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SESSION 9 Send This Review to a Friend
The setting of a huge, old abandoned insane asylum in Massachuettes, where a crew is there to remove asbestos so that the place can be renovated, tells us immediately that awful things are likely to happen and at least one of the characters is likely to go bonkers. Otherwise, why waste such a set-up?
Brad Anderson directs from a script he wrote with Stephen Gevedon, who also plays one of the crew. The film builds up an eerie mood of suspense as it introduces us to the leading characters, including Peter Mullan as the owner of a company under pressure, and David Caruso as the crew chief. Moving through the cavernous building with talk of an evil history of abusing inmates sets an ominous, creepy tone. The discovery of tapes involving a famous, controversial case of recovered memory and multiple personalities, adds to the air of mystery.
But as the film inches along, it begins to get wearing. What's going on becomes less of a question than when will we get the climax. By the time the inevitable happens, the film has begun to seem like many an ordinary excursion into horror, and there isn't much reason to care about the characters or worry about their fate. A USA Films release.
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