly gives me that impression. Usually, the role of the villain in question is suppose to be fulfilled by a sickly looking man that's not so attractive and is more suspicious looking. Personally, I wanted Juliet to dump Jack, her boyfriend/ex? and go with Max. Reason 2: The plot and storyline of the movie is incredibly straightforward and predictable. There was definitely no mystery in who the villain is as it is clearly revealed fairly early in the story. So due to that, you never remain alert to the details to the movie because the main perpetrator has already been revealed. The ending held no surprises and the action scenes lack all sense of suspense.Reason 3: Drama, horror, thriller. Was the movie dramatic and made me feel connected to the character? No. Did the movie scare me or give me the sense of being horrified? No. Did it contain suspenseful, thrilling moments that put me on the edge of my seat wondering what'll come next? No. Predictable from beginning to end.Throughout the movie, you'll probably be thinking "oh I've seen that before". Don't watch the trailer, it's basically the whole movie compressed. It's one of THOSE movies.

TheHrunting 2012-05-04 23:22:49

Somebody likes your toothbrush

This is a American shot thriller from a Finnish director and put out bythe recently revived Hammer Film--yep, the British production companyknown for its atmospheric horrors. "The Resident" gives nods to "SingleWhite Female," "One Hour Photo" and "Fatal Attraction," where it's adark tale of infatuation that builds and builds into a roaringobsession due to an object of desire that's out of physical reach.Some look for specific qualities or rewards in relationships thanothers, such as a momentary bit of comfort, physical release or warmthand security. There's a middle ground where you both meet in agreement,yet there are those that want things to fall specifically in place andonly go the way they want them to. There's going to be zero compromisewith those aggressively tuned people, just a one track freight train ofa strong personality and another unsuspecting person caught frozen onthe tracks.A woman named Juliet, played by Hilary Swank, is looking for anapartment after hitting a rough spot. She works by day as a doctor andafter living in her new residence for a short while she's being watchedwith a privy eye at night. This has a few unsettling moments, as thewatcher slowly works themselves up to get close enough to know what thebristles of her toothbrush feel like, as well as the brand of herundergarments. There's no real surprise as to who it is as there's onlyfour main characters shown and three of them quickly seem unlikely. Thefilmmakers realized about a third of the way in and dropped the wholemystery element in order to escalate the encroaching visits in firstperson to Juliet's apartment. If it wasn't predictable enough, sheeventually starts to suspect something's amiss and decides to takematters into her own hands in order to figure out the truth aboutwhat's going bump at night and why she feels so weird in the morning.Though the closer she gets, it causes the person to step out from theshadows for a finale that wraps up somewhat abruptly."The Resident" has a formula that's been done before with films thatdeal with unabated fixations that lead to stalking and voyeurism. Thiswas a common template for slasher films, though this is definitelymissing the gore and guts, but intact is the cinematic thrills. Thisdoes take it another step further with a few memorable scenes that pushthings over the top even if it mostly hints at them without actuallyrevealing them head-on in explicit detail. That seems to be the mainpurpose: to show some suspenseful scenes and to cut and pastecharacters into scenarios in order to make that happen, as the storyitself felt straightforward and ultimately inevitable. This might beeffective towards creeping out your squeamish girlfriend, as it givesparanoid thought to sleeping alone and putting blind trust intostrangers, otherwise there's not a whole lot of substance here to mineor to come back to for replay value. (Also submitted onhttp://fromblacktoredfilmreviews.blogspot.com/)

2012-04-29 21:11:45

Waste of time and talent

If you rent this for a buck, you MIGHT not be disappointed - it all depends on your expectations of a movie which stars two superb actors: hilary swank and jeffrey dean morgan. and like a previous reviewer stated, the cinematography, score, direction, are all above average. what's totally subpar is the absolutely derivative writing and lack of any real character dimension(s). For what you would assume would be a highly intelligent person in the role of an ER doctor, Ms. swank acts completely doofus while mr. morgan wanders around like an updated quasimodo...the only exciting(and hardly that!) moments occur during the last 10 or so minutes of the film - but you already knew what was coming - unless you fell asleep much earlier!! the two stars are for the two stars; without them carrying the movie, this would be a total and utter disrespect for one's own time....

2012-04-29 09:14:47

This Could Have Been a Good Movie...

Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?) Unfortunately it is so far-fetched that the superior casting and fine cinematography can't save it. The ending left me scratching my head because there were so many unanswered questions...why did Max choose Juliet? Why was Max in the hospital in the first place? Who was the patient Juliet was working on when Max first spotted her? Why didn't Juliet and her boyfriend go look in the closet when the little dog was barking nonstop? What happened to the dog? And on and on....This movie was an okay way to waste 90 minutes on a rainy evening, but I don't think I would recommend it to anyone or ever watch it again. The acting was good but the material was so innane that the actors had a hard time getting this movie off the ground. The scary scenes were fairly scary and kept my attention, but in the end I was left in the dark. I am being generous by giving THE RESIDENT 3 stars.

prichards12345 2012-04-27 03:26:19

Genre Cliché how do I love thee? Let me count the ways!

1. Professional woman (Hilary Swank) who's just been cheated on by herex searches for a new apartment and just wants to move on in her life.She's a good heart surgeon but lonely....2. Caretaker (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) and his ancient Grandfather(Christopher Lee) let her a hugely spacious apartment at about a tenthof the normal rent....3. Swank begins to fall for the gentlemanly guy, but after almostconsummating the relationship the audience discover (shock! horror!)that the guy's a creepy perv. He's fitted up her apartment with lots ofspy holes and hidden entrances like any self respecting creepy pervwould...4. Caretaker seen early on in movie using a nail gun, not realisingthey usually come back to haunt you if you're a creepy perv - seePacific Heights for reference....5. Methinks I spot a professional body double getting out of the bath.The camera is appropriately misted up/out of focus so the brief nudityis quite tasteful....6. Clause in Ms Swank's contract. "Camera must linger longingly over myclient's every gesture and thought for at least 40% of the movie."7. Clause in Mr. Lee's contract. "Client must not appear for more than5 minutes in the movie, just like most of his other 200-odd screenappearances - see Dracula Prince of Darkness." 8. Swank's Loser ex reappears and in spite of being even creepier thanMorgan's sad perv she promptly beds him.9. Our heroine only drinks red wine, so it is left uncorked for DeanMorgan to add Demerol, etc....He's well screwed if she drank white...:)10. Cell Phones that we are told have a signal problem in the buildingat the beginning of the movie, but work fine until Swank has to make acrucial phone call.....11. Top heart surgeon takes about a fortnight to suspect she's beingdrugged every night. Tests her blood at the hospital. Guesses whatCaretaker has been up to. Does not ring police. Does not tell anyone atall. Just rushes home. Nice one! 12. During the final confrontation nail-guns evil caretaker about 6times. Always in a non-fatal area. Remember she's a surgeon....There are a lot more. Actually I'm being a bit hard on The Resident, asit's not too badly made and put together, but I've included the aboveas a long-winded way of saying you've probably been here before,watching the same plot from a dozen or more other flicks. In truth,this is Hammer's least successful movie of their new era. What a pityLee's character doesn't survive longer. I'd have had him trying to helpSwank's character. Instead he gets offed pretty quickly. Shame as he'sa fine actor. Still, hopefully the new Hammer will learn from this anddevelop. Wake Wood and Let Me In were much better.

plutus1947 2012-04-26 10:09:52

Not Worth The Bother!

Although Hilary Swank is the Star and Producer of 'The Resident' that'sabout as good as it gets. With the exception of seeing Christopher Leein one of his all too rare appearances on the big screen. This can ofcourse be forgiven though because Christopher is coming up to 90 yearsyoung.SPOILER BEGINS The Resident is about a woman who rents an apartment and her landlorddevelops an unhealthy obsession with her.The plot is wafer thin because everyone who has ever seen a movie withthis storyline would have known what the outcome would be as soon asthey realised that the landlord, Max, played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan,had designs on his new tenant, Juliet Devereau, played by Hilary Swank.Added to his obsession was of course his uncontrollable jealousy.That's about it really.SPOILER ENDSThere have been dozens of movies made using this storyline, and to behonest many of them were done better.I love an 'edge of the seat' thriller but I am sorry to say that TheResident was nothing to write home about and I sat comfortably in mychair the whole way through it.The movie 'Unstoppable' starring Denzil Washington was by comparisondefinitely an enthralling thriller.Finally, I don't know if I am due another eye test but Morgan lookslike a cross between George Clooney and Robert Downey Jr to me. This iscertainly meant as a compliment to him.

XavissimuS 2012-04-25 06:06:50

Resident Evil (Web)

Swank moved me so much with "Boys don't cry" that i decided to browseall her filmography to search for another powerful part from her.This won't be this movie because it's a thriller but nevertheless,she's done a good job. Sometimes, movies suck in the final reel after agood start, here, it's the opposite: the beginning drags until thebreak coming in the second dating. For this moment, the tension risesand the climax is nearly a survival movie.What i like in the story is its originality: for one time, the tenantdoesn't find the accommodation by luck but was lead to it.Unfortunately, the landlord is jealous and crazy! A lot happens afterthe last bath before sleep, thus Hilary has a chance to be sensual, allthe more than she is in flirtation mode. Her opposite partner is greatwith his Janus side and the scenes with Lee are tense but too little:what a presence, what a voice! The choice for brown, rusty atmosphereis appropriate and the apartment is shot like a maze! In conclusion,it's a good surprise after all.

2012-04-24 13:23:04

The Resident

Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?) Not the best movie, but still worth watching. It is relatively short (only 91 minutes). Before watching it, I thought it was a drama, but it is really something between drama and horror movie. Juliet (Hilary Swank) is a beautiful doctor who moved into a new beautiful apartment which is a trap by Max the landlord(Jeffrey Dean Morgan). It is an interesting story, but I felt there are places that they could elaborate on certain details (e.g. Max's parents story) so that there is more meat to the story. There is definitely suspension, but I felt unsatisfied at the end of the movie.Lessons learned from the movie: if something looks too good to be true, it is too good to be true - there is usually a catch. :)