Review of Case 39 (2009) by Tim B — 03 Sep 2011

It took about two years for Case 39 to get released and even longer when the release date was delayed by another two years. It took me forever to hunt this one down and finally see it. Sunday morning on a hangover on Netflix was the best I could pull off.

While I was once really excited to see this movie; having to wait so damn long died that excitement down. Although I'm glad I finally got to see it, I'm also glad I watched it the way I did. If I had flocked to the theatre for this one, I would have been gravely disappointed.

The premise was nothing standout but kept me interested. The first half of the movie really pulled me in and some of the scenarios were pretty suspenseful. The kitchen/oven scene especially got to me in terms of anticipation.

Furthermore, I got a huge kick out of the deaths whenever they did pop up. They were pretty unique in their own right. I also enjoyed the storyline to a sense. The mjaor plot twists kept me in the game throughout.

It certainly helped that the two leads were great at their acting. Renee Zellweger played likable and sweet extremely well in this. Jodelle Ferland proved she could play a creepy little girl (Silent Hill anyone?) and pulled the same shtick here.

Ian McShane, in all honesty, didn't live up to what I know he can pull off, but he's just so damn cool. Lazy, but given his record, I still loved him. Bradley Cooper shows up in a small role prior to hitting Hollywood fame and it's clear as to why he made it.

Callum Keith Rennie and Kerry O'Malley both were very credible and intense in their roles. I enjoyed them a lot. Christian Alvart showed off with the camera a lot and constantly had it moving. His work with suspense was astounding as well.

Good stuff. On the downer, I can't say the flick was scary in the least bit. The story dragged at times and got to the point where I just couldn't take it seriously anymore. I found myself laughing at it the further on it went.

The movie changed modes and moods too frequently. By the ending I was just grooving along with the shenanigans rather than being freaked out by them. All in all, this was a pretty decent effort. It started off strong, had good acting/directing and suspenseful moments.

The latter half is somewhat ridiculous but in a fun sense. Just don't take it overly seriously and you may be able to enjoy it.