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Gothika (Widescreen Edition) Customer Reviews (1 - 3 of 68 Reviews)

ok film. if you're gonna buy it, get the 2 dvd version
A slightly better than average movie, kind of a darker version of "What Lies Beneath" (Zemekis). Halle Berry is fine, but this is far from her best work. (At least it's better than Catwoman. What was she thinking on that one?)

Some people really liked this, and it does have a few good moments, but as far as ghost stories go, I've seen better.

Oh, if you're on this page to buy the movie, go get the 2 dvd version. It really makes me sick the way Hollywood studios rush out a bare bones DVD, wait for fans to buy it, then release a special edition 8 months later. I've now started waiting on every DVD. If it's not a mindblowing SE on first release, chances are one will come pretty soon. (For example: I, Robot; Man on Fire; The Day After Tomorrow; X-Men [later released as 1.5] and X2: X-men United [a 2.5 is rumored]; Panic Room; etc...)

What a plot twist
Halle Berry should have won and an academy award for this one. Her acting talents really show through in this film. Not only is she a very talented and smart actress in my book but also have you ever noticed no matter how messed up her hair is or how dirty she looks in any of her films she still has that natural beauty (even without makeup) that offsets all the dirt and other garbage that Hollywood tries to use. What a flawless face. Anyway , she portrays a psychiatrist/doctor in the film who treats a specific patient (Penelope Cruz)for mental disturbance who is possesssed by a ghost entitie which eventually she (Halle Berry) will encounter later in the movie. The twist/plot shift in this movie IS GREAT. I never would have guessed. She has a car accident and is accused of killing her husband. Thats all I am saying. I don't want to go into the specifics of this film because that would ruin it for someone who has never seen it. All I can say is that this is the type of movie that I could watch time and time again. I do not see how someone could rate this film a one or two star film. This DVD will have a place on my shelf after I go out and buy it. I LOVED THIS MOVIE.

Promises much, but ....
*** couple of mild spoilers ***

I genuinely enjoyed the first 20 minutes or so of Gothika. The theme of the psychiatrist's (competently if never entirely convincingly played by Halle Berry) world turning on its head in horrible fashion, was a compelling one and I was really looking forward to a taut psychological thriller. Instead, soon thereafter, the movie plummets disappointingly into formulaic and derivative grand guignol. I mean, how many times have us horror buffs seen the tired old it's behiiiiind you or the something-scary-in-the-swimming-pool routine? Irritatingly over-gratuitous use of strobe lighting also makes Gothika uncomfortable viewing for all the wrong reasons.

Hat-tips to (or rip-offs from, depending on how generous you feel) other movies are plentiful, and I was reminded of Suspiria, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Dead and Buried, 6th Sense, Stir of Echoes, and probably dozens more.

Most on-the-ball viewers will guess whodunit well before the predictable and anti-climactic ending.

Gothika is just saved from being a lone-star movie by the promising beginning, decent soundtrack and Penelope Cruz's excellent depiction of a profoundly troubled mind.

On the whole though, this is yet another disappointing offering from the Dark Castle label.

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