Synopsis
Not every gift is welcome.
A husband and wife try to reinvigorate their relationship but their lives are threatened by a "friend" from the husband's past who holds a horrifying secret about him, sending their world into a tailspin.
2015 Directed by Joel Edgerton
A husband and wife try to reinvigorate their relationship but their lives are threatened by a "friend" from the husband's past who holds a horrifying secret about him, sending their world into a tailspin.
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The trailer really didn't sell this movie at all for me. After seeing the trailer, I said "Eh it might be worth renting one day". Then early reviews came in and I changed my mind about seeing this movie in theaters.
I am so glad I saw this film in theaters. If it weren't for Kingsman: The Secret Service, The Gift would be the biggest surprise I've seen in 2015. This movie is actually pretty fantastic. It's really everything you want from a thriller/suspense film. I was literally the only person in the entire theater and that really added to the experience. I can't lie, I was creeped the fuck out.
What a directorial debut for Joel Edgerton! He also does a great job playing the creepy stalker! Jason Bateman and Rebecca Hall are super solid as well. Everyone is not always what the seem!
68/100
An admirable and sleek debut by actor-turned-director Joel Edgerton, The Gift succeeds because of its careful craft and understated creepiness. Starting out as an uninteresting slow-burn, the performances by Jason Bateman, Rebecca Hall, and Joel Edgerton keep the viewer engaged by committing to the material and aiding the creeping direction. However, Edgerton takes this simple, almost lifetime-esque formula, and subverts its own very cliches and rules in beautifully cinematic ways. It's a film that does exactly what it sets out to do, and although its ambitions are rather spare, the chillness that flows through The Gift is too accomplished to be ignored.
Once a bully always a bully ... and sometimes those you hurt in the past don't just forget about it.
"It's all in the eyes, you see .... You see what happens when you poison other people's minds with ideas?"
It had been a while since I had seen a great thriller, and The Gift had me on the edge of my seat wondering where this strange relationship between a couple and this awkward and mysterious stranger from the husband's past would turn out.
(Quick Hits) ... Spoilers:
- Wow is Jason Bateman's character Simon an asshole in this, and they do a great job of concealing how awful he is until later in the story
- You can see…
i thought i was completely unphased by this but the other night i had a really weird nightmare about it so 1 point to The Gift (2015)
As much as I wanted to like this film, its weakly scripted central act makes the Gift a limp experience with good intentions.
Had Edgerton cut out 20 minutes or so it would have resulted in a more balanced film. As it is, it opens with an intriguing premise that is more interesting than it is tense. Once the plot really starts to kick in it loses its sense of mystery and starts telegraphic it's intentions far too obviously. It furthermore attempts to inject some dramatic elements which don't really seem to fit, adding to the uneven feeling.
It's well acted throughout, no problems there, there just isn't much to it. It's all a bit too predictable, never pushing the boat out in any way. For a thriller it's not tense enough, for a dramatic character study it's too superficial, making it stuck in mediocrity limbo.