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Fragile
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horror in the hospital
Review date: 2008-10-20 Rating: 8 out of 10
wow what an awesome film. I bought this with a feeling that it would impress and it's done just that. Any film revolving around a haunted hospital/asylum/sanitarium normally has me grabbing for it immediatly. I'm so glad I did! There was something terribly sad and yet awfully frightening about this film.And what can be scarier that sick children and an abandoned second floor where a supposed creature or person hovers in the shadows. I loved it, and the end is not what I expected by a long shot.
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Reviews
Atmospheric thriller - unusual horror
Review date: 2008-09-22 Rating: 6 out of 10
Visually, this film is oozing with atmosphere - old, abandoned hospital wards, sweeping, isolated moors in the pouring rain - and through its visuals, it does do a good job of keeping up the tension. Which is no mean feat, as it's quite unusual as a horror movie - almost too gentle, a bit like a cross between an mild evening made-for-TV two-parter and a serious horror film. This jarrs, but that in itself isn't such a bad thing - it tends to heighten the disturbing undertones of the storyline. There's something 'not right' about it all, and even the direction adds to that sense.
Some things are quite unexpected - outbreaks of rage, sudden, unexplained death and injury - which almost seem out of place at times, amidst the ambling storyline. Again, this has an interesting effect, leaving the viewer feeling quite unsettled after a while.
As a story it's quite well constructed - although it is unusually executed, it won't disappoint as a spooky night's viewing!
Just doesn't get there.
Review date: 2008-02-09 Rating: 2 out of 10
Well, the story is good, I love the idea of a haunted hospital, lots of things that go bump in the night, and scared kids. I like the idea of a new nurse coming into the hospital and having to face the scary stuff. What I DON'T like is Calista Flockhart being the new nurse. Lets be honest here, the woman can't act. She has no facial expression, other than pouting, and is as wooden as a twig. For me, she spoils the whole thing, and I think that with a different actress, maybe it would have been better. She is just so totally unbelievable and annoying. She seems to be continually watching herself, and just going through the motions (badly). All in all, a reasonable story totally ruined by a very poor performance from the star(!)
Good in Parts
Review date: 2008-01-16 Rating: 6 out of 10
Well, this is a supernatural mystery. Now these need to provide interesting characters, atmosphere, a convincing back story to explain
the apparitions, and a convincing ghost or monster. Fragile scores quite highly on the characters and the atmosphere and is a decent mystery for a long time. No classic but quite good. Where it falls down is - as so often in this genre - at the end, at the denoument, when the ghost is quite ludicrous (the child would have been more scary) and the whole thing becomes unconvincing. I was disappointed at the end but enjoyed the ride up to then.
Pretty poor
Review date: 2008-01-15 Rating: 4 out of 10
Having seen the trailer I'd preminisced a creepy, spine chilling ghost story, full of shocking scares and "it's behind you," moments. Unfortunately, while the cliched premise (a crumbling children's home complete with ghosts and the general spooks we'd normally associate with such) sets a potentially ethereal scene, Fragile just doesn't capture the atmosphere of a decadent, ghost-filled haunted building al a The Shining, etc. There's no real scares here and it's difficult to identify with the one dimensional characters. It's little wonder that this is virtually unheard of in mainstream, despite having a few big name actors thrown in for good measure. It's a little unfortunate, because it could've been something quite special. The chills just aren't chilly enough, and there's no real intelligence to the predicatble plot. Whenever an orphanage, insamne asylum, mental hospital or plain spooky old mansion is used as a location we expect a little more in the way of past events manifesting themselves as echoes of the past. Unfortunately Fragile doesn't deliver on that front. Yes, there's a few thrills, but even they aren't all together that thrilling. Those in search of a real chiller should check out the likes of El Orfanto, The Jacket, The Others or Skeleton Key, because Fragile simply falls very short
Product Details/Specifications
Actor(s):
Calista Flockhart
Gemma Jones
Elena Anaya
Richard Roxburgh
Richard Flockhart
Creators:
Calista Flockhart (Primary Contributor)
Richard Flockhart (Primary Contributor)
Director(s):
Recording label: Lions Gate Home Ent. UK Ltd
Manufacturer: Lions Gate Home Ent. UK Ltd
EAN: 5060052412454
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 1
Format: Anamorphic, PAL,
Release date: 2007-09-10
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Audience rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
Region code: 2
Running time: 97 minutes
Language: English (Original Language)