Static (I) (2012) User Reviews

A largely forgettable mystery drama with a good twist at the end

[waba-se-wasca · 4/10 · 7 July 2015]

I am a huge fan of Sara Paxton and that's pretty much the only reason why a watched STATIC. I hate to say it, but this movie is lame. It's not suspenseful and scary the way a mystery thriller should be. It's more like a drama with some light thriller elements. Why this movie is tagged "horror" on IMDb is beyond me. Also, the movie poster is VERY misleading. I expected something completely different judging from that poster. Something like RAMPAGE (2009) or THE TALL MAN (2012) or whatever. Also, Sara Paxton only has a small amount of screen time, which is a shame because she is a great actress when given something to work with. Anyways, the plot of STATIC is quickly told:

Jonathan Dade (Milo Ventimiglia), a novelist, and his wife Addie (Sarah Shahi) live in a large house in the middle of nowhere. We soon learn that their three-year-old son died in an accident some time ago and that they are having a hard time to forgive themselves and move on. One night, a strange woman named Rachel (Sara Paxton) comes knocking on their front door saying that her car broke down and that she was being followed by strange figures wearing gas masks. Jonathan and Addie are so kind to take her in for the night. Some time later, intruders come to the house and take Rachel away. Then they come after Jonathan and Addie...

The plot doesn't offer much. For the better part of an hour, you basically see Jonathan and Addie fleeing from largely invisible intruders wearing freaky gas masks and hoodies. The couple run from one room of their house to the other, hear some noises, argue a bit, then go to the next room and do the same. Then they leave the house, run into the garden, then into the garage, then into the forest, and back to the house again. During all that running, they hardly make any contact with their intruders. You can figure that it gets boring pretty soon.

The movie only gets relatively interesting about ten minutes before the credits start rolling. When it is revealed at the end that Jonathan and Addie are ghosts, my initial thought was that we have seen endings like that so many times since THE SIXTH SENSE (1999), it's not really original anymore. The good twist comes a little bit later when you realize that Rachel and her crew are something like ghost hunters who clean haunted houses from spirits that won't leave. That is a pretty clever ending, I give the movie that, but other than the enjoyable ending, STATIC just doesn't offer much. I'm sorry to say.

Ending saved the rest of it

[leahfaycarson · 6/10 · 2 April 2022]

It was a bit Meh for the first part. Feeling predictable and lost amongst so many like it. But the ending really redeemed the whole thing for me.

Maybe if the first part had been a bit more original then I'd have rated a little higher. Does a good ending determine the entire movie? No. But it was a gooden.

Let's start with the ending

[baunacholi-86159 · 5/10 · 13 June 2022]

Which came as a surprise but ultimately not as innovative as suggested by some reviews. Well, I see dead people / we're all dead, has been done before (The Others or The six's sense). This said it does connect all loose ends and odd circumstances u probably witnessed during the movie. E.g. The phone calls to the police which didn't cut through. The washed out color scenes, the masks to enable the ghost hunters to see the (dead)couple etc.

And still, the majority of the running time was just not captivating or suspenseful in my opinion. I liked the concept but the execution was not as sharp as it could have been.

A dull and murky derivative

[Leofwine_draca · 3/10 · 16 December 2015]

STATIC is another murky and derivative 'home invasion' shocker that manages to rip off a half dozen or so films over the course of its running time. It's a rather insipid work that tries hard to build a creepy atmosphere but fails throughout thanks to sub-par direction and poor script writing. If you want to see this kind of film done properly, try the magnificent French thriller THEM.

The protagonists in the film are a young couple grieving the death of their only child. These makes them as mopey and self-centred as it gets, and they make for imminently unlikeable characters. Milo Ventimiglia and Sarah Shahi are undoubtedly talented performers but they can do little with what's on offer here.

The fright scenes in particular are rather dull and murky and too predictable when films like THE PURGE and THE STRANGERS have done it all before. Plus, the cinematography is way too dark, and the film as a whole has a grey and washed out look that makes it depressing to watch. The twist at the climax turns out to be nothing more than another rip-off of a different movie.

Static actually has pretty good reception --^--6.8/10--^--

[Thrill_KillZ · 7/10 · 23 May 2013]

Static comes to us from a completely unknown source by way of Todd Levin, this being his directorial debut, he also was one of three people credited for the screenplay. For a first effort it was a promising start, of course having an experienced cast in Milo Ventimiglia & Sarah Shahi to work with certainly didn't hurt. The film had very good cinematography and sound that worked to create a tense, creepy atmosphere quite early into the film.

The film relies heavily on the acting of Ventimiglia & Shahi who play Addie & Jonathan, a grieving couple who recently lost their beloved son Thomas to an accidental drowning death a short time ago. Not far into the film, in the dead of night, they are awoken by a hard knock on the door. It is here we meet a desperate woman named Rachel(Sara Paxton) who claims that while tending to a flat tire, someone had attacked her and was still in pursuit, but when Jonathan goes out to look he can see no one, but just to be safe the couple agrees to let her stay the night. It is at this point that strange happenings begin to occur and we are left guessing where exactly the danger lies. The first half of the film closely resembles The Strangers(2008), but there is more than meets the eye as the details slowly bubble to the surface and the story takes a hard turn in a new direction.

The plot does consist of familiar ideas, things we have witnessed before in other films, but the film presents them in an intriguing way, making for an entertaining thriller. It had great atmosphere, good tension and fine performances by the film's lead characters, they both held my attention well throughout the film. The ending was a bit frustrating, as I'm sure some will agree, but was still an acceptable answer to all of the mystery & motives. Not a bad way to spend 80 minutes.

interesting concept, inadequate followthrough

[dutchchocolatecake · 2/10 · 2 December 2013]

This just goes to show that good acting does not necessarily save a bad movie.

I don't normally watch "home invasion" movies, but I took exception to this one because it has a supernatural twist.

The idea behind the movie is interesting, albeit a hodgepodge of pop- culture cult thrillers. If you cross home invasion with "the Others" this is what you get - a movie about ghosts that don't know they're ghosts, but with scary masked people invading their house.

Aside from the pacing, I had a problem with the character writing. The characters aren't really sympathetic or likable. The explanation at the end felt disingenuous and hastily thrown together. I don't see how putting ghosts through trauma makes them more capable of moving on.

The reason why "The Sixth Sense" and "The Others" made great movies, is because they were told in a much different way. "Static" is filmed in a traditional action-chase-horror way that leaves it completely devoid of the tension and intrigue that usually accompanies psychological horror. What a waste.

Loved it till the end

[emmajanegray1985 · 6/10 · 29 July 2013]

I watched the trailer of the movie before deciding whether or not to give it a go and it intrigued me enough to watch. It is clear from the first few scenes that there are a few story lines going on here.

Filming wise I think it is directed well with some interesting shots and a soundtrack which certainly adds to heighten the suspense.

Horror wise I think that anything which includes figures with masks on is always scary and throughout the whole film it kept you guessing as to why they were there, the point and what the outcome might be.

I really felt that the whole way through it was tense and suspenseful as a true horror/thriller movie should be, my only disappointment came at the end where I felt the movie recycled and ending which is all to common in cinema today. It would have been so great for it to have been something different to carry on the feeling of the rest of the film, but this sadly was not the case.

It is still worth a watch.

Boring...another one

[dctr666 · 2/10 · 16 June 2013]

Well...a couple finds themselves being hunt down by "lunatics" with gas masks... Then, after a few doll moments we discover they are dead, both of them, because the female killed herself and the man, after their son drowned... The lunatics were ghost hunters, who wanted to let them know they had died... This movie sucks big time...there's a lot of good movies with this kind of ideas, like, for instance, The Others, and there's no need to make another one... This sucks...the only good things this crappy thing had, is the lead actors...both of them do a nice job... But still, not enough... Another one, not to waste any time with it...only for a boring afternoon, whenever we need something to help us sleep...

Liked it a lot - Refreshing ending

[jennifer-hill-503-94200 · 7/10 · 26 November 2013]

This movie I agree was slow paced and definitely not a movie to watch if you are looking for a good scare.

However, I very much enjoy when a horror movie takes you on a ride you think you have been on before and ends up not being at all what you expected. I think it was clever way to pull this whole story together and take it away from your typical clichéd "house invaders" story line. As a huge horror movie buff that likes a variety of horror movies, this movie I found to be very refreshing. I actually found the ending completely worked with the whole movie, if it had of ended any other way I feel many parts of the movie would of seemed stupid and not worked at all.

All in all, I would absolutely say it is worth a watch for those who enjoy a wide variety of horror sub-genres.

Slow, slow, slow....and then it's over!

[haylzebub · 3/10 · 6 August 2013]

Was looking forward to this one as recognised some of the actors and although it started out well, it quickly descended into the realms of bland and predictable. What can I say other than its all been done before.......and been done better!

We watched it to the end because my husband was following it but I will admit that I was so bored that I really couldn't care less about what was going on! Needless to say it was no surprise that the whole thing was finished off with one of the worst endings in movie history! An ending which resulted in much cursing and ranting form my other half as up until this point he had been enjoying it! I'm sure the filmmakers intention was to end with a shocking twist but it just fell totally flat, an achievement in itself considering the already horizontal nature of the plot!

Great if you are having trouble sleeping.......zzzzzzzzzzz...........

Watch this in the dark.

[allyatherton · 8/10 · 24 December 2015]

A couple hear a knock at the door in the dead of the night.

Starring Milo Ventimiglia and Sarah Shahi.

Written by Gabriel Cowan, Todd Levin, Andrew Orci and John Suits.

Directed by Todd Levin.

I really liked this one. It's creepy and scary and the plot kept me gripped all the way through.

The acting is good and try as I could I didn't see the twist at the end coming, even though there's a big hint in the opening scenes! It's all been done before of course. A young couple in a creepy house in the middle of nowhere and lots of running and hiding seem to be the staple for a lot of psychological horror movies. I wanted to grab hold of the main male character several times to tell him to stop being so stupid every time he ventured off on his own, because you know something bad is only going to happen. But what would a horror film be without stupid characters!

This is the perfect short movie to curl up on the couch to. Just make sure you turn out the lights and close the curtains to make it even more scary.

An enjoyable 7.5/10.

Great movie

[ericpadley · 7/10 · 4 December 2020]

I thought it was excellent. A great thriller with a great ending. Good selection for movie night!

It Drags. Then, It Makes Sense

[payasoingenioso · 5/10 · 26 November 2020]

The movie itself is well cast and bland.

The plot is basic and unfortunate.

The ending redeems it.

This all could have been abbreviated to an episode of the Twilight Zone.

Almost forgettable: predictable twist, unresolved subplots

[betlamed · 2/10 · 17 August 2015]

I won't say this is completely awful, as the acting is somewhat decent, but that's about it.

A couple have lost their son. A young woman knocks at their door, followed by sinister people wearing strange gas masks.

The motives of those folks remain unclear right till the end, when the movie makers cheat their audience with the most clichéd cheat of a plot-twist ever. Is that a spoiler now? I'm not sure. I guess, to those who know what I'm talking about, it won't be a secret at about ten minutes into the movie, anyway.

On top of all that, look at the couple's last name. Bruhahaha.

See where this is going? Yes, you guessed right. Extremely popular movies with great casts have succeeded in pulling this off, with the greatest names in the business attached to them.

In comparison, this feels like the ambitious work of film students in their first semester. It's like they just haven't seen enough movies yet to know that every fan of the horror genre will see right through it.

Then there's the question of why the husband needed to be a writer, why the invaders had to wear gas masks, and why they put a fracking chandelier up in the woods. Unresolved subplots - bad writing.

The only reason I watched it till the end, only skipping a third of it along the way, was because I still hoped - against my own judgment - that it might turn out better this time. That, and I was sick in bed and had nothing else to do anyway.

A good sense of Mystery. It lags a little bit in the middle, but it is effectively done for the most part...

[lathe-of-heaven · 6/10 · 4 June 2013]

I was really caught up until about 30 minutes in. The sense of mystery was very strong. After things start to 'happen' though, I think it loses a bit of the tension that was built up so effectively to that point.

It's not that the movie takes a big dump or anything, but the middle section, although continuing the sense of mystery pretty well, seems to idle somewhat, sort of filling time. I don't mean to make it seem as bad as it sounds; it's mostly very effective all the way through and you really DO wonder what the &$%%#! is going on.

It's relatively easy in one sense to figure out a large part of what 'has' happened because they kind of tip it off to you (I don't wanna get too specific though and spoil anything) The use of sound as another reviewer mentioned is quite effective and good at building the suspense and a feeling of tension. One thing that I personally really appreciated, and this is something that I have a neurosis about so I don't expect this really will matter to most 'normal' people, but whomever was in charge of sound design THANKFULLY had a realistic view of what things normally sound like instead of boosting EVERY sound so unnaturally loud that it literally takes you out of the film. But, these guys really had it right on, so that was good.

Without giving too much away, I suppose that the ending could be considered sort of a 'Hollywood' ending, like another reviewer said here. But, if you are making a film with this kind of story, it's thematically kind of 'story-book' like anyway, so I feel that the ending logically follows. I guess it COULD have been left a bit darker. But, I agree with the film makers, that after all the mystery, suspense, and ultimately, the sadness, that choosing to end it like they did, I feel, is consistent with the overall story (DAMN! it's hard to explain something about the ending WITHOUT giving too much away... :)

Anyway, for the directorial debut and the theme of the film, I think they did a decent job with the story. It you want to be SUPER HYPER- critical, well, you COULD say that through the middle they might have come up with a tad more substance or complexity to draw us in a little more.

All and all, I honestly think that it is a solid, well made film. Depending on your personal taste concerning these types of movies, if your are like me where you appreciate imaginative themes, then you should find it fairly entertaining. BUT... if you are more of a hard core 'Realist' and do not suspend disbelief easily, this may not be the kind of film for you.

Great concept, bad execution

[g_kille · 4/10 · 3 July 2018]

Let me just start by saying that the only good part of the movie was the twist at the end. The beginning and middle dragged on and missed that horror/thriller element it so desperately needed. It wouldn't scare a small child which is upsetting considering the genre. I will say that the plot twist at the end was unique and unexpected. It's just a pity that the execution was so poor.

A Pretty Decent Psychological Thriller

[dfa120374 · 6/10 · 18 January 2015]

Jonathan and Addie Dade have been struggling to cope with the loss of their young son and it has caused their marriage to come to breaking point. One night, a female stranger turns up at their door and asks for help claiming that she is being stalked by people wearing masks. This tests the couple's resolve even more, especially when strange things start to happen around the house.

While maybe not being the most original movie out there (and with other films having similar twists) Static is still a pretty decent suspenseful thriller in it's own right. Some people may find it a wee bit slow going, but I didn't find this at all.

The story builds up quite nicely as it goes along, keeping a decent pace until it gets to the nicely done twist at the end and has some genuinely tense moments throughout.

The couple are quite likable characters, although Addie (who is played by Sarah Shahi) does actually become quite annoying at times, and even though you try to understand that she has recently lost her only child, you still can't help feeling frustrated with some of her actions.

Nonetheless, Static, like I say, is still a good movie to watch and as long as you don't have any unrealistic expectations of it, you should quite enjoy it like I did.

Statistically, this movie is a waste of time

[adi_2002 · 4/10 · 11 November 2013]

Husbands Jonathan and Addie are passing through a hard time in their life because they recently lost their son, he has drowned a few time ago. In order to seek moments of quiet so they can get over after this tragedy, they decide to move from the city to an isolated house at the country. One night a young girl arrives at their door telling that she needs help and some peoples are chasing her. Jonathan allows Rachel to enter while he goes out to see what happened. Soon some masked strangers come inside and abduct Rachel. Doesn't pass to much time and the married couple finds themselves in danger because now are haunted by this mens and they have to protect their lives but also will find a truth about the stranger that let in their mansion.

In my opinion this movie is a mix between The Crazies by George A. Romero and The Strangers because some sequences could remind you of the two horror movies. But this one is just bad, slow, boring and with a silly ending. Not recommended unless you have too much free time available.

Very effective thriller, although seems like a remake

[ericthigpen-1 · 7/10 · 24 May 2013]

For a thriller, this film delivers the goods. Moments of almost unbearable tension and the jolts only add to the suspense. Well-acted, especially between the leads. The sorrow they endured due to the loss of their son is heartbreaking. Although it's clear they love each other, they've lost their way to connect and communicate with one another. As much as I enjoyed the film, I kept wondering if I had already seen it before. It seems to be a remake of a terrifying 2006 French film called 'Them' ('Ils'). In any case, I wouldn't recommend watching either of these films alone, especially if you're staying in an empty house somewhere in the country, far from civilization! the ending is a big disappointment, though. A failed attempt to make a happy Hollywood ending.

undone by a truly awful ending

[movieman_kev · 4/10 · 10 October 2014]

A couple who had recently lost a son finds themselves targeted by a group of unknown criminals who appear to be after not only them, but a girl that they saved by letting into their house after her car breaks down earlier.

This reasonably well-acted tense horror film kept my interest through most of it's run time. I found myself enjoying it more than i expected to, everything was going well enough, But then the ending rears its ugly head and completely obliterates what good will I had for the film. Because of this I can't really bring myself to recommend it to anyone save the least discerning horror-phile amongst you.

My Grade: D+

Innovative and clever. A nice surprise!

[jtindahouse · 8/10 · 28 December 2013]

It's hard to review a movie like this without giving away any spoilers. The twist is too important to the outcome and quality of the movie. 'Static' revolves around a couple, seemingly living in the middle of nowhere, who have recently lost their son. The same night that the husband has completed his latest book a girl arrives on the couples doorstep asking for help from some masked men who are allegedly pursuing her. And so begins their night of terror.

For the next 70 odd minutes, we follow the couple in their attempts to escape the masked men, as we would always expect to do in this type of movie, however this time somethings different. Somethings not right. The masked men don't seem to be posing any real threat to the couple. They are unarmed and seem to show no real urgency when given an opportunity to capture/inflict harm on either member of the couple. At the time I was putting this down to poor filmmaking, however I would later learn it was to all make sense.

So the movie continues with the usual minor twists being revealed ie. the girl at the door is one of them, they've been watching the couple on surveillance all along etc. when something else begins to bug me. What is the point of the dead son storyline. Is it just more average filmmaking trying to add depth to the characters, as in 'Vacancy', or does the storyteller have a little trick up his sleeve to conquer all my doubts.

I was delighted to find it was the latter. The twist being that couple we were following all along were actually the ghosts who were struggling to move on, and the masked men (and woman) were the ghost busters, if you will. Not a completely original twist (I won't ruin any other films for you), but what I liked about it was that it didn't cheat. Not only in hindsight did it make sense (as much as a ghost story ever can), but it left clues along the way. When a mask is tried on by one member of the couple we see that these aren't gas masks as much as they are for lack of a better term 'ghostspotting' masks. There's also the above mentioned points about the masked intruders never motioning to cause harm to the couple, the male member of the couple's seemingly dead body seen with gunshot wounds in the opening frames of the movie and many more. But the one I like the most is actually the tagline for the movie, "If you hear them coming, you're already dead." There is was staring me in the face on the DVD cover before I'd even opened the case. Very clever.

Overall a very good film. I hope a lot of people don't turn it off halfway through out of frustration with what may appear to be poor writing and get through to the end when things are explained. Nothing life changing, but certainly a lot more fun to watch than a lot of these lesser known thriller/horrors are.

Ordinary low budget film with strong sound editing

[OJT · 6/10 · 11 July 2013]

As the title gives away, this film is kind of static. That means in this case slow paced. However, it is well done, and able to both get your feeling flowing. Emotion, sadness, fear. It's all here, but if you expect some kind of standard film, you won't find it here. It's not a horror, it's not a thriller and not sci-fi or gore. It's a strange little piece, and it's well made. I can't say more without giving away spoilers.

I found this both well played, it's scary and creepy. The sound editing is first class. I would say this is a well made film on a small budget.

We meet a couple which is torn to pieces of the loss of their dead three year old child. She is bothered with nerve problems, and he seems like he holding the grip. But he starts to hear sounds. One night the open the door for a young woman, obviously very afraid of something out there in the dark. She just got a flat tire, and heard weird clicking sounds, and she saw some using gas masques.

Sound is a powerful tool when you make movies. Here I find this used to max extent, which lifts the scariness of this a lot. Then the film loses both tension and believability, midways. A good premise is lost. But then it picks up a good thread in the end again. The end will not satisfy all, other will find it smart.

Interesting from talented new film maker. Music is good, so is the idea. Well worth a watch, if you don't mind a slow paced drama with thrilling parts.

Some says this is a remake of the French film "Them" from 2006. I don't know. I haven't seen that.

Fair, but very slow

[eagle-mountain · 5/10 · 6 July 2013]

I decided to watch this one because of the rating it had here. It's a fairly good movie, but it is way too slow. What it does well is keep you guessing all the way to the very end.

You don't know who the girl is.

You don't know why they are after her.

Then, you don't know why they are after them.

The more I think about the movie the more I like it. However, the end leaves you feeling somewhat disappointed.

I watched the entire movie picking things I thought were wrong with the movie, only to find out in the end that they all make sense. This one is worth watching, but you wont be raving about how good it was later.

This movie had a great amount of potential, but it fell flat in many categories

[cmovies-99674 · 5/10 · 11 August 2017]

PROS: The only good thing that I can give to this movie is the acting, I really believed the two main characters for most of the movie. 

CONS: The biggest issue, for me at least, was the direction the movie went down. Static had a very good idea to start, but then they just kept adding new ideas and plot lines to the movie making it crowded and over complicated. When a movie does this, there becomes a lot of plot holes and missing pieces. To add on to the confusion, the ending was a complete and udder mess. It just comes out of no where and hits you like a curve ball, and not in a good way. I was really frustrated with it specifically, I just hoped that it would tie together all the loose pieces (yet another let down). The build up of tension in the movie was OK, it wasn't great but it was OK. It was very good toward the beginning of the movie, then it fell flat toward the end where it was most important.

www.chorror.com

Decent enough and quite watchable

[kannibalcorpsegrinder · 6/10 · 3 August 2015]

Attempting to get over a personal tragedy, a man and his wife find a young woman on their doorstep trying to escape from a gang of attackers who break into their home and force them to battle off the group in order to escape.

Overall this one was pretty enjoyable if slightly flawed. Among it's better qualities is the fact that the second half to this one here doesn't really feel connected to the first half here which is for the better since that is a completely uninteresting movie. The second half is a solid series of chases and encounters throughout the house and the different neighboring parts of land which make for some thrilling times here with the film really getting quite enjoyable when it goes for these chases and stalking as that's all memorable and enjoyable. The first several encounters in the house and the later hide-out in the bedroom are great fun with these really piling on the different types of gun to be had with the home-invasion storyline here that really lets this one get some tense, chilling set-pieces up as well as put some energy into the film that has been missing up until then as there's the fine finale that makes for quite an amazing time here with the barn-yard stalking and the revelations in the house next door all come together to deliver a rather nice twist-ending that's quite enjoyable overall. Still, this one here is still held-down by a series of flaws here, all mainly set up from the outset of this one tending to focus more on the drama of a parents still in blame with themselves over the death of their son. This here tends to really bring up a large portion of time on having the two of them take forever in dealing with their conversations and lifestyle in trying to get over the event and re-start their life together, all of which tends to really focus this one on areas that aren't exactly all that horrific and tend to bring up the fact that what happens for the most part here isn't exactly horror. As a drama it's fine but to spend as much as it does in a horror film is a little too much time here on these matters which causes this one to come off as rather bland and uninteresting for the most part. Likewise, the final twist here almost guarantees that this one's just not all that filled with the kinds of graphic kills or brutal stalking that should've happened in a story like this as it effectively removes the option for such matter to occur in the film in the first place in order to keep that part alive and ends up really neutering this one massively. All in all these hold it down but not quite enough to make it unwatchable, just flawed.

Rated R: Graphic Language and Violence.