Mirrors (I) (2008) User Reviews

Pretty good, unless you require good acting

[Her-Excellency · 5/10 · 10 March 2021]

The story keeps you present, and Kiefer Sutherland (although I am not a fan), does a great job of carrying this entertaining and well-written film.

The problem is that in terms of acting on the part of Paula Patton, who plays Sutherland's wife, it cannot get any worse. I wanted to scratch my eyes out and stab my ears each time she was on-screen. How this person ever booked anything in Hollywood that was more than a gig where she asks if you want to "supersize that", is beyond me. Not too much better, was the acting by Amy Smart, who I normally love. What a mess.

If you, however, can overlook really bad acting to enjoy a suspenseful movie with a strong story, then you might like it more than I did.

When a reflections does not reflect reality one can expect fatalities

[LazySod · 7/10 · 17 September 2008]

As a remake of a Korean film of 2003 this film tells the tale of a guy that picks up a job as a night-watchman in what is left over of a burned down department store. What starts as a somewhat dull somewhat creepy job quickly turns into a living nightmare.

There have been at least a dozen horror films where the evil lived on the other side of the mirror - nothing new here. Most of them share the same build up as this one: get to know the victim(s), get to know the evil(s), see them getting maimed/slaughtered/eaten one by one - nothing new here. In effect, this film is like nothing new all over and it would be a standard run of the mill one if it weren't for the fact that most of the settings used are worked out pretty nicely and that the ending isn't the normal sloppy one.

I haven't seen the original but I am interested into seeing it now that I have seen this one. It might be even better.

7 out of 10 mirrors on the wall

Good but it could be better

[barrys82 · 7/10 · 20 October 2008]

Mirrors is the U.S. remake of Korean horror movie Geoul Sokeuro, it is good and scary but not as much as the original one. The movie is about A mall security guard becomes wrapped up in a mystery involving a particular department store's mirrors which seem to bring out the worst in people. The story is almost the same as the original as well as the plot which are interesting although a little predictable. It has a good rhythm and the tension grows in its intensity as the movie moves along, these are two very good things because it never makes the movie tiresome to the viewer. The cast is good, Kiefer Sutherland gives a very convincing performance, although he reminded me of Jack Bauer in some moments of the film. Amy Smart's role was good but very short and Paula Patton as Kiefer character's wife gives a decent acting job. In conclusion, it was a good movie but it could be better.

Surprisingly effective horror films!

[fritzlang · 8/10 · 1 December 2009]

Maybe it's because I only heard bad things about this film. Practically every review said "disappointing," "skip it," etc.

So I got the DVD not really knowing what to think. I really liked Haute Tension and I like Kiefer Sutherland. Though the trailer made this look like Jack Bauer and Kim stop a mirror terrorist attack.

But once the opening credits started (with that great pre-credit scene), I was hooked.

Never once was I bored, and there were quite a few times I jumped out of my seat.

Maybe others figured out what the plot was all about, but it took me by surprise.

I found the film eerie, suspenseful, scary and well directed and acted.

And that house! not since Event Horizon have I see a production design so impressive! It was like another actor in the film. The people behind that work deserves an Academy Award, in my opinion.

I also loved the ending. Very un-Hollywood and while in retrospect it probably didn't make a lot of sense, somehow it 'felt' right to me.

All in all, I found this a refreshing take on a horror film... and considering the villain was a piece of glass, It think everyone did a great job.

Not sure why others didn't like it as much as I did, but all I can say I found it a very satisfying experience, and will probably watch it again one day.

One of the better horror movies these days

[Spooky2001 · 7/10 · 18 August 2008]

This movie is certainly not the best horror movie I have seen but out of horror movies that come out now of days it is one of the better ones. The death scenes were a little over the top and gory but at least the movie didn't really on mostly gore that a lot of horror movies these days do. Keifer Suterland was pretty good and there were a few jump scares. I like it that they added a little bit of mystery to it. I give this movie a B for effort. It did seem a little long though, they could have made it at least a little bit shorter. They had some cool special effects like when the mirror got shot and the holes repaired themselves. Overall it was not that bad of a movie.

Pretty decent but a big too long

[ryanlion-38514 · 6/10 · 22 July 2022]

I hadn't seen this in several years and I do remember some of the graphic violence was pretty crazy, but my that bathtub scene. It was pretty well done, I just thought it was a little too drawn out. I feel like Keifer as usual does great with his role, but overacting especially towards the end was a bit eh. Oh and I actually thought they did pretty good tying up the ending. A lot of people complain the last part ruined the film or wasn't good, but it surprised me as I thought it would be much worse. I say it's worth checking out if you haven't. It wasn't groundbreaking or anything but managed to keep me focused for a few hours. I give it a 6. I liked it better than Aja's High Tension. Now to me that was a bad ending.

Thrills, chills, and scary scenes directed by expert Alexandre Aja

[ma-cortes · 6/10 · 15 February 2010]

A former policeman and nowadays alcoholic named Ben Carson (Kiefer Sutherland) who inadvertently brought the death during a face off with an outlaw, has quit the police force . Now heads up security at Mayflower Department Store that was destroyed by deadly fire in which deceased 23 dead and 78 wounds, he's an employee of the security company who finds alone with the scorched mannequins . Having been caught up in the situation at the department store he watch stuff reflected in glass. Then the spirits trapped behind the mirrors flee and attack his sister (Amy Smart), wife (Paula Patton) and sons. Ben comes across his former partner (Jason Flemyng) who now heads the investigation into the recent murders to chase the criminal. The presence of the weird events and the eerie situations causes Ben to relive the horrendous memories which he has since tried to forget. Meanwhile, Carson is hurrying to solve the recent string of killings . As he discovers how a mysterious nun , once-possessed named Anna Esseker is also found lingering about the crime scenes and she tells him about an asylum where seriously ill patients were subjected to mirror-based shock treatment. Without wishing it, Carson is drawn farther and farther into the deep mystery surrounding the astonishing deaths.

Alexandre's Aja remake of a Korean movie titled ¨Into the mirror¨ is made in American style. It packs,tension,suspense,chills,horror and lot of blood and gore including slitting the throat,attempted rage, slicing ,stabbing, all courtesy of Robert Kurtzman, Greg Nicotero and Howard Berger. They create a creepy make-up of horrible and bloody images. The gutsy murders are gruesomely executed and equally as graphic as the original movie.The film is constituted by a well done terror set pieces with creepy and spooky atmosphere.The mirrors's reflections appearance deliver the goods with hair raising chills and full scares.The story is borrowing from the original Korean film , taking and ripping off numerous scenes. Thrilling musical score by Javier Navarrete including a leitmotif based on a Spanih classical music and appropriate cinematography by cameraman Maxime Alexandre. The motion picture is skillfully directed by Alexandre Aja, though with no originality because it is a simple reworking . Aja is an expert on terror genre as proved in the new version of ¨The Hill have eyes¨ and ¨Switchblade romance¨ also titled ¨High tension¨ and in post-production realizing ¨Piraña 3D¨. .The film isn't apt for little boys,neither squeamish.

Boo!

[nasakcuf-3 · 8/10 · 17 August 2008]

These days, at over $10 per movie ticket, the question I most ask when I go to these review boards is...was it worth it? The answer to that question depends upon how effectively the movie brings its genre across to the audience...the interesting plots, the action sequences, the drama. Yes, perhaps I've seen the movie's take on these things before, but to me the movie's worth is defined by the movies own merits, not necessarily the merits of what preceded it...

We have I think all seen variants of what Mirrors is about, yet I still recommend it. I found it to be atmospheric and suspenseful (with some gore, one effect in particular will probably make your jaw twitch for the remainder of the movie), although the suspense wears off once certain things are revealed about 3/4 of the way through the movie. The atmosphere remains intact however, and the ending of the movie delivers an unexpected twist that brings the movie full circle. While I'm not likely to see it a second time, I found a single viewing to be a worthy investment of my time and my $10.50....

not since poltergeist and poltergeist three have mirrors been so chilling

[amesmonde · 11 November 2008]

A man and his family are terrorised by a supernatural force that is using mirrors as a way access their home.

I welcome Kiefer Sutherland with open arms as he's in the land of TV far too often. Although he seems to lack the great range of his father Donald, he is a great underrated actor. Mirrors gives Kiefer plenty to play with, but as with so many Asian horror remakes that have been spat-out recently and while Mirrors is one of the better re-workings, the story twist is something we've seen too many times.

No stranger to remakes director Alexandre Aja (The Hills Have Eyes re-do and 2010's Piranha 3-D) takes the viewer though paint by numbers stuff as Ben Carson (Kiefer), a former undercover detective, is forced to take a night time security job at a department store that was gutted by a fire. However, there is an evil lurking in the mirrors, an entity he must stop to save his family.

Lately, I wish all the PC's in the world were stolen so I wouldn't have to see another dodgy effect detract from an actor's performance. While some effects are modest it's the bad CGI that spoils some moments of scariness. When practical effects are used there's one moment that would stop you ever looking into a mirror and taking a bath again.

Jason Flemyng shows up for a brief moment but seems to take his pay cheque and disappear as fast as some of the eerie atmosphere. Between Paula Patton and Amy Smarts (almost a cameo appearance) the acting is above average right down to the child actors who are at no time annoying.

Overall, Kiefer leaves his mark and it may not be the most original horror but at times it is certainly is creepy, not since Poltergeist and Poltergeist 3 have mirrors been so chilling.

scary is as scary does!

[justine0121 · 10/10 · 20 October 2008]

I have to admit I was on my toes. It's one that gets better and better as the movie goes. It keeps you wondering and there is pretty much no foreshadowing at all. I really didn't know what was going to happen from minute to minute. This movie is one of those you'll want to watch again. Sutherlands performance is good but I've got to give props to the other actors as well. All their performances were pretty remarkable too. I'm not the type of person that enjoys crappy films. I definitely have to say I know a good movie when I see it and I'm confident of that. The overall twist and turns... yeah it's a definite popcorn lights off cuddle with your boyfriend scary movie.

Not as effective as it could have been

[TdSmth5 · 7/10 · 22 August 2008]

We begin by meeting a security guard running for his life into a locker room. He looks in a large mirror and his reflection cuts it's throat. The security guard collapses bleeding from a real neck wound.

Next we meet Kiefer Sutherland as he starts his first day of work in a large mall that looks like castle/federal museum with giant ceilings and Greek columns. The mall burnt and is currently vacant only occupied by some leftovers from the stores mainly mannequins, furniture, and huge mirrors. The mirrors are squeaky clean. We are told the Kiefer's predecessor obsessed about keeping them clean.

The life of Kiefer's character is a mess. Out of a job from the police department, divorced and in trouble with his lovely wife over the two kids, sleeping on his lovely sister's couch and apparently with some type of a prescription drug problem. On his rounds at his new job he discovers something odd. A hand print on a mirror. The print can't be removed. It's on the other side of the mirror. He also discovers a flooded basement. Back at home he starts seeing things in the mirror. And starts investigating things about the place and the security guard who he replaced. He suspects that it is not just in his head as others tell him but that something is not right with this building and the mirrors.

It turns out next to the mall was a hospital where strange treatments took place in the psychiatric unit. As a result of what happened there to a young girl, the mirrors in the mall are trying to convey a message. Kiefer continues with the investigation tracking down the girl. In the meantime the mirrors start attacking his loved ones.

There are a couple of twists near the end. The story takes on quite a different character from the mirror-attacking-people story. Also the end is a neat surprise. Unusual ending and very interesting.

Aja knows how to direct horror and actors. And this movie is nicely photographed and has great camera work. There are some good scares and gore scenes. And the story itself is good. The only problem I found is that it's too long at nearly two hours and could have used a re-editing for tightness. The mirrors are as much as a character as Kiefer, who himself is not a very approachable guy in this movie. Overall a watchable milder horror film that could use either more horror or deletion of scenes to make it tighter more action-packed.

Flat, uninspired horror film with intermittent unintentional laughs but with action that picks up in the last third

[J. Spurlin · 2 October 2009]

Ben Carson (Kiefer Sutherland) is an ex-police detective in New York whose alcoholism made him incompetent on the job and caused him to kill a man. Now he's trying to get his life in order. He's living with his kid sister to save money. He's taking medication to wean himself off the booze. Most important, he's trying to win back the trust of his estranged wife, a medical examiner, and maintain a loving relationship with his two young children. To make money while waiting for reinstatement, he takes a job as a night watchman at a department store gutted by fire. That was a mistake. He is soon tormented by the same supernatural mirrors that plagued his predecessor. The images in these mirrors do not reflect reality as we know it. The images will stare back at you, but remain in the mirror when you walk away. The images will even try to kill you. Soon, Ben Carson finds that the mirrors' demons follow him everywhere in every reflective surface. They're willing to harass him and his family until they get what they want. Ben's job is to find out exactly what that is.

This silly horror movie, based on a Korean film I haven't seen, shares several things about Asian-inspired supernatural tales that I dislike. The demons at first seem limited to a single space, but then later prove they can follow you wherever you go. They'll follow the protagonist, attack him, attack everyone he knows. They seem bound by certain limitations at first, but then it seems they can pretty much do anything they want - which makes all the running around, running away and desperate investigations into old records and dirty secrets seem pretty pointless. This one has lots of the usual gross-out effects (especially in the unrated version I saw), including a hideous and prolonged jaw-ripping scene.

The movie starts out flat and uninspired, and makes too little use of its main set piece - the burnt-out department store. Every line of dialogue is prosaic and sounds like something we've heard a hundred times before. The music is clichéd and slightly intrusive. There are intermittent unintentional laughs. The action picks up in the last third, which makes things less dull, but even stupider than before.

A Nutshell Review: Mirrors

[DICK STEEL · 6/10 · 20 September 2008]

Looking at the filmography of Alexandre Aja, he's becoming dangerously close to being branded as a director who specializes in remakes of films that can allow him to amplify the original gore factor, and one who hopefully doesn't position himself, intentionally or otherwise, such that audiences would come to expect a twist in every single one of his movies.

While I'd enjoy his Haute Tension and his version and update of The Hills Have Eyes, he seemed to have reined himself in with Mirrors, where allowance for violent excesses was minimized and allocated to creating mood and tension, which succeeded as the movie went along, and plodded forward during many moments in the beginning when Kiefer Sutherland's Ben Carson began probing the mystery of his workplace. You can just about sense Aja's glee when it came to scenes that called for gore, and at times succumbed to cheap scares which were rather successful.

However, Aja can't decide if this was going to be an all out spiritual spook fest, or a monster movie, and that confusion resulted in an actual schizophrenia, where one ending is insufficient, and you'd need two endings in order to provide for some bang for the buck. It's as if it ran on multiple fronts which could be delinked from one another, and if not for the characters' relationships, it could well be a series of shorts pasted together with the mirrors being running motifs where spirits reside in, and can determine life or death, with a concept quite refreshing, but again, unoriginal since it's a Hollywood adaptation.

While Aja might seem to want to tread back to familiar territory at every opportunity at gore, Keifer Sutherland too can't seem to break too far away from his cop related roles for the big screen, save for lending his voice in Phone Booth, his recent The Sentinel and this one still had his character come from the force. Perhaps it's lazy casting on the filmmakers' part in getting someone already familiar with the territory so that audiences can immediate latch onto his Jack Bauer persona, and have it plain sailing from there. And no matter how Sutherland tries to provide a new dimension to his mentally pained ex-cop, he just can't shake Bauer off, which became as niggling as the persistent spirits that call out for his attention.

And that familiarity didn't just stop with the director and the lead actor, as it extended toward the supporting appearance by Amy Smart, though in a not so surprising role of being here just to shed her clothes. I thought she could be a decent actress without having to resort to such "tricks", but I guess filmmakers from Crank to Mirrors still haven't got enough of her Road Trip stint. Again, very dangerous ground to tread on for the mentioned - one for gory remakes, one for cop roles, and one a naked flowervase.

Granted there were some fine moments courtesy of special effects, with misbehaving mirror images and the way characters get dispatched - slow, painful and plenty of blood - but those looking for occasionally fine scary moments may find them in Mirrors. I've not seen the original 2003 Korean movie Into the Mirror which this movie is based upon, but given the cheeky finale, I just might be interested to check out the Korean version. For now, I'd start to think about those palm prints left behind in mirrors as they will never look the same again.

Good atmosphere in a disappointing remake

[The_Void · 6/10 · 11 January 2010]

French director Alexandre Aja exploded onto the horror scene in 2003 with excellent horror flick Switchblade Romance, but since then he's disappointingly veered off into remake territory. He can be forgiven somewhat for his first remake - an updating of the Wes Craven semi-classic The Hills Have Eyes - because it was quite good, but this next attempt - an Americanisation of South Korean film 'Mirrors', is not so successful. The basis for the plot is actually quite good and with some minor tweaks, Mirrors could have been a successful horror film. The plot focuses on Ben Carson; and ex-cop and ex-alcoholic who has been forced to take a night watchman's job in order to get his life back on track for the good of his children. His new job is at a shopping centre, which was forced to close down after a fire devastated the building. He soon notices that the mirrors in the building are extremely clean - as a result of the previous watchman's obsession with them - and he later finds out why, as there's an evil that lives in the mirrors; and Ben Carson is their next target.

The lead role is taken by Kiefer Sutherland. I've been a fan of Kiefer ever since I saw The Lost Boys; but he feels out of place in this film. It's probably just because I'm so used to seeing him as Jack Bauer that it's impossible to believe him doing any other role. The first half of the film is rather poor; the atmosphere of the former shopping centre is good, but most of the runtime is taken up by various CGI special effects going on in the mirrors, and it soon becomes tedious. Luckily, things pick up in the second half. There's a rather nasty murder scene; and then the film starts to develop a plot, which is fairly intriguing. It has to be said that the plot is rather lacking in logic at times, and all sorts of plot holes can be picked out; but then again, it is a film about evil inside mirrors at the end of the day. The revelation regarding how the mirrors became evil is a bit disappointing; I was hoping for something better, but at least the final twist is amusing. Overall, I can't recommend this film really but if it's a rainy day and you've got nothing else to watch, you could do worse than see this.

One word....Frightening!!!

[dtobias9 · 10/10 · 7 February 2009]

I love when a movie really makes my hair stand on end, this one did it for me throughout. There are so many twists and turns, and the ending was very unexpected. All the characters were believable and Kiefer Sutherland's performance as the inwardly tortured ex-cop teetering on the edge of insanity was excellent. If you rent this, definitely view the unrated version, I yelped out loud a few times. I would definitely put this in the category of supernatural horror guaranteed to scare the s___ out of you. It's really quite intense, and even though most horror movies don't really scare me (I actually laugh at most and find them to be more comical than scary), this is not a movie you want to watch just before going to bed. You might want to watch it during the day, just so you can filter it out later, otherwise you might be dreaming about it.

Starts out promisingly enough, but in the end it kind of falls apart.

[Aaron1375 · 6/10 · 24 August 2008]

This movie was of course a typical horror movie in my eyes. The one where it had potential to be really good, but it does things wrong here and there and it falls apart to either a bad movie or in this case a just okay movie. The story has a newly hired security guard for an old burned out department store making his rounds. However, in this department store there are quite a few mirrors present. Strange noises and sounds are a plenty. This guy is also a former cop on leave who had something bad happen during his time as an undercover cop. He is also separated from his wife and children and living with his sister. Well something seems to be trying to send him a message and it is doing so very violently to the point of going after his family. Seems the mirrors have a secret. So there you have it, to bad the revelation at the end of what was the secret does not really fit into the whole mirror theme. The showdown at the end to was a bit much as it seemed like it came straight from the movie "End of Days". Also, there were plot holes left unanswered such as the how the other security guard sent the package to our hero. Still, it was somewhat good up until a point. Keifer Sutherland added something to the movie and for a time I was really enjoying the atmosphere of the movie as it seemed almost like Silent Hill. However, Silent Hill Origins and Silent Hill 3 both had better scenes involving mirrors and they are games!

Really Enjoyed This Movie

[stephenwalton · 8/10 · 9 May 2009]

I am not a big horror fan but do like supernatural thrillers. That being said I didn't really like The Ring or any of the Hollywood remakes of the Japanese films with spooky kids with black hair and eyes etc...YAWN!!!

I did enjoy this film very much, I liked Keifer's performance and could feel his distraught emotions when he had to show them. I may now check out 24 as a result.

The other actors/actresses in the film were equally good, it was well directed and well written for this type of film. All in all it made me jump a few times and I was interested in the outcome. Maybe there could be a sequel.

Spooky; mysterious; spoiled by out of place gore

[heath-jeffrey · 7/10 · 22 October 2016]

A rather unique story with a couple of plot twists, centred around an ex-cop starting a new job as night security at an empty half-burned mall. The mall is filled with strange mirrors, that he soon discovers seem to be haunted (the viewer knows before he does due to an intro scene).

Between the ex-cop's investigations into the history of the mall and the mirrors, the way the apparent hauntings play out, and a special effects emphasis on fog and mist, corner of the eye movements, and glass that breaks or repairs itself, the mood is creepy and mysterious throughout.

The acting is generally solid, sometimes even powerful. The music and sound effects play into the spookiness well. And overall, it would be a really top of the line movie...

...except for two isolated scenes of concentrated, disgusting, gore. Just two. One right at the beginning, and another about a third of the way in. Nothing like it in the rest of the movie, and it's really not at all what the movie is about. But it really is the sickening 'what kind of people come up with this stuff' kind of gore that belongs in an over the top psycho thriller or pure gore-fest horror, not in a subtle, mysterious, spine tingling horror like this one.

Aside from the gore, there are only minor flaws with a couple of contradictions in the actions of some secondary characters. Well worth watching if you're into Mortal Kombat fatalities, movies like Saw, or you think the scenes in Bones where they find the bodies aren't bloody enough. Otherwise, only watch it if you've got someone else willing to watch as they fast-forward through those 2 scenes for you.

Now that I've had time to reflect

[domynation · 7/10 · 16 July 2018]

It's really a movie I could see myself watching again and again

Not as sharp as it could be

[TBJCSKCNRRQTreviews · 7/10 · 15 January 2010]

I base this upon the Unrated version, not the Theatrical cut, though I understand that the only change is in the violence. The DVD contains both. I haven't watched the original that this is a remake of, though I can imagine that it's superior to this... Asian horror relatively seldom translates well when Westerners redo it. This is my first exposure to Aja, and it is about what his The Hills Have Eyes appears to be like. For all the potential in the concept, this is fairly straight-forward, and doesn't tread any new ground. This is to working off the inherent creepiness of mirrors, the fact that they "reverse" everything, and that strange sense that there is something more to what they show us than just our reflection. It seems clear that they understood this when making it, but they still did not manage to do anything extraordinary. This is pretty terrifying, if there are a few cheap jump-scares. The atmosphere is built up and maintained nicely, and this can be rather subtle, on occasion. Cinematography and editing are skillful. I gotta say, Sutherland may have been on 24 for too long; he can't entirely shake the Bauer voice. The acting tends to be good, though the kids are utterly unimpressive, which takes away from sequences where their performance is important. This has very well-done effects, and they make an impact, they don't feel as though they're there to show off the technology. It certainly does deliver what one comes to expect from recent entries in the genre; there is plenty of swearing, blood, gore, disgusting sights and eye candy for males. On the plus side, it definitely is also disturbing. The disc includes two informative featurettes, 48 and 18 minutes long, respectively, and 15 minutes of alternate and deleted scenes with an optional, interesting commentary by the director and the writer. I recommend this to big fans of this kind of movie. If you're spellbound by the idea behind this, you're likely to be disappointed by this; it simply does not break the mold. 7/10

The mirrors. They're so clean.

[hitchcockthelegend · 8/10 · 2 October 2015]

Mirrors is the American remake of a little known Korean film called Into the Mirror. The plot has Kiefer Sutherland as a recovering alcoholic cop, who whilst on suspension is taken to working as a security guard at a large burnt out department store and starts to see terrifying images in the many mirrors about the place...

You would think that Mirrors was a flop. The critics hated it and the horror hordes were very much divided on it, the latter of which is to be fair the norm for any big horror movie release. Yet it didn't flop, it did very well at the box offices of the world and has a decent 6.2 average on IMDb, which for a divisive horror film is well above average.

Mirrors overstays its welcome, there really was no need for it to run to just under two hours in length. While elsewhere there's some pretty poor dialogue, parts of the screenplay are pointlessly soap opera in nature, while some thinking will make you scratch your head in bewilderment at events outside of the brilliantly monolithic department store.

However, does Mirrors create a genuinely spooky atmosphere (the interiors of the store are creep fest nirvana), insert some shock moments to jolt you out your seat? Is it visually stylish, with sound work to match? And does Sutherland (and to a degree Paula Patton as his wife) overcome the trite parts of the script and give effective and committed performances? The answer to those questions is yes.

Does the ending cop out in any way? Insult the audience? No! It doesn't do that either.

It has flaws, but they are not insurmountable for the horror fan who's just looking for some good scares, atmospheric dread and some stylish touches from the director (Alexandre Aja). If you haven't seen it then give it a try, judge for yourself, you might be pleasantly surprised at what you find. 7.5/10

good horror for about an hour and a half

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 9 October 2014]

The movie opens with night security guard Gary Lewis. His reflection in the mirror stabs himself and he dies in the real world with a wide open gash. Ben Carson (Kiefer Sutherland) resigned from the NYPD a year ago after a deadly shooting and he's now sleeping on his sister Angie (Amy Smart)'s couch. He's estranged from his wife Amy (Paula Patton) with whom he has two children. He has stopped drinking recently and trying to rebuild his life. He starts a new job as the night security guard at the burnt-out NYC Mayflower department store. He sees visions in the mirrors and they seem to be looking back at him.

I really like the look of the empty department store and the mirror room. The mirror idea is pretty cool. The CGI fire is not the best. There is also a missing element in this horror. Usually there is a question of whether this is all real or not in these kinds of movies. The fact that the first security guard as well as his son see the visions eliminates that possibility right from the start. Another problem is that this needs a physical embodiment of the evil that is both scary and can be put on a poster. It seems to be the perfect fit for an iconic supernatural killer in the mirror like Samara in 'The Ring'. That is missing here. As for the story, this movie needed to end earlier. The movie just goes on and on with Sutherland missing in action for large chunks of it. The movie overstays its welcome.

Beyond mirrors

[hasosch · 10/10 · 27 September 2009]

Mirrors, in earlier times polished metal plates, surfaces of stoves, natural stone plates and the like have been suspected to be entrances into a world beyond this our world since the oldest times. So, I cannot agree when a crew member said that the movie's basic purpose was to show how people actually care about their reality. "Our" reality can only be cared for in contrast with another reality. If there is only one reality, there is nothing to compare with.

In addition to the well-known geography there is, according to the philosopher Gotthard Günther, something like a "metaphysical geography", which shows that the mirrors and the flat plates are just a subset of a whole world of remote mountain valleys, ravines, hollows, holes, clefts, gaps and other openings which stimulated the fantasy of humankind on the surface of the earth as the ocean did underneath the surface and where ghosts and other supernatural beings were supposed to live and do their pranks. What was obviously not supposed to be populated by humans and animals, had to be populated by fairies, and it was only a question of time until the conquest of this ghosts would start against the humans. Information abolishes the lack of knowledge, but the lack of knowledge creates fear, and hence the main source for the projection mechanisms that populated the world beyond the mirrors.

I cannot agree with, as it seems, the majority of people for whom "Mirrors" (2008) is a second-class movie. It has scenes that go even beyond "The Silence of the Lambs". One scene towards the end is a nice reverence to Cronenberg's "Scanners". The slasher-tricks are built in this movie with a consistent sense of the aesthetics of ugliness.

Hmm

[k-63878 · 6/10 · 3 June 2020]

It's not bad from any stretch - but there are aspects that are unearned. The lore isn't that well established and it's all a bit contrived, which is a shame because the concept of resentful entities following you from the other side of the mirror is really cool. The violence is gratuitous and doesn't add anything. Urm, I don't know, good idea with average execution.

Not bad movie

[gamergcfan · 27 June 2015]

It's been a while since I watched this movie. It was like two years ago when I watched it, and I watched it on a classmate's laptop on a school trip. I'll tell you, though, I saw pretty much everything, except I closed my eyes on the jaw scene. I'll tell you, that is extremely, extremely graphic. Taking it away would probably give a 14A in some parts of Canada and lower ratings in other places, such as a possible PG-12 in Japan.

Anyway, I don't remember so well, but this was actually quite frightening. You'll be scared if you have a weak heart.

Rating is 7.