Dark Water Review

Written by: Chad Langen   

It's easy for an individual to accept the fact that Hollywood is made up of copycats, but the massive trend that follows one of those once in a good long while films must eventually die down. So here's Dark Water, a film that robs just about every concept of The Ring in hopes of having even half the success prior to box office numbers.

To be honest, academy award winning Jennifer Connelly is about the only good thing going for this film. There's not much of a story, okay let me just cut to the chase. There's nothing very interesting about the film. We get a few jumps here and there but it's nothing we haven't seen before. I don't recall a single scene in the film that really stuck in my head after I left the theater, that's how forgettable this movie was.

The story focuses on a struggling mother who's trying to cope with a recent divorce in which her ex-husband is fighting to gain custody of their daughter. She quickly finds a run down apartment to live in for a while, but she soon finds out that this isn't the 'home sweet home' she had in mind. Haunting the corridors of her so called home is a spirit that threatens her and her daughter's lives. Now she must confront her own nightmares in order to make it out of the apartment alive.

The story was the ultimate problem with the film. Actually, the story wasn't the problem. Why? It's because there was no story at all. The only thing that ever really happens is Jennifer Connelly taking a nap on the couch. This is no exaggeration. There are at least five scenes in the film that focus on Jennifer taking a nap. There was nothing too scary or interesting about this, right?

The direction was good. I really like the cinematography and the dark atmosphere. This was the only advantage of ripping off The Ring that the movie had. There was constant rainfall and gray skies that I just couldn't get enough of.

Jennifer Connelly does very well in carrying the film along. In fact, if it wasn't for her dedication to acting and her drop dead gorgeous looks, I imagine I would have walked out of the theater halfway through the film. She's an incredible actress and I will tip my hat to her for that.

In no way was this an awful film, it was just never interesting. There was never anything really entertaining or any scene that ever grabbed my attention. This is your average B movie that'll be lucky to gather a small fan base on DVD, but to most it won't be worth watching. Save your six dollars for something more entertaining, that's all I have to say.