Surveillance (2008)

Sadly Over-hyped

There are better movies of two hours length. I loved the actress'performance.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

Complete waste of time. Can't remember of the worse film despite very hard tries. Bad scenes, desperate acting, stupid story. Where in the world ,and especially in the US, we could have such a number of murders and 2 agents are sent to solve them. I would give the negative mark if it was possible. Complete crew should be kicked out of movie business forever.

The plot is Rob Zombie-esque, and there isn't a single redeeming quality to make up for how gratuitously nasty nearly all of the scenes are. After a horrific opening few minutes, the level of sickness rises as the movie goes on, until it reached a level where a sick feeling rose up that I haven't experienced since I came across Cannibal Holocaust when I was 18.No part of the story actually makes sense, and I really feel like everyone in this was just desperate for money except Bill and Julia, who frankly I will never look at the same again.When I watched 'Truth or Consequences, New Mexico', there was a moment when it dawned on me that it actually WAS the case that it was the kind of movie that Kiefer Sutherland always wanted to make.Clearly, Bill Pullman and Julia Ormond secretly wanted to be in a video nasty.Unless you actually like really depressing and graphic violence, skip this film.

I am bad at guessing plot twists. They fool me every time. So when I call a plot "predictable", you can bet it is REALLY predictable. Bill Pullman's strangely stiff, constipated performance is partly responsible for telegraphing the "surprise" ending far too early; on the other hand, Julia Ormond is awesome and Pell James is surprisingly likable - and ultimately touching - as a drug addict. The film works best in moments of black comedy, but on the whole it's probably too sick for most viewers' stomachs. Jennifer Lynch seems to share her father's nasty vision of America. At least the alternate ending leaves a slightly less bitter taste in your mouth. ** out of 4.

Jennifer Lynch, daughter of David Lynch, tries her hand at directing again after a long exile from film due to the disastrous reception of her last attempt, Boxing Helena. This is definitely a better film than Boxing Helena, but Lynch still has a long way to go as a filmmaker. Featuring an odd cast and a script that showcases bizarre dialogue exchanges, Surveillance is all over the place in the story department. However, there is enough here to entice you into exploring just what the heck is going on. Bill Pullman, Julia Ormond, Cheri Oteri, French Stewart, Michael Ironside, Pell James and a great Kent Harper (who looks a lot like Anthony Cumia of O&A) form one of the weirder casts seen lately in a film. It's all at once a dark comedy, a killer thriller and just plain strange. It doesn't always succeed in what it's trying to do, but there's some interesting imagery and a couple memorable scenes that keep it from being lost in the shuffle of quirky thrillers surrounding it. If you've seen a lot of thrillers and horror flicks, you might be able to guess who's doing the killing, but that's not the point of the flick and relying on that for satisfaction might just leave you more disappointed than most.