Review of A Cure for Wellness (2017) by Quinten P — 19 Feb 2017

A Mad Modern Monster Mystery Movie of Yesteryear.

Like most people aside from those involved with the production, I had not a slim semblance of an idea what I might see while watching the latest from the director of such flights and flops of film making as The Pirates of the Caribbean and The Lone Ranger. What I did find as I was walking out of the theater, was a sorely missed sense that I've lost in recent box office ventures, a genuine feeling of surprise and excitement derived from an original work of cinema. This film ran the gambit for myself and my fellow audience members from fear and tension to hoots and hollers, mysterious intrigue and unintentional outbursts of laughter and cheers during the finale.

Were there flinches and cringes throughout the crowd at times? Absolutely. Did people at certain points even turn to their phones as a casual excuse to look away from the screen only to be caught peeking up out of sheer masochistic and morbid curiosity? Indeed they did. Did people seem perplexed, confused and intrigued by the plot and its conclusion? Without a doubt. But the one thing that was undeniable upon exiting the theater was that everyone had been, in some way or another, invested and impacted by the film, enjoying it from either the fear and laugh factor which was an experience I have rarely had in recent years. Is A Cure For Wellness a magnum opus, or a Lynchian abstract art piece? No, but what it is was what we have all been begging Hollywood for, an original idea with excellent acting, direction, cinematography, an interesting plot, a disturbing villain with mixed bits of both fear and fun abound.

Though it clearly has its influences, ranging from Phantom of the Opera to Shutter Island, A Princess Bride and possibly a bit of Hot Fuzz. It is certainly a cinematic experience worth watching with friends, something I'd highly recommend to anyone who likes drama, mystery and a bit of camp in the seldom supported endeavor of ambitious original film making. It's a bit of a long haul, building questions and tension up until the madhouse raising insanity of the very end, but the pay off paid big time in a way that made me feel as if I was watching a film with themes and theatrics from another age with the grit and grime of modern audience sensibilities and stomach strength. It's a 4/5 from me that should be seen if we ever truly want to witness the end of endless sequels, spinoffs, reboots and runarounds.