GamerTab That was an excellent one.

Pluskylang Great Film overall

FirstWitch A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

Asad Almond A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

mpurvismattp Saw this movie on TV the other day and was really impressed with it. I'm becoming a Paddy Considine fan after seeing some of his other movies and I was not let down by his performance in this. He portrays Robert Forster, a quiet and melancholy man sneaking a peek (quite literally) into a world in which he sees some peace, happiness and a lil escape from his otherwise tortured existence. Julia Stiles, which I had seen but was more familiar with her teen movie career was very surprising. Not only because I hadn't seen her in anything for a while but seeing her in something like this was not what I had expected. Her performance was great and had me convinced that she was in fact as mysterious (and possibly unbalanced) as Forster. This film was well directed, well acted and had a pace that had me interested and wondering what was going to happen next. It had the feel of a Hitchcock film and is a top notch thriller in my book. Some may not have the patience for a film like this because it's not riddled with action or CGI but there's a good story in there, and I'll take a movie with a story to tell any day.

BA_Harrison In the midst of divorce proceedings, depressed aeronautics designer Robert Forrester (Paddy Considine) attempts to cheer himself up by spying on Jenny Thierolf (Julia Stiles), a pretty and seemingly content young woman who lives in a remote house by the woods. When Jenny catches Robert peeping on her, she believes him when he says he means her no harm, and invites him into the house for a chat. However, Jenny turns out to be even more disturbed than Robert, revealing to him her own struggle with mental illness; in the following days, she turns the tables by stalking her stalker. This puts Robert in mortal danger, not from his new 'friend', but from her ex-boyfriend, who isn't best pleased at being dumped for a 'nut-job'.The first time I popped this movie into my trusty portable DVD player, there were no voices on the soundtrack; I presumed I had a duff copy and was prepared to chuck it straight in the bin (it was only a quid—no biggie). I'm glad I didn't: the next morning I tried the disc again, and this time realised that my headphone jack hadn't been pushed in properly. I watched the film, and it was amazing.A perceptive study of the fragility of the mind, this isn't the white-knuckle thriller or blood drenched horror suggested by the image of a shadowy figure clutching an axe on the cover, and anyone expecting such will probably feel cheated by the film's real content. As the film develops, there is plenty of opportunity for writer/director Jamie Thraves to succumb to a more exploitative approach, yet he resists the temptation to do so, remaining sensitive to the subject of mental illness, depicting a frightening world full of despair, melancholy and chaos.However, just because the film doesn't go down the obvious crowd-pleaser route, that's not to say that it isn't a totally engaging and gripping experience. Leads Considine and Stiles give fine, perceptive performances and Thraves measured direction is superb, building slowly and inexorably to a downbeat ending that seems to have confused many viewers: rather than just 'stopping', as has been mentioned in some reviews, the film reaches a logical and startling conclusion, with Robert considering the possibility that he might actually be the portent of death that Jenny eventually perceived him to be.8.5 out of 10, rounded up to 9 for IMDb.

clint_hamilton_1 I recently watched the film The Cry Of The Owl and found it quite thought provoking. I did fear it was going to be a case of a slow, dull film with an empty conclusion, but was very surprised. It is a film that begs to be discussed as no doubt everyone would have a different thought on it. But is that actually a bad thing as some previous reviews seem to think? Not everyone wants to be spoon fed a story.The main question you are asked at the start of the film is why is the main character Robert, a seemingly popular friendly man with a good job obsessed with watching Jenny in the window? The film delivers what i think is a very satisfying and intriguing answer by the end. The closing shot also, makes the film feel complete.I have read previous reviews of the film and some people have found fault with the plot by saying its not true to life and these events would be unlikely in the real world. I think others may argue against that but really, they are missing the point. This is a story with questions embroiled in the human psyche and a plot closer in essence to a Shakespearian tragedy then a true to life story. This is not a 'Imagine if this happened to you film' nor is it a Hollywood thriller/slasher movie with a nice neat ending.The black comedy came from the realisation that the character of Robert, despite his past history of mental illness and recently suffering a breakdown, was, compared to the other characters the most sane. Maybe that says something about the world we live in.

Katie I am one of those people who believes that all good scary/thriller movies and books have one thing in common that makes them so scary: They could happen to you.The events that take place in this movie have not happened to anyone, ever. They aren't believable, not in the least. So the film doesn't work as a drama, either, because the entire time, you're distracted, wondering: "WHEN does that happen???" Aside from the outlandish plot, the writing was clumsy. For a long time, I wasn't sure who the protagonist was supposed to be, and when I was sure, I wasn't motivated to care. I was just waiting for the movie to end. And the director, it seems, didn't care, either. Every scene went: Establishing shot, close-up of Paddy, close-up of Julia, splash of red, close-up of Paddy staring at Julia, patch of blue, scene. It didn't help that the actors were walking through their roles, too. They were bland and tasteless, and I'll be polite and leave it at that.Five minutes in I was laughing hysterically and saying, "It's a dark comedy, right? Please tell me it's a dark comedy." If it were a dark comedy, I'd like it a lot better. Point is, it's still boring. Whether it's a drama, thriller, dark comedy, whatever the hell it was originally intended to be--believe me, I have no clue--I was bored out of my skull, and I wanted my money back.