***SPOILERS*** ***SPOILERS*** Gothika is another example of the hollywood concept film. Prison psychiatrist Halle Berry finds herself on the wrong side of the bars when her badly cast, older, fatter husband is murdered and all clues point to her and she ends up imprisoned with the mental cases she used to treat. That's the concept that some sucker of a film executive got sold. This pathetic attempt at a thriller, with a not so subtle nod at "What Lies Underneath" is neither scary nor tense and Halle Berry acts like she should be handing her oscar back. If you like a plot to make sense then (By plot I mean a story that leads to a logical conclusion that you can understand and appreciate) do not waste your time on this, as it is only a vehicle for Halle and Robert Downey JR's 50th comeback. Penelope Cruz also assaults your sense of sanity with her unintelligible accent. This movie is cliched right down to the dark foreboding old style country prison with the standard issue thunder and lighting storm. I don't know if this film was too long and they cut it down for pace reasons but if so they cut out any logic with it.
*****Major Spoilers Ahead*****
Ok if like me you were daft enough to watch this, I want to explain what I was moaning about above, I realise this is a movie about ghosts but come on, even ghost stories should make some sense. First off how many of us believe Halle Berry would be married to the guy who played her husband and that she would be allowed to work under him in a prison environment and that her being an intelligent, observant psychiatrist had no idea he was a sexual deviant who spends a lot of time down "at the farm". Why does the girls ghost decide all of a sudden to return that particular night after being dead for 4/5 years, was she waiting for the right atmosphere as it was bad weather? How many people accept that someone who worked (literally the night before) in a prison would be committed to that very same prison and be overseen by her friend and colleagues? Not to mention being incarcerated with her former patients, tad dangerous maybe? Even if it was just a temporary measure to place her there until she was formerly brought to trial she would be kept elsewhere for her own safety and a psychiatrist who doesn't know her would treat her as it would be a conflict of interest when it came to testifying at the trial. Next up, who bought the rational (non-paranormal) excuse for the shower scene, Halle manages to gouge out words in her arm in like 10 seconds and afterwards Robert Downey Jr and a prison employee explain the incident away as "she must have smuggled a scalpel in". How did she manage this? (she was in a bathrobe, and was watched the whole time) Where did the phantom scalpel come from? Where do they think the scalpel went in the shower room?. Better still the first time she escapes her cell (the ghost unlocked it)nobody seems to be interested on how she accomplished this magical feat as Robert Downey Jr remains sceptical. Let's move on the ghost herself, now apparently she committed suicide due to the abuse she was suffering. How did the perverts accomplish this? Did they ring at Bernard Hill's door and ask if she could come out? Did they intercept her (somewhere) take her to the farm and then let her go home taking the chance she wouldn't reveal anything? Wouldn't Bernard Hill notice the emotional after-effects? Ok, how about the second escape with the scene where Halle hides next to the friendly guard who lets her go and gives her his car keys. What is this guard on? Hasn't he heard about the overwhelming evidence against her? Nearly there folks, moving on now to the final scenes. Why did the girl in the sex dungeon just stay there? it was unlocked, why hide there and eventually starve to death?
While Halle is chatting away with the sheriff Robert Downey Jr must have read the script as he finally decides to investigate the tattoo on his PC, now this scene cuts to the police station and after that Rob runs up to the window just after Halle despatches the Sheriff. How did Robert figure it out? Was the tattoo website he went to, hosted by the sheriff? And speaking of the sheriff how did he keep getting in the prison to rape the inmates, even law officers don't have free run of prisons let alone the keys to prisoners cells. Fine forget that, lets go back to the Sheriff's office, when Halle finally works it out the sheriff follows the murderers handbook to the letter and totally disregards any attempt to cover up the fact he's out to kill her by smashing up the place and firing wildly with a handgun/shotgun in the now deserted office (where is everyone?, does the office close at the weekend?).
And now the final abomination HOW THE HELL DOES HALLE'S CHARACTER GET FREED AT THE END. It is a fact that she killed her husband, the courts recognise insanity they don't recognise murder by possession. It doesn't matter how many people her husband killed you still get jailed. The defense was to claim when she got home that night she found out he was a sicko and he attacked her (despite the forensic evidence to the contrary)and she killed him in self-defense. Of course any decent prosecutor would ask "well why didn't you say that in the first place instead of denying it". No court is going to quibble with a woman killing a murderer/rapist in self defence. So with all that in mind I HATE THIS FILM.
*****Major Spoilers Ahead*****
Ok if like me you were daft enough to watch this, I want to explain what I was moaning about above, I realise this is a movie about ghosts but come on, even ghost stories should make some sense. First off how many of us believe Halle Berry would be married to the guy who played her husband and that she would be allowed to work under him in a prison environment and that her being an intelligent, observant psychiatrist had no idea he was a sexual deviant who spends a lot of time down "at the farm". Why does the girls ghost decide all of a sudden to return that particular night after being dead for 4/5 years, was she waiting for the right atmosphere as it was bad weather? How many people accept that someone who worked (literally the night before) in a prison would be committed to that very same prison and be overseen by her friend and colleagues? Not to mention being incarcerated with her former patients, tad dangerous maybe? Even if it was just a temporary measure to place her there until she was formerly brought to trial she would be kept elsewhere for her own safety and a psychiatrist who doesn't know her would treat her as it would be a conflict of interest when it came to testifying at the trial. Next up, who bought the rational (non-paranormal) excuse for the shower scene, Halle manages to gouge out words in her arm in like 10 seconds and afterwards Robert Downey Jr and a prison employee explain the incident away as "she must have smuggled a scalpel in". How did she manage this? (she was in a bathrobe, and was watched the whole time) Where did the phantom scalpel come from? Where do they think the scalpel went in the shower room?. Better still the first time she escapes her cell (the ghost unlocked it)nobody seems to be interested on how she accomplished this magical feat as Robert Downey Jr remains sceptical. Let's move on the ghost herself, now apparently she committed suicide due to the abuse she was suffering. How did the perverts accomplish this? Did they ring at Bernard Hill's door and ask if she could come out? Did they intercept her (somewhere) take her to the farm and then let her go home taking the chance she wouldn't reveal anything? Wouldn't Bernard Hill notice the emotional after-effects? Ok, how about the second escape with the scene where Halle hides next to the friendly guard who lets her go and gives her his car keys. What is this guard on? Hasn't he heard about the overwhelming evidence against her? Nearly there folks, moving on now to the final scenes. Why did the girl in the sex dungeon just stay there? it was unlocked, why hide there and eventually starve to death?
While Halle is chatting away with the sheriff Robert Downey Jr must have read the script as he finally decides to investigate the tattoo on his PC, now this scene cuts to the police station and after that Rob runs up to the window just after Halle despatches the Sheriff. How did Robert figure it out? Was the tattoo website he went to, hosted by the sheriff? And speaking of the sheriff how did he keep getting in the prison to rape the inmates, even law officers don't have free run of prisons let alone the keys to prisoners cells. Fine forget that, lets go back to the Sheriff's office, when Halle finally works it out the sheriff follows the murderers handbook to the letter and totally disregards any attempt to cover up the fact he's out to kill her by smashing up the place and firing wildly with a handgun/shotgun in the now deserted office (where is everyone?, does the office close at the weekend?).
And now the final abomination HOW THE HELL DOES HALLE'S CHARACTER GET FREED AT THE END. It is a fact that she killed her husband, the courts recognise insanity they don't recognise murder by possession. It doesn't matter how many people her husband killed you still get jailed. The defense was to claim when she got home that night she found out he was a sicko and he attacked her (despite the forensic evidence to the contrary)and she killed him in self-defense. Of course any decent prosecutor would ask "well why didn't you say that in the first place instead of denying it". No court is going to quibble with a woman killing a murderer/rapist in self defence. So with all that in mind I HATE THIS FILM.