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After I finished watching the movie, I expected the rating to be even lower. I'm shocked and appalled it got a rating this high.
shareI think the rating's about right. There are a lot of interesting elements in this movie, but they don't come together as a cohesive whole.
This one's like a cake that's only half-cooked.
You might very well think that. I couldn't possibly comment.
Agreed. A bit by-the-numbers, a bit loose, too long, nothing original. I didn't really care at the end. I gave it a 3, actually.
shareWow so much diversity in the scoring. I just finished watching this film 10 minutes ago. I have to say that I never once found it boring, I found the acting to be excellent and it was waaay better than I anticipated. I would scored it at least 6.5/10. The charachters were interesting and their action believable, the movie to me was more engaging than the usual hollywood garbage.
shareI cannot understand the low rating either.
Two weeks out of hospital after surgery for a new hip and all I've been watching is the news and a boxed set of '24'....until I switched on the t.v. late last night to see this film of which I knew nothing.
I just rated it as high as anything I've ever seen(9) - though the distance of a day or three might reduce my score to eight.
I found it utterly gripping - thanks mostly to the performances of all involved and the real star of the film - the appaling edifice that housed the family. What a terrible place to live. Here in Manchester UK we have had our fair share of architectural disasters from the 1960's and they have long since been pulled down but this housing horror show surpasses them all. Where is it exactly? (Bucharest?)
Plots involving vulnerable children always unsettle me and this was no exception. I thought Jeniifer Connolly was outstanding and she has the gift of a range expression between assertiveness and complete hopelessness which is completely convincing.
A real gem courtesy of the BBC and I suppose I now owe it to myself both to check out the original - and see to it that I have the dvd in my collection very soon
I truly believe that this was a case where the remake was better than the original (another example is the film "Insomnia"). In my opinion, the original Japanese version of DARK WATER did not feel tight plot-wise and lacked strong acting from the leads --- the parts of the lawyer, landlord and maintenance man were all a bit thin as well. The English language remake was stronger in the acting department and characters felt more fleshed out and interesting.
Of course, because the movie was a remake of a respected Japanese horror film and it was made by an American Studio, most lover's of J-horror find it easy to bash the the 2nd version without considering it's strong point's --- it's the popular thing to do now days (being against anything American that is).
Being an American whose tastes are varied and can apprecite international cinema and who does not mind subtitles, I can understand how most non-American's would detest the view of the majority of U.S. movie goers who would undoubtedly dismiss or hate anything with subtitles or without known English speaking actors --- I detest that attitude as well --- but do not make the mistake of thinking this represents all Americans --- it does not.
A prime example of what I mention above is how many U.S. movie goers seemed to prefer "Vanilla Sky" with Tom Cruise which is an inferior remake of the much better Spanish language original "Abre Los Ojos". Never could understand that.
In the end however, if you have not seen any of the films mentioned above, just remember that it's all just a matter of opinion --- let your own tastes and sense of quality guide you --- forget anyone elses opionion (including my own), judge for yourself.
Thanks, I was about to surrender my own views and adopt those of people I've never met before I read your post. Phew, a close one!
share"Thanks, I was about to surrender my own views and adopt those of people I've never met before I read your post. Phew, a close one!"
--- user-153
Glad to be of help sir ("he said in the same sarcastic vein as the author of the above"). Actually, what is stated in your comment above does occur more often than you might think, in subtle ways in the so-called "free" nations and in more overt ways in totalitarian dictatorships and Communist nations. Being a true individual that is aware of the importance of one's own thoughts, convictions and dreams is something that does not come as easily to everyone as you might think.
I was surprised by the low rating also. I'd give it an 8/10. Very moody, powerful and suspenseful. I don't think the audience/general public have warmed up to Jennifer Connelly. Maybe she needs to be in a Will Ferrell movie or something so people see a fun side of her...somebody they can enjoy/relate to. She's just done too many heavy roles I think.
share8/10 for me and yes I liked it more than the Original.
shareJust watched it for the first time all the way through (I caught bits of it on tv in the past and always found it intriguing and curious that everything I'd always read about it was that it's terrible), and I too give it an 8/10. It's a very solid suspense/drama/horror movie. One of the better horror movies I can recall, actually. As others have said, it's the characters that really make this one shine. They're all believable while having very unique perspectives and problems. The depth of the characters is impressive. I also thought the cinematography was great, and the pacing was very nice. The problem, I think, is that most people see "horror" and they automatically expect "slasher", or "gorefest". I know people that think The Shining isn't scary at all because not enough people die, or there's not enough violence. So I see Dark Water as being a "Shining-like" horror film, where it's really more of a psychological drama. And that's great for me, because I much prefer that style of horror movie.
shareShould be 8,0
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Judging by some of the things said in this thread, it seems a lot of people don't realize this movie is a remake. That's just sad. Americans who only watch American movies.
CG gore is the worst thing that has ever happened to the horror genre.