Poison Ivy Meets Sleepaway Camp Meets The Good Son

Rating: 7/10 (7 August 2009)

It has to be noted that since Dark Castle began producing movies, the majority if not being a remake, has been judged purely on the basis of how flashy the visuals have been, two movie that spring to mind have been 'House Of Wax & The Reaping.
With this latest slice of Dark Castle horror, we find ourselves in what seems like unfamiliar territory, a movie which is neither a re-imagining or contain any sort of visual trickery, I say this, as I noted that Joel Silver was still at the helm as the main producer, and we all know that he likes his movies to appear on screen as big as like themselves.
The story surrounding the family unit whilst not overly original does contain certain key elements that give the scenario some grounding, a distant husband, a wife/mother still coming to terms with the loss of her unborn baby, whilst still trying to remain resolute for her two already existing children, one of whom, a little girl who is deaf.
The scene between the mother and daughter, when mother uses sign language to tell the story about the little girl ascending to heaven was quite touching.
Of course this being a horror movie, the movie needs to gather apace, so luckily it didn't drag, so we the audience already know that the couple wish to add to their family by adopting another child to bring some form of harmony to the fold.
At this point, the story structure takes shape, and we meet Esther, prim and proper and a dab hand with a paint brush, she can also carry a tune, albeit an old fashioned one, which when you see her initial appearance you can just imagine the way she carries herself both in terms of how she walks and talks.
Of course such appearance can always be deceptive, and true to form, little Esther begins to carefully construct her ungodly plan for perfect family togetherness.
As ever when I watch any horror movie, I always seem to find certain associations with other horror movies, in this case, the notion of a little girl being adopted made me think of The Good Son, remember when Macauley Culkin first let rip with the F Bomb? As for my Poison Ivy notion, I am not a fan of spoilers, but the scene where Esther dresses to impress and possibly seduce her adoptive father, whilst very uncomfortable to watch, it made me think of the Drew Barrymore original.
As for The Sleepaway Camp Murders, remember the ending to that? Now that was a real jaw dropper too, So placing all those threads together, was the movie any good? Like I said before, the denouement was the biggest kicker, but it must noted that the acting by young Isabelle Fuhrman was quite something, she managed to convey all the elements of a femme fatale, from sweet innocence to sheer stark terror.
With all the multiplexes currently showing the latest blockbusters, if you find yourself in the mood for a little late night chilling session, go check this one out.
My rating is 7 out of 10