Search - The Gathering on DVD

3 1/2 Stars for this moralistic little thriller

Steven Hedge | Somewhere "East of Eden" | 02/20/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"While there have been a few other films in the past with some connections to this film's premise, I still found this to be a rather original film. It focuses on the morbid quality many of us possess and that is our facination with death and tragedy. Consider how much news we digest, the countless hours of reality TV we watch, and the number of times we slow down to view an accident. What drives us to observe these tragic events? Most of us don't stop to help or get very emotional about what we see. So what is the attraction? Morbid curiosity is the answer and this film offers up a Dante's Inferno-like punishment for those that engage in this cruel facination.

Cruel? Yes, it is. While it may seem generally harmless behavior to witness a tragedy, consider our disconnection to the pain of others or our lack of genuine concern. In addition, consider how some of us go out of our way to view tragedy in its many shapes and forms. We are merely curious. Notice how we rush to the TV when we hear something like "a stuntman was killed on the set of a film today. Be advised that the following pictures are graphic." Wow, we don't miss that do we? Talk show tears notwithstanding, we have been disensitized to human suffering and this film explores that issue. In fact, this film not only explores our morbid curiosity with tragedy, but also our often disconnections to those around us that if we connected with them, we could avoid a tragedy. We will often witness the unpleasant, but do little stop or prevent it.

The film starts out slow, but at a brief 80 minutes, it gets going quickly. If you haven't read one of the spoiling reviews below, this film also has a nice mystery in it as well as Ricci's character can't recall who she is or why she is in this town. She's had a bad accident on a back road and suffered severe memory loss. Ironically, the person that hits her while driving on a rainy afternoon shows the most emotion in this film filled with emotionless rubberneckers and I don't think that was any accident by the writers. Ricci's character is then cared for by the family that actually hit her on the road as they don't want her released from the hospital in no one's care as she can't recall who she is to see in this small town. What a wonderful message about both the benefits and costs of altuism in this rather bleak film.

The acting is generally okay, but lackluster in a number of places. I think Christina Ricci is an odd person to cast in this role and one I would like to have seen played by someone a little more wholesome looking. Ricci just comes across as strange here at times and out of place, but she does give an honest effort. Ioan Gruffudd (Fantastic Four) is perfectly eerie as her aloof friend, but not quite boyfriend.

The film is beautifully photographed and the climax is violent and very disturbing, but the score and direction is rather bland and unremarkable. In spite of some obvious flaws this film is definitely worth a viewing, but it is one of those film that you aren't likely to revisit once you understand the whole story. Once the mystery of who Ricci is is solved and we absorb the uncomfortable aspects of our own morbid curiosity, there isn't much left to keep our interest."

Brilliant thriller!

J. Arena | Williamsburg, VA | 10/20/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Occasionally I will buy a movie sight unseen, based on reviews. The Gathering is one of those films, and I loved every moment of it. This is a chillingly atmospheric film with a slow build-up to a startling conclusion, much like Sixth Sense. What is sad is that I never heard of this movie before I stumbled across it on Amazon.com. Fans of this genre should not miss The Gathering."