The Apparition
| release date | August 24 2012 |
| studio | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| director | Todd Lincoln |
| writer | Todd Lincoln |
| starring | Ashley Greene, Sebastian Stan, Luke Pasqualino, Julianna Guill, Tom Felton |
| rating | PG13 |
| tagline | Once You Believe. You Die. |
| site | theapparitionmovie.com |
| trailer 1 | Trailer #1 |
3 Comments
Impressed by the trailers I saw, I went to see this movie anticipating the best ghost movie of the year. I was sorely disappointed.
Right off the bat, I feel cheated and deceived by the words posted clearly on the movie poster, “Once you believe, you die.” I logically assumed that this film would take an interestingly psychological approach to the film by making this a central theme; that is, that ghosts only have power over those that believe in them. This would have also given the film a deeper moral regarding the risks of exploring the darker things in life, and, I believe, would have given the viewer a little something more the ponder following the film’s conclusion.
However, directly from the start (spoiler alert) the apparition torments someone who probably believes in it and someone who knows nothing about it, quickly and efficiently discarding what could have potentially have been the most original thing about this film, and confusing the viewer. The ‘belief’ aspect is not a central theme but a minor plot point, rushed in and out without proper explanation.
Now sure that belief in this apparition has nothing to do with who it can kill, the viewer might begin to wonder why it bothers tormenting the two it has chosen; why not torment someone with whom it possesses an old grudge? Why doesn’t it kill these two right away? Under what circumstances does it possess power? Much to the viewers’ chagrin, the film later explains that this apparition has no rules, effectively eliminating any tension or suspense and, at least to me, hammering in the final nail in its coffin of predictability with regards to its conclusion.
Any horror fan will be able to predict (for the most part) the scares with remarkable ease. Not to say that the scares aren’t good, but they possess frustratingly predictable characteristics at times. This isn’t necessarily true for all of the scares; there are a few very effective, original ones hidden in the film, as well as a few excessively cheap ones that left the occupants of my theatre shaking their heads in disbelief.
Several times throughout the film, I got the feeling that I had seen this movie before. I basically had; anyone who’s seen Paranormal Activity, The Grudge, Insidious, or has had any contact with modern horror will quickly lose interest. The Apparition uses elements from better films to good effect at times, but it fails to capture the imagination of any audience who has seen these elements implemented in a better film.
Lastly, and most obviously, it is nearly impossible for one to become invested in these characters. Ashley Greene’s character is simply average, and can stir up a kind of sympathy with members of the audience, but ultimately lacks the sort of definitive personality capable of invoking a strong emotional connection. Sebastian Stan’s character is simply dull and boring, and members of the audience will have a very difficult time becoming invested in his fate or his relationship (or the lack thereof) with Ashley Greene’s character. The only character I could really enjoy watching was Tom Felton’s, but this chap plays only a minor role, and cannot make up for the shortcomings of the other two.
The Apparition was a lost opportunity in my eyes, failing to produce neither a deeply psychological thriller nor a traditional chilling haunted house story. Whether one is looking for a thought-provoking classic or a cheap one-time scare, this movie will fail to satisfy.
This seriously could have been a REALLY good horror movie. It had some decent acting, great music, some good chiller scenes, and a really cool concept. However, it falls apart due to it’s underdevloped characters (what happened to the other guy that was part of the experiment?), and that the story wasn’t well-drawn out. If Tom Felton’s character had come into the picture earlier after a few hauntings, explained what’s going on, and gave the film at least 20 minutes to show them trying to stop it, it would have been way better. Instead, we find out what’s going on with only five minutes left of the film. The movie was definitely going somewhere, it just sadly crashed and burned along the way. I do gotta say I liked this way more than the Paranormal Activity movies combined.
This seriously could have been a REALLY good horror movie. It had some decent acting, great music, some good chiller scenes, and a really cool concept. However, it falls apart due to it’s underdevloped characters (what happened to the other guy that was part of the experiment?), and that the story wasn’t well-drawn out. If Tom Felton’s character had come into the picture earlier after a few hauntings, explained what’s going on, and gave the film at least 20 minutes to show them trying to stop it, it would have been way better. Instead, we find out what’s going on with only five minutes left of the film. The movie was definitely going somewhere, it just sadly crashed and burned along the way. I do gotta say I liked this way more than the Paranormal Activity movies combined.
At first glance this film looked great and I couldn’t wait to go see Twilight’s Ashley Greene play in a film that actually looked good. I went to the theater and thereafter I was very disappointed. The film lacks all that the trailers appoint to deliver and it’s scares were cheesy and predictable. The story about the apparition also seems way to overshadowed by a seriously unbelievable relationship. All in all the only good thing about this film was seeing Ashley Greene’s ass in lingerie…
It’s ok, just ok. It has a great idea, could have been done better. But it does have some great scenes! I love the ending of the film! And Ashley Greene did a good job, best part in the movie. It’s of those movies that isn’t great but still fun to watch in it’s good parts.