I went in with high hopes but low expectations. Given the cast's past bodies of work, I was hoping for a watchable film at the very least. As it turns out, the film is unoriginal and dull. It's one of those films were the director seems to think long drawn out scenes of mundane activity somehow equals "building tension". I found that I could actually watch extended sections of this film in fast forward and not miss a plot point. This is because quite a few "tension building" scenes don't actually lead anywhere. We're given plenty of chances to watch Brittany Murphy walk slowly from point A to point B, only to discover that nothing is really happening at point B, followed by a cut to a different scene. The performances are passable and the cinematography is adequate, but the script is uninspired at best. The movie did keep me guessing till the end, but only because I wasn't sure which clichéd twist they were going to use. We've all seen the twist ending employed here before, but when taken with the rest of this film, it still almost seems nonsensical. And if you've ever seen a made-for-TV thriller from the '80s, you've heard the score before. Seriously, listen to the music over the opening credits and try not to smile at that last line. Overall, this isn't the worst film I've ever seen, but unless you're trying to keep a complete Murphy or Birch film collection, watch something else.
