So at the start of the movie, I was thinking that this was going to be epic, especially with the positive ratings I'd seen prior to the film and the gruesome killing scene at the beginning of the movie, but then the movie kind of didn't go anywhere after that.
Now I'm not one of those people who expects a lot from a horror film, but this film had no substance whatsoever. We didn't learn ANY back story about any of the characters, the most we know about the main characters is that the female (Lisa) had gotten into a car accident when she was a child and the male (Arkin) had a wife he sent off somewhere. There were only 2 flashbacks and the only purpose they served was to show the audience her connection to the guy hired to save her. Now a back-story isn't always necessary if the characters are interesting, BUT except for the lead male, Arkin, non of the characters stood out in any way, they were completely forgettable...so when one died, no one really cared.
Secondly, there were plot holes too big to ignore. The whole point of going to rescue the lead character (Lisa) was because the police haven't been able to find the "Collector" but then we learn that the guy who got away (Arkin),had inscribed directions to the place he was taken, on his arm. So if this guy knew how to find the Collector, why not just tell the police so that they can go in with a trained squat team? Also, Arkin knew what the inside of the hotel looked like and he knew that there were traps everywhere, so why would the hired men NOT think out a solid plan before going in? It could've definitely had an "Ocean's Eleven" or "Smokin Aces" like quality to it, which would've made the story more interesting.
Thirdly, the person hired to rescue Lisa, only took FOUR frickin people with him. I mean this Collector guy has killed over a 100 ppl (often murdering in masses) and he lives in a huge abandoned hotel and you decide to go in with only a team of FOUR ( 5 if u include Arkin)! Not to mention that the hired team of 4 were in no way prepared nor did they seem to have a plan...they all went in and died almost instantly - barely putting up a fight. At the start of the film, you assume that the father has hired these bad-asses to help his daughter but honestly, they were sort of useless.
Lastly, it wasn't really explained very well as to what the Collector was doing with all of the victims he had in his house. From what I gathered, he took at least one victim from his massacre with him and once he got them to his hotel, he would see who could survive. Now what he did with them after they survived was a mystery...we only know what he did with the weak victims. Also despite how great the murder scenes were, the fighting scenes were amateur at best...it was VERY obvious that it was choreographed and the movie wasn't scary in the slightest.
With that said, I can honestly say that this movie could've had a lot to offer...it had so much potential, which is why I'm so frustrated. The characters could've been developed more, so when they died off we'd actually feel something...anything. They could've developed the plot more by sending out a group of trained bad-asses in the hotel to sort of level out the playing field, as opposed to the four idiots who just got slaughtered. The only silver lining was the ending, which was unexpected but considering how disappointing the rest of it was, I couldn't take much pleasure from it.:/
Despite all of this, the acting isn't terrible and the effects are pretty amazing, so if you're bored this movie isn't a complete fail...I guess...
Now I'm not one of those people who expects a lot from a horror film, but this film had no substance whatsoever. We didn't learn ANY back story about any of the characters, the most we know about the main characters is that the female (Lisa) had gotten into a car accident when she was a child and the male (Arkin) had a wife he sent off somewhere. There were only 2 flashbacks and the only purpose they served was to show the audience her connection to the guy hired to save her. Now a back-story isn't always necessary if the characters are interesting, BUT except for the lead male, Arkin, non of the characters stood out in any way, they were completely forgettable...so when one died, no one really cared.
Secondly, there were plot holes too big to ignore. The whole point of going to rescue the lead character (Lisa) was because the police haven't been able to find the "Collector" but then we learn that the guy who got away (Arkin),had inscribed directions to the place he was taken, on his arm. So if this guy knew how to find the Collector, why not just tell the police so that they can go in with a trained squat team? Also, Arkin knew what the inside of the hotel looked like and he knew that there were traps everywhere, so why would the hired men NOT think out a solid plan before going in? It could've definitely had an "Ocean's Eleven" or "Smokin Aces" like quality to it, which would've made the story more interesting.
Thirdly, the person hired to rescue Lisa, only took FOUR frickin people with him. I mean this Collector guy has killed over a 100 ppl (often murdering in masses) and he lives in a huge abandoned hotel and you decide to go in with only a team of FOUR ( 5 if u include Arkin)! Not to mention that the hired team of 4 were in no way prepared nor did they seem to have a plan...they all went in and died almost instantly - barely putting up a fight. At the start of the film, you assume that the father has hired these bad-asses to help his daughter but honestly, they were sort of useless.
Lastly, it wasn't really explained very well as to what the Collector was doing with all of the victims he had in his house. From what I gathered, he took at least one victim from his massacre with him and once he got them to his hotel, he would see who could survive. Now what he did with them after they survived was a mystery...we only know what he did with the weak victims. Also despite how great the murder scenes were, the fighting scenes were amateur at best...it was VERY obvious that it was choreographed and the movie wasn't scary in the slightest.
With that said, I can honestly say that this movie could've had a lot to offer...it had so much potential, which is why I'm so frustrated. The characters could've been developed more, so when they died off we'd actually feel something...anything. They could've developed the plot more by sending out a group of trained bad-asses in the hotel to sort of level out the playing field, as opposed to the four idiots who just got slaughtered. The only silver lining was the ending, which was unexpected but considering how disappointing the rest of it was, I couldn't take much pleasure from it.:/
Despite all of this, the acting isn't terrible and the effects are pretty amazing, so if you're bored this movie isn't a complete fail...I guess...