“Spiral” is a strange movie. I only rented it because it has one of my new favorite actors in it, Zachary Levi. “Spiral” is about Mason, a talented painter working at a telemarketing firm who sketches women and hears voices. At lunch one day a bubbly, bouncy co-worker reaches out to him and he begins to sketch her. They develop a friendship that evolves into a relationship and one morning Amber makes a discovery that changes everything.
Pros:
- Psychological Thriller It Is – Directors Joel Moore and Adam Green are known for stranger films and “Spiral” is certainly not an exception. Although other films, such as “Hatchet,” are bloodier than “Spiral” the creep factor is absolutely at a high level here.
- Unique Characters – I can definitely say I haven’t ever seen characters quite like Mason (the main guy played by Joel Moore [he was in Dodgeball]) and Berkeley (Levi). With Mason you can’t tell if his sketches are out of love, infatuation, obsession, or if it’s just what he does. And Berkeley, we don’t really understand why he’s friends with Mason, why he’s so protective of him and such an [bleep] hole to everyone else.
- Guessing Until the End – I definitely didn’t see the last 10 minutes of the movie coming. It was very M. Night Shyamalan.
- Check out this review – Critic Robert Koehler puts it nicely. He says, “[the movie] offers a momentarily strong slice of psycho cinema to the degree that an intimate camera and heavily designed soundtrack suggest what it's like to be inside Mason's rattled head.” (read the rest of his review)
Cons:
- Again, the Characters – With the exception of Amber (played by Amber Tamblyn) everyone is really unlikable!
- Dark Ages – It’s a little TOO dark.
- End – There were no hints as to the ending, so there’s no way to really guess it until it’s revealed and I don’t really like that. I like to pay attention and put pieces together, but you’re not really afforded that opportunity in “Spiral.”
Summary:
I won’t be recommending this movie to anyone unless they want to watch decent acting (Levi is totally not his usual “Chuck” character!).
- Psychological Thriller It Is – Directors Joel Moore and Adam Green are known for stranger films and “Spiral” is certainly not an exception. Although other films, such as “Hatchet,” are bloodier than “Spiral” the creep factor is absolutely at a high level here.
- Unique Characters – I can definitely say I haven’t ever seen characters quite like Mason (the main guy played by Joel Moore [he was in Dodgeball]) and Berkeley (Levi). With Mason you can’t tell if his sketches are out of love, infatuation, obsession, or if it’s just what he does. And Berkeley, we don’t really understand why he’s friends with Mason, why he’s so protective of him and such an [bleep] hole to everyone else.
- Guessing Until the End – I definitely didn’t see the last 10 minutes of the movie coming. It was very M. Night Shyamalan.
- Check out this review – Critic Robert Koehler puts it nicely. He says, “[the movie] offers a momentarily strong slice of psycho cinema to the degree that an intimate camera and heavily designed soundtrack suggest what it's like to be inside Mason's rattled head.” (read the rest of his review)
Cons:
- Again, the Characters – With the exception of Amber (played by Amber Tamblyn) everyone is really unlikable!
- Dark Ages – It’s a little TOO dark.
- End – There were no hints as to the ending, so there’s no way to really guess it until it’s revealed and I don’t really like that. I like to pay attention and put pieces together, but you’re not really afforded that opportunity in “Spiral.”
Summary:
I won’t be recommending this movie to anyone unless they want to watch decent acting (Levi is totally not his usual “Chuck” character!).
"Basically, I'm for anything that gets you through the night - be it prayer, tranquilizers or a bottle of Jack Daniels.” – Frank Sinatra
So may the prayers, tranquilizers and JD be with you and see you next time.
