Acensbart
Excellent but underrated film
Billy Ollie
Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable
timsta-43673
I would have given this movie a 10, if not for the end. I'm not giving it away, but it made me mad. The acting was awesome and enjoyed the mystery. It did leave some things unanswered. The movie is about an hour and 40 minutes long. They could have added an extra 20 minutes and given answers to some of my questions. For example I wanted to know more about Tim Roth's character.
Mike_Devine
The wave of Japanese supernatural horror remakes that hit in the mid-2000's left its mark on the genre, with a few memorable hits ('The Ring,' 'The Grudge') and a host of lesser-known "me too" efforts ('The Eye,' 'Shutter'). Touchstone Pictures' 'Dark Water' is definitely closer to those in the later category, as the 2005 thriller disappointed at the box office and was a miss with critics.The film, directed by Walter Salles and starring Jennifer Connolly (with supporting roles handled by John C. Reilly, Tim Roth, Ariel Made and others), is at its best a mild imitation of similar films that came before it. 'Water' takes place on NYC's Roosevelt Island, and if there's ever been a campaign against moving there, this is it. Connolly plays a recently divorced mom named Dahlia, who takes up residence with her young daughter Ceci in a 1970s brutalist apartment complex - with rent under $1,000/month! Of course, there's always a catch, and this one comes in the sinister form of a spirit haunting the building (specifically, the unit directly above theirs). As you can imagine, all sorts of things ensure, from Dahlia experiencing migraines to the elevator not working and lots of dark, brown water showing up in all kinds of places.While you'd think 'Water' would have all the ingredients for a solid supernatural thriller, the film falls short in a lot of areas. For one, there are too many similarities in the plot with others, namely 'The Ring.' As for the "scares" that are thrown in here, none of them are truly that scary. There are some unsettling scenes, for sure, but they mostly revolve around the mother/daughter relationship - both Dahlia and Ceci and Dahlia and her mother (as seen through flashbacks). The themes of abandonment and sacrifice are present throughout, and give the film a sense of purpose, but this is not enough to counter the multiple issues with 'Water.' From the "saw it coming" twist at the end to the constant rain that plagues NYC (did they mean for it to be Seattle?), many improvements could have been made to the film.'Dark Water' was never intended to be a masterpiece, nor was it supposed to be a huge hit with audiences. But it still managed to disappoint beneath those standards.
Python Hyena
Dark Water (2005): Dir: Walter Salles / Cast: Jennifer Connelly, John C. Reilly, Pete Postlethewaite, Dougray Scott, Ariel Gade: Title bears no central reference to the plot other than the water in the run down apartment spews dark water and the body of a young girl is found otherwise it completely subtracts from the core issue. Jennifer Connelly is separated and moves her daughter into an apartment but strange things occur including a bad leakage problem. So far so good until nothing makes sense. Sometimes repetitious but the ending is complete nonsensical crap. Why not concentrate on Connelly's demons growing up with an abusive and neglect mother? Director Walter Salles makes things tense aided by sound effects and ominous use of lighting but no trickery can save this fowl flood mess. Connelly is as talented as she is beautiful but she is more or less a pawn in a very stupid movie. Supporting roles are a complete waste. John C. Reilly plays the apartment owner. Pete Postlethewaite plays the maintenance attendant. Dougray Scott plays Connelly's ex-husband and the role is flat. Ariel Gade plays Connelly's daughter and starring with Connelly is about as good as it gets for her in this dish water film. Everyone of them could have played those roles in their sleep, and for all the good the film is, they might as well have been asleep. Mediocre screenplay should be drown in a toilet. Score: 2 / 10
TheBlueHairedLawyer
For the story, eh, pretty basic, just another cliché about imaginary friends gone bad, a boring horror tale. However, the decrepit and industrial scenery was worth it. Through the film I was intrigued by the setting, the rotten old apartment, the red and white striped smokestacks at the power plant when the child gets onto the roof, the factories, the towers, the smog... the story was worth maybe a 3 out of 10, the scenery I'd give a 10 out of 10, so to even it out I rated Dark Waters with a 5. It was actually a remake of a Japanese version of the story. It seems to be in the same family as Orphan, the Ring, Hide & Seek, Fragile and Mirrors. Not a great movie but worth it for the factories, I love pollution! If you ever want to make a movie, head out to this place to film it!
