Stonehearst Asylum (2014)
A Gothic horror tale based on an Edgar Allen Poe tale, filled with the grotesque excesses of Victorian medicine and mental health treatments. Throw in Michael Caine and Ben Kingsley as two opposing forces in this literal madhouse, and you might think you have a humdinger here.
But no. Director Brad Anderson manages a routine construction here, missing out on both the possibility of camp and the seemingly inevitable macabre. Not that the movie is ever plodding—it manages always to be creepy and unusual—but there is too much potential here unrealized. Add a very routine (aka boring) leading performance by Jim Sturgess and you have trouble.
On the other hand, the dark, bizarre setting (filmed in Bulgaria) is great stuff for this plot. And once you get absorbed in the rival camps, representing alternative mental health treatment philosophies, you'll enjoy the big twist. And then be prepared for another big twist at the very end, which is dished out with offhand ease. It's almost gripping, almost shocking, almost wild.
But nothing quite takes off here, except maybe the set design. Give it a go for fun, for sure, but just for fun.
A Gothic horror tale based on an Edgar Allen Poe tale, filled with the grotesque excesses of Victorian medicine and mental health treatments. Throw in Michael Caine and Ben Kingsley as two opposing forces in this literal madhouse, and you might think you have a humdinger here.
But no. Director Brad Anderson manages a routine construction here, missing out on both the possibility of camp and the seemingly inevitable macabre. Not that the movie is ever plodding—it manages always to be creepy and unusual—but there is too much potential here unrealized. Add a very routine (aka boring) leading performance by Jim Sturgess and you have trouble.
On the other hand, the dark, bizarre setting (filmed in Bulgaria) is great stuff for this plot. And once you get absorbed in the rival camps, representing alternative mental health treatment philosophies, you'll enjoy the big twist. And then be prepared for another big twist at the very end, which is dished out with offhand ease. It's almost gripping, almost shocking, almost wild.
But nothing quite takes off here, except maybe the set design. Give it a go for fun, for sure, but just for fun.