The Tall Man (2012)

First of all my wife wasn't a big fan of this movie. Not enough explanations for her and I get that but all in all I thought The Tall Man was original as a story. This story has never been told before and for that it gets some credit from me. It's nicely filmed with enough dark passages, twists and intrigues to keep you interested. It's not a horror movie though. A thriller yes but certainly not a horror movie. The cast is good with good performances, nothing bad to say about them. I liked the fact that I thought I figured it out completely but that at the end I was completely wrong. I like movies that can surprise me. Nothing more boring then a movie where you know exactly what's going to happen next. And that's not the case with The Tall Man at all.

Cold Rock is an aptly named town. Jobs have evaporated, and the people live an isolated existence where they take the law into their own hands. It is a town that has died – everywhere is streaked with rain and oil, the townsfolk are permanently bedraggled, their faces bleached of colour. Sometimes children are born in Cold Rock that are not wanted; often, these youngsters simply disappear. Someone is taking them.In young David, we have a genuinely appealing child. With a head full of crayons and castles, he is ripe for kidnap by the fabled Tall Man. Julia (Jessica Biel), who looks after him, has a bloodied confrontation with the indistinguishable figure – despite my initial thoughts, The Tall Man is not a spectral, superhuman figure, but a real, physical threat. And yet when Julia is brought to the café which seems to be a meeting point for the locals, their hostilities are directed towards her.Rather than a full-blooded horror, this film is about a handful of people who make the most extraordinary sacrifices to remove the many children from their stultifying life in Cold Rock – or presumably any other similarly perverse and hopeless community – in order to place them in surroundings with a better future, or any future at all. I would have preferred it if the writing had not been quite so oblique concerning this fairly important revelation. In view of the extraordinary sacrifice this handful of people make in delivering children with no future into the hands of The Tall Man, the reality of what they are doing might have been more clearly defined. As it is, the brow-beaten, teary-eyed staring into space from characters like Julia could have been better explained.Do money and respectability necessarily ensure a child has a better life? That seems to be the message here. Social commentary given the trappings of a potential horror film – beautifully told and acted, incredibly well directed. At its core, the story itself seems judgemental.

This is an absolute gem of a crime thriller. I was a little surprised at first when I watched it because the trailers made it out to seem like a horror movie but nevertheless it was really good. It didn't feel "done before" at all and kept you guessing as to what would happen next. Right in the middle you have this massive OMG didn't see that coming moment and it changes the whole overtone. Sure there were a couple of small flaws but what do you expect from a low budget movie. It didn't need expensive tricks and effects as it instead relied on a strong story and talented cast. Speaking of which, Jessica Biel is such an underrated actress as she does a fantastic job in this movie. She is incredibly believable in the role and really immerses herself in the character.So ignore all the haters on this one as it has so much to offer. By the end you will realise that this movie is so much more than its synopsis and I promise that you will really enjoy it.

Tall Man has come in for a fait of criticism from people expecting one thing and getting another. If you've seen (Director) Pascal Laugier's previous film 'Martyrs' then you may be a little more prepared for a film that deliberately leads you in one direction, only to almost switch genres midway through and go off in a totally different direction.Tall Man is about a woman (Jessica Biel) whose child goes missing in a town where this sort of kidnapping is commonplace and put down to the legend of the 'Tall Man' - a shadowy figure who steals children. From there, she has to unravel the mystery behind the kidnappings.Most people (including me) expected a straight horror film. What it turns out to be is more than that. Perhaps 'thriller' would describe it better. Everyone turns in a solid performance and, if you're in the mood for something a little different, with a few twists and turns, then you could do worse than this.Just know that this isn't simply your average 'horror.'