Review Copyright Cassandra Henry, 2003

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"You can't trust somebody when they think you're crazy." -- Chloe Sava and Dr. Miranda Grey CASS' CLIP (WARNING: **spoilers below**) It's a dark and stormy night. As if possessed by Satan in The Exorcist, Chloe (Penelope Cruz) says to her psychiatrist, Dr. Miranda Grey (Halle Berry), "He opened me up like a flower of pain, and made me burn from the inside." Chloe is accused of killing her father and she is locked up, in the criminally insane wing, at the Woodward Penitentiary for Women, in Connecticut. "I sliced his Adam's apple in half like a piece of fruit on a summer day," she continues. Miranda thinks Chloe is finally opening up and talking about the memories she repressed. The more Chloe rambles on about being tortured by Satan, the more Miranda dismisses her statements and chalks this up as another unproductive session. Miranda desperately wants to help Chloe, so she discusses her psychoanalysis and frustrations with the chief administrator of the psychiatric ward, who also happens to be her husband, Dr. Douglas Grey (Charles Dutton). "The ability to repress memories is a vital survival tool," Doug advises Miranda. Just as Doug consoles Miranda with a sloppy kiss, another therapist, Dr. Pete Graham (Robert Downey Jr.), walks in on the lovebirds. I'm sure this sight disgusts Pete because it is obvious that he's infatuated with Miranda. The rainstorm gets stormier, just as Miranda leaves work and heads home. The predictable roadblock is just up ahead, and Sheriff Ryan (John Carroll Lynch) tells Miranda to detour so she can swerve into this movie's paranormal plot. In the middle of the rain-soaked road, Miranda veers to avoid hitting a young girl, Rachel Parsons (Kathleen Mackey). When Miranda approaches her to see if she needs help, she bursts in to flames. Just when Miranda thinks she's dreaming, her worse nightmare begins. What do Miranda, Chloe and Rachel have in common? And, where does a criminal psychiatrist end up when she is accused of the committing unthinkable? In supernatural hell!!! DA 411 Gothika is a mix of several other movies, such as The Sixth Sense and What Lies Beneath. Therefore, nothing about Gothika is plausible, and everything about it is predictable because it tries too hard to be a psychological thriller/ghost story infused with a ridiculous twist, at the end. But I'll overlook the fact that Gothika is neither because of Halle Berry's performance. Sure, there are a few scenes where she appears to just be reading her lines instead of making the dialogue believable. Aside from that, Halle definitely holds her own in this role. I enjoyed watching her perform all the physical stunts, as well as her characterization of an innocently accused widow and an insane murderess. I have seen a lot of movies pretending to be horror flicks. But, the scene where Charles Dutton kisses Halle Berry is by far the most frightening thing I have ever witnessed onscreen. Oooooh da horror of it all!!! Some background information on how Berry and Dutton's characters hooked up would have been helpful. Regardless of how gross this particular scene is, it's an important element in setting up Dutton's character. Matthew Libatique's cinematography does capture that gloomy gothic atmosphere with dimly lit corridors, empty hallways, the proverbial rainy night and flickering lights. Director, Mathieu Kassovitz, does a decent job of incorporating the supporting cast -- Penelope Cruz, Robert Downey Jr., Charles Dutton, John Carroll Lynch, and Bernard Hill -- into a wannabe psychological mystery. CASS' CONCLUSION One viewer, Kera C., said, "I did like this movie. Even with some of the predictable elements that are characteristic of this genre of film, I liked the performances and it did hold my attention. It might have had a greater "ah" impact had it not been preceded by The Sixth Sense and What Lies Beneath." Ditto. GOTHIKA:   back to top Copyright Cassandra Henry, 2003 EMAIL: cass@3blackchicks.com

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