The Resident

2011
Director
Antti Jokinen
Starring
Hilary Swank
Jeffrey Dean Morgan
Lee Pace
Christopher Lee

So it's time for another new Hammer film, this time in the guise of pshycological thriller The Resident. Hammer has made many outstanding thrillers in the past from The Nanny to Paranoiac and attempts to keep the tradition alive. It actually does it rather well. Which is odd as the other reviews I've read seem to be mainly negative. Who knows what the hell they were expecting, maybe it was me thinking it was going to suck which lead me to enjoy it.

So the next karate kid herself Hilary Swank plays Dr Juliet Devereau, she needs an apartment after splitting up with her husband, Lee Pace. She finds one currently being renovated by landlord and owner Jeffrey Dean Morgan, the rent is far cheaper than she expects so she moves in. Things seem great for a while until the film lets you know what's going on behind the scenes of the building. Then it gets creepy.

Now some of the things that happen could easily seem ridiculous but the performances are awesome and manage to keep you engaged. Any time it seems to be going a little too far it manages to bring it back. It's well directed and as mentioned earlier the performances by Hilary Swank and Jeffrey Dean Morgan are outstanding. In the hands of lesser actors this could easily have turned into a showgirls style car crash with moments intended to be creepy turning into a comedy filled romp. There's actually a part of me that wants Tommy Wiseau to remake this just to prove that theory.

I wouldn't necesarily tell you to rush out to the cinema to see this film, but when it comes to DVD you should definitely have a look. Actually you'd probably struggle to find a cinema that's still playing it. I had to rush out to Falkirk last night to see it when I realised very few places were showing it from today.

Oh and I just have to give a special mention to the awesome Christopher Lee who still manages to engulf the screen like he did in Rasputin even though he is now an elderly gent. Hopefully he still has many films left in him as his acting prowess hasn't dwindled with age. If anything his recent performances have reminded the world how great an actor he always has been. Atleast he won't be remembered for Police Academy 7 or Gremlins 2. Unlike Hilary Swank who will always be the next Karate Kid and the random friend in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer film. She is a great actress though. Even if she does kind of look like a duck.