Pacing all off

Rating: 5/10 (10 July 2007)

Coulda been a contender, but just didn't take off. "Boo" thrillers like this should pick you up at the start and give you no time to think - just throw one shock at a time at you. This seemed almost static - every scare shot was telegraphed. Instatead of jumping out of my seat from surprise, I found myself thinking 'here comes another scare' and trying to guess what the scare would be. Even the twist at the end was clumsily edited - instead of grabbing you off kilter and making you jump, it was deliberately set up and held too long - multiple reaction shots from the two characters instead of scare - quick reax - black. leaving you breathing fast and your heart pounding. Quite a few careless and egregious continuity goofs also pulled me out of the movie repeatedly.
Liked Samuel L. Jackson, though - he had just the right combination of mystery and menace to leave you thinking about his role. Also, the quick pun in the beginning of the bellhop asking Mike if he could handle his "baggage" paid off nicely later in the film.