Pulse
'Gothica' mediocre, as expected
Michael Sanderson
Pulse critic
'Gothika'
Starring: Halle Berry, Robert Downey Jr., Penelope Cruz, Charles S. Dutton, John Carrol Lynch
Directed by: Methieu Kassovitz
Running time: 97 minutes
Rated R
Gusheads: 2 out of 4
"Gothika" is one of those films you go to see not expecting a whole lot, but you hope you're surprised. The type of film that you know you'll probably end up thinking, "It was all right, nothing special." That was my mentality going into it, and guess what, I was totally right. It wasn't a bad movie. It was just very mediocre, so at best I got what I paid for. Contrary to popular belief, we PULSE film critics pay for the tickets out of our own pockets.Anyway, "Gothika" was at least worth seeing, and it wasn't necessarily a letdown because I wasn't expecting anything great to begin with.
Here is the rundown: Halle Berry plays Miranda Grey, a criminal psychologist who meets with a patient having satanic hallucinations (Cruz). On her drive home, she ditches her car to avoid an apparition of a mysterious blonde woman standing in the middle of the road. Then the next thing you know she wakes up to find herself in the very same psych ward she works at wearing a gown, stuck inside of a cell. She soon learns that she is being accused of the grisly murder of her husband, which she denies, having no recollection of it. She then starts having the same hallucinations that her patient (Cruz) has been having along with assaults from the ghost of the mysterious blonde woman.
Of course, everyone thinks she is crazy, including her former colleague and friend (Robert Downey Jr.) But is she really crazy? Or is she really having paranormal experiences?
This movie's character development is very weak and it starts to drag for a while after Miranda is admitted into the psych ward. Also, there is a subplot of her attraction to RDJ'S character that could have added a nice twist, but is unfortunately extremely underdeveloped and explored at the worst possible time in the film.
The special effects are pretty cool, and the apparitions of the blonde woman are somewhat scary, but there isn't one moment in the movie where you jump out of your seat. To its credit, this is a film that does keep you guessing about whether or not Miranda really is crazy and if she really did commit the murder. It involves the viewer as you try to predict what really happened the night of the murder and what is really going on inside the psych ward. Also, Cruz plays a pretty convincing psycho, but Berry doesn't really hit the mark playing a psychologist or a psycho, which is damaging.
If "Gothika" had been tweaked in the right spots and had a few jolts tossed in at the right moments, it could have been a pretty decent flick, but it is just mediocre the way it is. Also, sorry fellas, there is some brief nudity, but neither Berry nor Cruz shed their tops.
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