Review of Djinn (2013) by Allan C — 15 Apr 2017

This film was sitting on my Netflix list for quite a while. The only reason I watched it is that it was directed by Tobe Hooper, who's directed some horror classics like "Texas Chainsaw Massacre," "Funhouse," "Poltergeist," and "Lifeforce" (okay not everyone thinks 'Lifeforce" is a classic, but I do) but Hooper has also directed some serious duds like "The Mangler," possibly the worst Stephen King film adaptation.

My overall opinion of Hooper is that most of his film are only as good as their scripts. His best films were written by heavyweight writers like Steven Spielberg, Lawrence Block, or g Don Jakoby and Dan O'Bannon.

"Dijinn" sadly represents another weak script, but it did have some interesting elements. The story is essentially an old fashioned haunted house tale, but with a twist of being set in the United Arab Emirates, which does bring a fair amount of interesting cultural elements to a fairly well worn horror formula.

A young couple returns home to Dubai and moves into a fancy new high rise apartment building. When the wife begins seeing and hearing things that may or may not really be there, the already strained relationship between the couple becomes even more strained.

The middle eastern setting goes a long way, as does director Hooper's visually arresting style that focuses on atmosphere and suspense over cheap scares. However, besides the setting, the story is so unoriginal and derivative that it nearly sinks what could have been a much stronger film.

Borrowing from everything from "Rosemary's Baby" to "The Others," it's almost impossible to keep up with which films this script is stealing from. The ending seemed particularly unoriginal and cliched.

Despite all that, director Hooper salvages the weak script and makes the film watchable. Overall, this is worth checking out for Tope Hooper fans or for horror fans looking for something slightly different from the norm.