= 3 stars

Starring Cate Blanchett, Giovanni Ribisi, Greg Kinnear
Directed by Sam Raimi

Synopsis

Psychic Annabelle Wilson (Cate Blanchett) becomes involved in the investigation of a young woman’s (Katie Holmes) murder. Set in the deep south where possible suspects are easy to come by.

The Good

• Raimi’s direction – he’s got a great visual sense, communicating emotion. Certain scenes played out with great prescience of what I wanted to see – when Donnie (Keanu Reeves) confronts Buddy (Giovanni Ribisi) and I wondered how Annabelle’s child would react – cut to the kid.
• The always dependable Blanchett puts yet another unusual role under her belt, but also decent are Ribisi and Keanu Reeves as an abusive husband. Reeves shows more emotion than usual – I guess he can act.

The Bad

• Falls into the cliche that the murderer is eventually revealed to be the least likely suspect.
• A little over the top with the violence and gore; I couldn’t shake the feeling that shocking eye candy was used instinctively to cover up plot shortcomings.

Conclusion

Worth a rental if you’re a Blanchett fan or to witness Raimi’s direction before his big Spider-man success. As for the rest – I’m pretty sure I had seen it all somewhere before – and I’m definitely no psychic.

IMDB: The Gift
Wikipedia: The Gift
Rotten Tomatoes: The Gift 57%

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Posted In: 3 Star Movies, Movies 3 stars, Cate Blanchett, Giovanni Ribisi, Greg Kinnear, Sam Raimi

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