"Mirrors" focuses on Ben Carson (Kiefer Sutherland), a police man separated from his family who is living with his sister (Amy Smart). He takes a job as a security guard/patrolman of an abandoned New York department store that was horribly burned in a fire. Once a lavish, very high-class building, now all that remains are charred walls and mannequins. But after working there for only a short while, he realizes something about the massive mirrors left in the building aren't quite right - he sees apparitions and has strange experiences that become more and more disturbing. It seems something from the mirrors is trying to tell him something, and reflections become deadly as those around him begin to meet their demises in very bizarre ways. What ensues is a battle against time as Ben attempts to unravel the mystery behind the presence that is held within the mirrors before it gets to his family.
From Alexandre Aja, French filmmaker who brought us "High Tension" and "The Hills Have Eyes" remake, "Mirrors" is an offbeat little shocker that kind of came out of nowhere. With a fairly well-known cast, it's surprising how little build-up there was to the film's release. In fact, I hadn't even heard of it until hardly a month before it's release when ads hit television networks. Nonetheless, I went into it with an open mind and not expecting much, after the advertisements had me thinking "Hm, looks a little corny", and I didn't think it was half bad. The entire premise, while it is a bit far-fetched in terms of realism, is a neat little exploration into the supernatural with a strange bent to it, in which the antagonistic presence lurks within mirrors and reflections - it could be nearly anywhere.
The visuals are neat as well and the immense abandoned department store, charred and black, has an eerie, 1950s-feel to it what with the old mannequins and classy mementos that were left in the building after the fire. Atmosphere-wise, this film had something going for it, as well as a story that was halfway original when compared to the overall crop of horror trash that is pumped out carelessly to audiences (e.g. the "Prom Night" remake, etc). There are a couple of nasty gore scenes too (Amy Smart's bathtub scene was one of the most cringe-inducing things I've seen at the cinema in a long time, and probably one of the biggest highlights of the film), and while Aja is known for his on screen carnage, that isn't the sole basis of the movie. In all reality there are only two really violent scenes.
The acting is decent, Sutherland is a good actor and carries the movie on his shoulders. Paula Patton plays his concerned wife well, and familiar face Amy Smart has a rather small role (with a rather big scene) and does a good job. Now that I've gotten going, I will say this movie is in no respects perfect. It suffers from some pretty obvious clichés and suffers with predictability in a lot of aspects, and those "Why are going down there, you're begging to die" sort of things which are pretty consistent throughout the flick. There's some pretty big plot holes present as well, and by the time the film had reached its climax with the demonic nun- monster-thing, I felt the explanation behind the events (which is what the whole film is leading up to) weren't presented in the best way. Like a shattered mirror, I thought things sort of fell apart near the end. There's the obligatory twist as well, which was sort of unexpected and had a neat visual spin to it.
Overall, "Mirrors" is a decent effort from a director that has brought us some pretty good movies. It's a lot different from Aja's other stuff, and I like that, but I felt as the movie progressed things got a little sloppy. Still, this is better than most horror flicks of late, and makes a good popcorn movie to kick back and see with some friends. It's got some solid acting and neat visuals to keep the audience engaged, and the climax, while at times a little too far-fetched for me, was nonetheless clever and intense. I think "Mirrors" may suffer more so with movie-goers because fans of the director may have been expecting something closer to his previous works, when in reality it's quite different from what he's done before. 6/10.
From Alexandre Aja, French filmmaker who brought us "High Tension" and "The Hills Have Eyes" remake, "Mirrors" is an offbeat little shocker that kind of came out of nowhere. With a fairly well-known cast, it's surprising how little build-up there was to the film's release. In fact, I hadn't even heard of it until hardly a month before it's release when ads hit television networks. Nonetheless, I went into it with an open mind and not expecting much, after the advertisements had me thinking "Hm, looks a little corny", and I didn't think it was half bad. The entire premise, while it is a bit far-fetched in terms of realism, is a neat little exploration into the supernatural with a strange bent to it, in which the antagonistic presence lurks within mirrors and reflections - it could be nearly anywhere.
The visuals are neat as well and the immense abandoned department store, charred and black, has an eerie, 1950s-feel to it what with the old mannequins and classy mementos that were left in the building after the fire. Atmosphere-wise, this film had something going for it, as well as a story that was halfway original when compared to the overall crop of horror trash that is pumped out carelessly to audiences (e.g. the "Prom Night" remake, etc). There are a couple of nasty gore scenes too (Amy Smart's bathtub scene was one of the most cringe-inducing things I've seen at the cinema in a long time, and probably one of the biggest highlights of the film), and while Aja is known for his on screen carnage, that isn't the sole basis of the movie. In all reality there are only two really violent scenes.
The acting is decent, Sutherland is a good actor and carries the movie on his shoulders. Paula Patton plays his concerned wife well, and familiar face Amy Smart has a rather small role (with a rather big scene) and does a good job. Now that I've gotten going, I will say this movie is in no respects perfect. It suffers from some pretty obvious clichés and suffers with predictability in a lot of aspects, and those "Why are going down there, you're begging to die" sort of things which are pretty consistent throughout the flick. There's some pretty big plot holes present as well, and by the time the film had reached its climax with the demonic nun- monster-thing, I felt the explanation behind the events (which is what the whole film is leading up to) weren't presented in the best way. Like a shattered mirror, I thought things sort of fell apart near the end. There's the obligatory twist as well, which was sort of unexpected and had a neat visual spin to it.
Overall, "Mirrors" is a decent effort from a director that has brought us some pretty good movies. It's a lot different from Aja's other stuff, and I like that, but I felt as the movie progressed things got a little sloppy. Still, this is better than most horror flicks of late, and makes a good popcorn movie to kick back and see with some friends. It's got some solid acting and neat visuals to keep the audience engaged, and the climax, while at times a little too far-fetched for me, was nonetheless clever and intense. I think "Mirrors" may suffer more so with movie-goers because fans of the director may have been expecting something closer to his previous works, when in reality it's quite different from what he's done before. 6/10.