The Gift Review
by Tim Wick
During the opening credits of The Gift, I felt a cold tingle on the back
of
my neck because I knew something bad was going to happen. That tingle never
went away.
Sam Raimi is a tough director to get a hand on. He directed the Evil Dead
trilogy and he also directed the sappy and ultimately dull Kevin Costner
vehicle For the Love of the Game. Next up he will be directing the big
screen adaptation of Spider-Man. The Gift is nothing like any of these
movies.
Describing this movie without spoilers is an impossibility so there will be
some. I will try to keep them as vague as possible.
The movie feels like a horror movie, but it progresses more like a
supernatural thriller or a haunted house movie. You spend the entire film
convinced that something horrible is going to happen, but when something
horrible does happen you are certain that it was another horrible thing that
you were worried about. That sense of imminent danger never lets up and it
is what makes the film so impressive.
The main character in the film is Annie, a single mother who raises her
three
sons somewhere in the deep south and makes money as a fortune teller.
Obviously, The Gift refers to her psychic abilities. Annie is no fake and
we are quickly drawn into the disturbing world of her visions as she becomes
aware that "a storm is coming."
Annie was played by Cate Blanchett (you may remember her as the person who
should have won the Oscar two years ago for her brilliant portrayal of
Elizabeth). Annie is extremely complex. In the year since her husband
has
died, she has not come to grips with his death and so she is incapable of
helping her sons do the same. In the southern bayou, her gift is viewed as
witchcraft but it is the only way she knows of to make a living. She longs
to be close to someone and often seems as if she longs to be free of her
gift, which she often perceives as a curse.
The true surprise of this film is the performance of Keanu Reeves. While
certainly not Oscar caliber, it is in fact acting -- which is something I
had
not previously believed Keanu to be capable of. He is playing significantly
against type here as a wife beating redneck who just might be capable of
murder. I found his performance quite convincing.
For those who found Unbreakable too slow, this film will provide them with
the same complaint. That pacing, however, is what drives this movie so
well.
You know that Annie's visions are going to happen (or they have happened).
You know that every character in the film could be in some sort of danger.
What you don't know is when it will happen or who is the potential criminal
and who is the potential victim.
I watched this film at the Butt-numb-a-thon in Austin, TX about three weeks
before it's national premiere. None of us had seen the film before and the
crowd reaction was pretty unanimous. I expect that given the time of year,
this film will be a strong Oscar contender. Unlike so many Oscar
contenders,
this film should be.
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