The Messengers: Generic Horror Movie #3,278,921
In the world of a horror movie, there must be no such thing as other horror movies. By that I mean the characters in any given horror movie can't walk into a theater and see a horror movie. If they could, everyone would know not to buy abandoned farm houses and never to trust mysterious strangers who just happen to stop by at a time of dire need. Have you ever noticed how paranormal activities never seem to occur while a family scouts out the abandoned house they're planning on moving into? They only start AFTER they've already moved in. Either that, or they're just a stupid family and they don't scout the house out first.
So it is with The Messengers. Basically, pick every movie stereotype and throw it in the pot, let it simmer for a 90 minutes, and you've got this movie.
Let's see:
Abandoned farmhouse? Check.
Family leaving the city to move out to the middle of nowhere? Check.
Dysfunctional family struggling to stick together? Check.
Young child who can see ghosts? Check.
Parents who don't believe their children's ghost stories? Check.
The nice guy in town who is the only person who believes the one who encountered the ghost? Check.
Mysterious stranger? Check.
Ominous crows? Check.
Ghostly attack that leaves a kid injured, causing parents to believe they did it to themselves? Check.
That's not to say it was a particularly bad movie. It's just something we've all seen a hundred million times over. It's a recipe for how to make a generic horror flick, but it's not a bad one. It's kinda like a fast food burger - they can be kinda tasty in a pinch, but if you've got the time you'd rather go to a fancy restaurant or, better yet, make your own just the way you like it. Strange analogy, I realize, but I think you get the idea. It's not terrible, but you can find something better.
One thing I will give it credit for is superb use of sound. If there's any one thing this movie did better than a lot of other horror flicks I've seen in recent years, it was use ghostly whispers, voices, screams, cries, and odd, ambient sound to brilliant effect. It makes liberal use of rear speakers in a surround sound setup, which will often cause you to jump when you hear something unexpected behind you. The ghosts do look pretty cool in the rare instances you actually see them too, but they're not particularly original either. We've all seen the bluish-gray, veiny ghosts before.
It's rare that you see a movie like The Ring bring something original to the American horror scene, and it's hard to blame a movie like The Messengers for treading water and being redundant. It's still got some decent scares, but don't go in with high expectations unless you want to be disappointed.
So it is with The Messengers. Basically, pick every movie stereotype and throw it in the pot, let it simmer for a 90 minutes, and you've got this movie.
Let's see:
Abandoned farmhouse? Check.
Family leaving the city to move out to the middle of nowhere? Check.
Dysfunctional family struggling to stick together? Check.
Young child who can see ghosts? Check.
Parents who don't believe their children's ghost stories? Check.
The nice guy in town who is the only person who believes the one who encountered the ghost? Check.
Mysterious stranger? Check.
Ominous crows? Check.
Ghostly attack that leaves a kid injured, causing parents to believe they did it to themselves? Check.
That's not to say it was a particularly bad movie. It's just something we've all seen a hundred million times over. It's a recipe for how to make a generic horror flick, but it's not a bad one. It's kinda like a fast food burger - they can be kinda tasty in a pinch, but if you've got the time you'd rather go to a fancy restaurant or, better yet, make your own just the way you like it. Strange analogy, I realize, but I think you get the idea. It's not terrible, but you can find something better.
One thing I will give it credit for is superb use of sound. If there's any one thing this movie did better than a lot of other horror flicks I've seen in recent years, it was use ghostly whispers, voices, screams, cries, and odd, ambient sound to brilliant effect. It makes liberal use of rear speakers in a surround sound setup, which will often cause you to jump when you hear something unexpected behind you. The ghosts do look pretty cool in the rare instances you actually see them too, but they're not particularly original either. We've all seen the bluish-gray, veiny ghosts before.
It's rare that you see a movie like The Ring bring something original to the American horror scene, and it's hard to blame a movie like The Messengers for treading water and being redundant. It's still got some decent scares, but don't go in with high expectations unless you want to be disappointed.