Seven Days to Live (2000)

Amanda Plummer (daughter of Christopher Plummer and the delightful Tammy Grimes) stars as the wife of writer (Sean Pertwee, son of Dr. Who's Jon Pertwee) who moves with her husband to a remote mansion - apparently in Australia, despite a largely English cast - to find rest and healing after the death of their son. Instead, the house to which they move has a history of occupation by people who go mad and die mysteriously. They begin to be affected, which predictably takes a toll on their relationship. In particular, the wife receives daily warnings that she has only a declining number of days to live - hence the title. Not bad - six stars.

I just rented the video and couldn't believe that this film was a german production!! Don't watch it alone because it's too scary... but you will really enjoy this great film by german hot shot Sebastian Niemann...

This film is like browsing in the fridge, late at night when you have the munchies; there's a piece of pizza, a slice of meatloaf, a spoonful of potato salad, a deviled egg ... stuff you've had before that doesn't add up to a proper meal. Genre buffs might have some fun spotting the past film's this movie borrows it's scenes from and there are a lot of them. I did. This is Frankenfilm, stitched together from limbs and parts of other films, a dog here, a basement there, a creeping insanity here, a dark ooze from the floor, wraiths, a marriage sabotaged by the supernatural. There are scenes in the movie that would have sizzled if that sizzling hadn't already been burned into our cinematic psyche by better movies. Still I found it hard to hate this movie. I'm not sure why. It didn't have heart and didn't even pretend to lunge for new ground. I suppose those of us who love horror in cartoons, poetry, fiction or film don't mind rummaging around in the old and familiar. I know that while watching this movie it reminded me of how much I liked this or that movie and caused me to want to rent them and see them again. I would advise everyone to not bother (a caution that is lost on the diehard aficionado - we will watch anything in hopes of finding even one "nugget" to remember). I'm happy to report this film has one such nugget and frustrated to report it is a structurally cruel and wasted nugget. That nugget is the film's first five minutes. Watching it I remember settling into my chair and bracing myself. I thought, this might, maybe, perhaps, potentially could be one of those small films where those involved have a dark and sinister bent and are going to take you on a wicked roller coaster ride rocketing and ricocheting through a sidestreet of hell ... but no. I dont' want to say anything else about the film's beginning since that is the movie's shot at redemption though it redeems not. It commits a fatal error, it packs its wallop at the beginning instead of the end. Don't bother, unless you like snacking unrelated leftovers from the fridge or leafing through family picture albums.

This is one creepy and suspenseful movie. True, it borrows heavily from other movies (`The Shining' being one obvious example) but it still stands out as an exciting film in its own right. What lends it an even more strange atmosphere is the fact that it is hard to pinpoint where it is actually set. The old haunted house that is the focal point of the film and the surrounding landscape have a definite American feel to them – certainly in no way British or European. Yet all the cast with the exception of Amanda Plummer have very British accents. The cars also all carry British-style number plates, yet they are all left-hand drive. And although the nearby village - what little we see of it – is definitely not typically British, at the same time neither is it typically American or continental European. I have no idea whether this strange mix was intended by the film-makers or whether it arose purely by accident and lack of attention to detail. Yet for me this greatly added to the spooky atmosphere of the movie. As it is a European production, I came to the conclusion that it is supposed to be set in a make-believe, unnamed English-speaking country – a kind of fictional netherworld, but one which at the same time has a frighteningly `real' feel to it. Hard to put into words, but very effective. Not since the 60s cult TV series `The Prisoner' have I had such a feeling when watching a film. I challenge anyone to watch this movie and then go down into the cellar alone!!! A strong 7 out of 10.