Shut In

Shut In

Starring Naomi Watts, Jacob Tremblay, Charlie Heaton, Oliver Platt

Directed by Farren Blackburn

What is the movie about?
"Shut In" is a psychological thriller starring Naomi Watts as Mary Portman, a child psychologist who is still reeling over the sudden death of her husband and having her son Steven (Charlie Heaton) in a vegetative state.  She tries to help young Tom Patterson (Jacob Tremblay), who is deaf, through some personal issues, but when the boy goes missing she begins having hallucinations that he is somehow haunting her and her son.

Who is involved in the movie?
Oscar nominee Naomi Watts plays Mary Portman, a woman who is still coming to terms with the death of her husband and struggling to take care of a son who's in a permanent vegetative state.  She gives a decent performance but the script doesn't allow her to really spread her wings and fly, and ends up a very forgettable performance, even earning her a Razzie for Worst Actress.
Jacob Tremblay plays Tom Patterson, a deaf kid who is dealing with some stuff.  Whether that stuff is dealing with being deaf or something else we never know, as he only serves as a device to add a sense of mystery to the story.  Is he really dead and haunting Mary?  Or is there something more to it?  Ultimately, it doesn't really matter because we don't care.  Still, the kid is adorable as ever (seeing his press junket during "Room" is the cutest thing ever) and the kid has a long, stellar career ahead of him.
Charlie Heaton, best known for his portrayal of Jonathan Byers in "Stranger Things," plays Mary's vegetative son Steven.  He, along with the other cast members, does well with the script that was given to him, but ultimately it becomes highly unforgettable.
Golden Globe nominee Oliver Platt stars as Dr. Wilson, a doctor Mary confides in while she deals with handling Steven and the events surrounding Tom's disappearance.  He plays the stereotypical doctor role, with the stereotypical ending for a stereotypical side character.

Why should you see this movie?
You shouldn't.  The film seems something a high school kid wrote who wanted to emulate good ole M. Night by introducing one of the biggest twists ever, but instead make it blatantly apparent from almost the very start how it will all play out.  Mere moments after the credits started rolling and I already forgot a lot of the film, except for the fact that the start of it dragged on slower than molasses (now in its defense, I often like a slow-burn story, but it has to eventually lead somewhere), there were some pointed jump scares (raccoon by the house!  Insert loud crescendo crash at that moment to make you feel afraid!), and it felt like I was watching an epic instead of a lean 90-minute movie.

I could picture Naomi Watts reading the script at home, laughing and throwing it in a burn pile, but then hearing a beeping sound outside and seeing truckload after truckload filled with money being dropped off at her doorstep, so she agreed to do it.  There's no other way a seasoned veteran, a two-time Oscar nominee and a stellar actress would even give this drivel a second glance.  She floats through the film and you can see in her eyes having second, third, fourth, fifth thoughts about why she signed onto this project.  Ditto for Jacob Tremblay, who is still garnering praise for his stellar work in the Oscar-nominated "Room" (which her co-star, Brie Larson, won the Best Actress Oscar).  Maybe it's because he didn't have to memorize a lot of script (in fact, he doesn't utter a word throughout), but I couldn't imagine having someone of his caliber perform in such a small role.

As far as the story goes, as I said, it seemed like someone wanted to emulate better writers and throw in a huge twist that would leave the audiences in shock and awe, but instead left me laughing out loud.  I won't go into the twist because some poor unfortunate soul might want to see it, but suffice it to say the twist wasn't only stupid, but downright awkward.  You'll understand if you watch it, and if you don't want to see it let me know and I'll tell you in private.  That is, if I remember by that time.

The story was supposed to be centered around Mary and dealing with the supposed ghost of Tom who haunts her because she didn't help him in time, but there's nothing in the actual movie that would point to that conclusion.  Tom does go missing, but he wasn't found dead, so there's no reason Mary would be seeing his ghost (which she only sees once, and it could've been a dream).  There's also a threat of an impending snow storm the likes of which no one has ever seen, but it looked more like flurries than anything.  The producers pen this movie as an unnerving, heart-pounding thriller, but I've seen more heart-pounding thrillers on Hallmark's Murders & Mysteries channel.  Maybe the film would've fared better if it was regulated to a Lifetime movie instead of a big budget bomb, but ultimately that's the road they took and ended up with a complete mess of a snoozefest.

When should you see this movie?
Whenever you feel like you have 90 minutes of your life you don't particularly have any other purpose for.

Where does the movie fall on the grading scale?
D+