{"id":6850,"date":"2017-07-13T21:36:54","date_gmt":"2017-07-13T20:36:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/?p=6850"},"modified":"2019-03-05T17:26:41","modified_gmt":"2019-03-05T16:26:41","slug":"visions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2017\/07\/13\/visions\/","title":{"rendered":"Visions"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Visions\"<\/a>
Visions<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Format:<\/b> DVD
\nRelease date:<\/b> 20 June 2016
\nDistributor:<\/b> Lionsgate Entertainment
\nDirector:<\/b> Kevin Greutert
\nWriters:<\/b> Lucas Sussman, L.D. Goffigan
\nCast:<\/b> Isla Fisher, Anson Mount, Gillian Jacobs
\nUSA 2014
\n82 mins<\/p>\n

A familiar plot revolving around a pregnant woman, decently directed.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

SPOILER ALERT: <\/b>This review discusses the big twist(s) \u2013 though anyone who\u2019s seen a horror film in the last 50 years will pretty much be able to guess them from reading the sleeve copy.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Sometimes, I wonder why filmmakers put such effort into turning out films that have been made over and over again. This competent 2014 Blumhouse production has a basic storyline that would have been old hat for a TV movie in the 70s, with the sole twist that the villain\u2019s motive is lifted wholesale from a recent major French horror movie (which has itself been remade). Director Kevin Greutert did well by a couple of the later Saw<\/i> sequels and the underrated Blumhouse production Jessabelle<\/i>, but here gets stuck with a script by Lucas Sussman (who hasn\u2019t had anything made since Below<\/i> in 2002) and L.D. Goffigan that laboriously works through its familiar story while heavily signposting the big twist \u2013 that the \u2018paranormal activity\u2019 plaguing pregnant protag Eveleigh Maddox (Isla Fisher) in the isolated farmhouse where her distracted husband (Anson Mount) is trying to start a winery are premonitions, not a haunting. Various visions (and aural hallucinations) \u2013 a hooded figure, a knock at the door, a dropped gun, a bloody handprint, a bent wrought-iron bedstead, coins stood on end, broken bottles, even some shifted chairs \u2013 bother Eveleigh, who is neurotic after a car accident seen in the prologue leads to the death of a baby.<\/p>\n

A whole lot of characters act in a dead-suspicious manner, starting with her impatient and unsympathetic husband (one of the most clich\u00e9-ridden roles in the horror handbook) and extending to a sort-of psychic wine distributor (Joanna Cassidy), an underwritten doctor (Jim Parsons) and a few glowering neighbours (the guy Eveleigh thinks is brewing meth actually runs an artisanal olive oil business in one of the film\u2019s few honest laughs). With all this, it\u2019s relatively easy to peg the traditional chatty, down-to-earth best friend Sadie (Gillian Jacobs, very good) as a likely culprit. This is underlined by the fact that Eveleigh has only just met Sadie, who is also pregnant, and has an actual long-time best friend (Eva Longoria), who has no narrative purpose. Yes, Sadie is the mother of the baby who died and is out \u2013 as in Inside<\/i> \u2013 to claim Eveleigh\u2019s unborn child as a replacement. There is a tiny bit of snake-swallowing that\u2019s almost interesting as, during an intervention that turns into a home-invasion massacre in the climax, the heroine starts being prompted by her own prior premonitions to take courses of action that might get her through all this alive \u2013 maybe even changing her fate. John de Lancie is pretty much wasted in a red-herring bit, while Cassidy\u2019s diva turn is miscalculated enough to derail the movie.<\/p>\n

Kim Newman<\/b><\/i><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A familiar plot revolving around a pregnant woman, decently directed.
\nReview by Kim Newman<\/B><\/I><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1374],"tags":[1149,111],"class_list":["post-6850","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-kim-newmans-nightmare-movies","tag-american-film","tag-horror-film"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","wps_subtitle":"Kim Newman\u2019s Nightmare Movies","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/surUP-visions","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":5122,"url":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2014\/10\/14\/horsehead\/","url_meta":{"origin":6850,"position":0},"title":"Horsehead","author":"Pam Jahn","date":"October 14, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"An ambitious horror effort by young French director Romain Basset unable to fully control its lavish imagination. Review by Pierre Kapitaniak","rel":"","context":"In "Check it out"","block_context":{"text":"Check it out","link":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/category\/check-it-out\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Horsehead","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/Horsehead-594x323.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/Horsehead-594x323.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/Horsehead-594x323.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":15,"url":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2007\/02\/03\/satan-sheitan\/","url_meta":{"origin":6850,"position":1},"title":"SATAN (SHEITAN)","author":"VirginieSelavy","date":"February 3, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Some cultural commentators will automatically applaud anything presented as 'youth' or 'street' for fear of looking like old farts. This has very much worked in the favour of Kourtrajme (French street slang for 'short film'), an urban collective of young film-makers, musicians and graphic designers, to which Kim Chapiron, director\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Cinema releases"","block_context":{"text":"Cinema releases","link":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/category\/cinema-releases\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6895,"url":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2017\/10\/01\/theres-always-vanilla\/","url_meta":{"origin":6850,"position":2},"title":"There\u2019s Always Vanilla","author":"Pam Jahn","date":"October 1, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"This review of George A. Romero\u2019s atypical counterculture drama is an excerpt from horror luminary Kim Newman\u2019s new book Video Dungeon. Review by Kim Newman","rel":"","context":"In "DVD and Blu-ray releases"","block_context":{"text":"DVD and Blu-ray releases","link":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/category\/dvd-and-blu-ray-releases\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Theres Always Vanilla","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Theres-Always-Vanilla-594x334.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Theres-Always-Vanilla-594x334.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Theres-Always-Vanilla-594x334.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2605,"url":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2013\/02\/22\/mama\/","url_meta":{"origin":6850,"position":3},"title":"Mama","author":"VirginieSelavy","date":"February 22, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Guillermo del Toro is fast becoming the Steven Spielberg of horror. Review by Virginie Sélavy","rel":"","context":"In "Cinema releases"","block_context":{"text":"Cinema releases","link":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/category\/cinema-releases\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/review_mama-594x308.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/review_mama-594x308.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/review_mama-594x308.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1212,"url":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2010\/06\/01\/phobia\/","url_meta":{"origin":6850,"position":4},"title":"Phobia","author":"VirginieSelavy","date":"June 1, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"A quartet of ghost stories from Thailand that vary in stylistic tricks and genre clich\u00e9s, Phobia is a mixed bag. Review by Richard Badley","rel":"","context":"In "Home entertainment"","block_context":{"text":"Home entertainment","link":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/category\/dvds-and-blu-rays\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/review_Phobia-594x333.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/review_Phobia-594x333.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/review_Phobia-594x333.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1537,"url":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2011\/03\/01\/bedevilled\/","url_meta":{"origin":6850,"position":5},"title":"Bedevilled","author":"VirginieSelavy","date":"March 1, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"One day, a tragic event tips Bok-nam over the edge and she turns from subservient wife into violent avenger. Review by Virginie S\u00e9lavy","rel":"","context":"In "Check it out"","block_context":{"text":"Check it out","link":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/category\/check-it-out\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/review_bedevilled1-594x548.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/review_bedevilled1-594x548.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/review_bedevilled1-594x548.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6850","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6850"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6850\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7049,"href":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6850\/revisions\/7049"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6850"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6850"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6850"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}