Review of Open Windows (2014) by Kisbali T — 03 Jan 2015

Believe me, "Open Windows" is not as bad as the critics say. It's not revolutionary either. But I enjoyed it, despite many-many shortcomings and flaws. It touches upon many "contemporary" nightmares and paranoias: obsession with celebs, Big Brother is watching you, digital crime, identity theft, but it all gets dumped into your lap as a lump of messy cables you have to untie. The filming style can be considered "newish" - always showing everybody through a webcam, a mobile phone, security screens, satellite maps, etc. Montage is switching between different windows on your desktop, which is probably something everybody nowadays can relate to - juggling the latest episode of that popular series (probably only listening to the sound, but never really looking at the scenes), an internet browser with 10+ tabs open, chatting on facebook, scrolling through tumblr... All these changes are pretty well executed, but still - it's nothing more than a gimmick.

-(possible SPOILERS!)-.

The scenario plays out as a better episode of "Saw" (less torture though), and it also suffers from the same implausibility that plagued that gorefest of a series. The twists are standard (the protagonist even points this out a point "that trick? I learnt it from you"), but luckily director Nacho Vigalondo has a good sense of timing and sometimes utilizes the tropes we all know as a red herring. The final twist won't surprise anyone.

Even though "Open Windows" references some of the classics ("Rear Window", etc.), it's obviously the product of a very different generation, both pacing- and style-wise. I cannot put my finger on what exactly causes this rift, but there's a whole bunch of films from the last decade that are supposed to be somewhat "hitchcockian", but come short. "Open Windows" ends up somewhere between the aforementioned "Saw" movies, but also with Schumacher's static paranoid "Phone Booth" (2003), "Grand Piano" (2010, also with Elijah Wood), maybe "The Cabin in the Woods", etc.

These movies might have some great moments (even shear genius), but In my opinion, the main problem is their high reliance on a "god figure", a mysterious, omnipotent, omnipresent VOICE, who usually loses its power the moment it gets corporeal. This motive is effective, and could probably be used better, but it can also be very annoying, especially considering the high demand from the viewer to believe in it. The movie-goer is more likely to utter "come ON, that's not how hacking works" than "wow, this really makes me think about my personal internet privacy". If the plot devices of your choice overpower your 'social commentary' or subject, maybe you have to reconsider using them so abundantly. "The Cabin in the Woods" pulls it off nicely. "Open Windows" (or the "Saw" franchise) - not so much. The annoyance with the implausible parts for some viewers is greater than the enjoyment. "He can do this because he's a bad-ass hacker" is ultimately a cheap solution.