The Messengers - Movie Review

Roy and Denise Solomon have decided to give up life in Chicago and relocate their family to a secluded North Dakota sunflower farm. While the tranquil sway of the lush yellow fields at first offers a welcomed reprieve from the hustle and bustle of the big city, the family soon begins to suspect that they are not alone on the farm when teenage daughter Jess and her three-year-old brother, Ben, begin to see a series of menacing apparitions that are apparently invisible to adult eyes. As Jess and Ben's encounters with the malevolent spirits grow increasingly violent, the parents of the tormented teen soon begin to question their daughter's sanity. Soon, the dark history of the family that once lived in the remote farm and the troubled past of the frightened Jess begin to merge as she struggles to warn her parents about the terrifying confrontation with the supernatural that is about to unfold.

This is a pretty straightforward horror film. The first half of the movie sets everything up and the second half provides all the action and thrills. The twist at the end was good and surprising, but overall, the movie was just too simplistic. By contrast, "The Ring" was very complex, intense and scary. This film seemed to copy the creepy movements of the creatures from "The Ring," but that's where the similarities end. I think the fact that it's less than 90 minutes long speaks volumes about just how shallow this film is - there's no time to really develop the characters and tell a good story. It seemed rushed and I didn't care enough about the characters to be concerned about their well-being, which takes away from the scare factor. Overall, this movie missed the mark of a good horror film.

Rating: 2 of 5 stars
Would I watch it again: No
Starring: Kristen Stewart, Dylan McDermott, Penelope Ann Miller

The opinions expressed are those of me, myself and I.