Few thrills or surprises
In the thriller Dream House, Daniel Craig, aka James Bond, plays Will Atenton, a successful New York publisher who decides to retire into a suburban dream house with his wife Libby (Rachael Weisz) and their two daughters.
Strange things begin to happen around the house. Atenton discovers suspicious footprints outside his door. His daughters and wife spot a hooded man spying on them.
Atenton later discovers that the house was the location of a grisly murder. He learns that the alleged killer has just been discharged from a mental health facility. As he sets out to investigate, Atenton stumbles upon an even bigger secret.
Director Jim Sheridan gets the thriller formula right: two children, an ominous basement, some mirrors. But he struggles to find a focus for the story. The movie sways indecisively between a classic thriller, an unconventional drama with a jaw-dropping twist, and strangely a human-ghost love story.
There isn't much scare-you-off-the-chair thrills and the timing is often off in the film. You see the final revelation coming well ahead of time - not least because an inane movie trailer already gave too much away.
A dull script and indifferent background music do not help. Nor does the over-romanticised relationship between Atenton and his wife.
You might be better off just watching the trailer.
