Yet another Ghost Ship.... I always thought that the producers of Dark Castle Entertainment would actually bring us some original horror entertainment but apart from the wonderful Halle Berry and Robert Downey Jr., this flick just ends up with same taste in your pallet as you got from Thirteen Ghosts or Ghost Ship.
Yes the locations, costumes, cinematography, lighting and set design are all on top form. The casting is done well. The first 30 minutes of this film will have you amused, maybe even scared at times as a psychiatrist (Berry) finds herself on the other side of the bars in an institution for the criminally insane with a somewhat overfriendly psychiatrist (Downey) probing her mind for reasons why she murdered her psychiatrist husband with an axe. Then the plot takes a turn and Berry starts to remember seeing ghosts before the murder and then the ghost appears for real and tries to help her escape and then the story just totally goes off the rails and becomes some sort of a twisted snuff film production murder mystery with missing women. Then the movie turns to total farce for a special effects grand finale as the murderer is unmasked in Scooby style and whatever may have been plausible is now well and truly just another direct-to-video story with some good acting and higher production values than what it really deserves.
Does this mean you should not watch it? To be honest you have seen a lot worse than Gothika and maybe it is worth a look for Berry alone but when all is said and done this is still a poor movie with MTV production values. The bottom line is that Gothika is all special effects driven with a terrible third rate story that is more apt for television and not a movie. Berry looks great and does wonders but is wasted by a nonsense script. This is yet another nail in Dark Castle's coffin.
A HALLE HORROR STORY Halle Berry dominates the screen when she's on it. And not just with her obvious beauty. But her presence is so 'BIG', you can't help but keep your eyes glued to the screen. Halle elevates GOTHIKA with a performance that is both subtly performed and wildly erratic at times. I did wonder if perhaps her character had gone insane. GOTHIKA is a moody, creepy and engrossing ghost story that pulls some weird twists and some real shocks. Berry is given excellent support by Robert Downey as her psychiatrist friend; John Carroll Lynch as the sheriff who was also her husband's best friend; Penelope Cruz as the tormented patient Chloe; and Charles Dutton as her doomed hubby. By the time the movie reaches it's climax, you'll slap yourself on the head and say, of course! But, at the same time, how does Halle get off the hook---the movie never explains and it's "sixth sense" ending is also a little disturbing, hence only the four stars. GOTHIKA is no where as bad as most critics have said; it's a good ghost story and a wonderful performance from Ms. Berry.HALLE HAS DONE IT ONCE MORE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Halle berry has proved once more that she is an AMAZING actress in her role as Dr.Grey.This is one of Halle greatest films YOU GO HALLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!this film is just another reason Halle is my favorite actress
