The Beacon (2009)

Highly Overrated But Still Good

Better Late Then Never

A Brilliant Conflict

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

THE HAUNTING AT THE BEACON is a very ordinary ghost story about a grieving family who move into a new and haunted home. The scares are diluted and way too much of the screen time is taken up with lame dialogue, but I suppose as haunted house films go it could be worse. At least the film-makers avoid the usual clichés for the most part, but at the same time they deliver a film in which nothing really happens.Teri Polo and her on-screen husband play some dull-beyond-belief characters who don't deserve a movie to themselves because they hold zero interest. The only face who raises a smile is that of genre legend Michael Ironside, but sadly he gets very little screen time playing one of a number of cops. One of the notable scare sequences at the climax of the movie makes use of some special effects that had me laugh out loud rather than scared; they look like they belong in an old episode of the MONSTERS TV show rather than a supposedly serious horror flick...

I'd like to start off simply by saying that I think this movie is terrible. In my case, I fell asleep 35 minutes into it last night, and resumed watching it a few hours ago.When The Beacon was finished, I was filled with so many angry questions about the plot holes and terrible acting, I had to go outside and smoke a cigarette and scream into the night sky.I actually WANT you to watch this movie, so I can point out some basic flaws that come to mind. Just keep them in mind when watching the film. The following things in The Beacon annoyed me: 1) The woman cop's acting was more painful than getting my nipples pierced. I was wincing at every line she spoke. Try not to turn off the movie until you've seen her final scene. Just Wow.2) This movie SERIOUSLY does not get interesting until about the last 20 minutes. Until then, the ghost-story clichés were spread all over this plot like butter on a warm roll -- but The Beacon's butter is bad and will give you diarrhea, as it did for me.3) The LAST 20 minutes of this movie is completely absurd and contradicts the entire story up to that point. I had to re-watch it a few times just to confirm the plot holes. The ironic part is, these aren't really "plot holes" because it uses the "ghosts can do whatever they want whenever they want" formula. Using this formula, filmmakers can create incoherent films that succeed using common scare tactics that make the audience jump and then roll their eyes.The Beacon is like the Nickelback of ghost story horror films: Most people will probably like it. But if you do, you are probably of a lesser intelligence than me.

After reading the two reviews here, I was hopeful this would be good. Unfortunately, what I was subjected to was a bunch of clichés and a film that got progressively worse. First, a little synopsis. A couple move in to an apartment building in order to put the traumatic loss of their child behind them and get their life back on track. Instead, their lives spiral out of control as strange events keep happening. I've often wondered why the always reliable Teri Polo was always confined to supporting roles. Now I know. Polo stars as Bryn, who can't get over feelings of loss and guilt and she telegraphs and amplifies pretty much every emotion of her character. She's... regrettably bad. The direction and writing by Michael Stokes sure does not help but really, it's inexcusable. David Rees Snell (a.k.a. that wooden actor who played the quiet of the four detectives in "The Shield) is her co-lead as the husband. Again, a cliché character of the husband courageously trying prevent his couple from sinking and repressing his emotions in the process (probably better that way, as the actor wouldn't be able to show any). Oh, there's also the cliché sister. She's a hot babe with some of the worse lines and characterization I have seen in a while. Flashing her breasts to the movers one moment, and the next reciting platitudes disguised as pearls of wisdom the next. It's really painful. Anyways, from the moment they move in, we meet a cast of weird characters. The tenants all have their little quirks and again, the characterization is awful, particularly when the whole plot is taken into account. This movie, mark my words, will have zero replay value because of the various plot holes, many of which are caused by the awful acting on display. Speaking of the plot, this is your fairly typical ghost story, which means nowadays plot twists that don't really make much sense. These could have made for a watchable film in the hand of a competent director but unfortunately, it's not the case here. As things escalate and the weird happenings become more common, we are subjected to some of the worse makeup effects seen since the 90s. I literally paused and wondered if I was watching a horror movie or a comedy. There are hundreds of horror movies you should watch but Beacon is not one of them, I would think. Unless you're a hardcore fan of the genre.

Shot mostly at the Roger's Hotel in Waxahachie, Texas (30 miles south of Dallas), this scary flick successfully made me jump... a few times. I also can usually determine the outcome of a given film, but I couldn't have guessed this one at ALL! The plot centers around a couple who are recovering from the disappearance of their son. They relocate to the Beacon Apartments, only to find that the building appears to be haunted by a young boy (around the same age of their own son who they've lost). From the moment they move in, the wife notices strange things happening around them, but the husband is quick to brush it off. Soon, he realizes that his wife may be telling the truth, after all.Great movie if you like this genre. I saw it at a sneak peek in Dallas and am not sure about national release. Consider joining their Facebook group so you can find out how to get the film to show in your neighborhood, if interested!