With some film genres, you see them come in waves to only disappear for a number of years and then resurface once again. Recently, horror films have risen to popularity once again, and while this will later be eclipsed by some other type of film, it seems that there is always some room in Hollywood for a thriller, those films that aren't quite horror movies, but yet have a feel and air about them that will drawn both fans of horror films as well as other film goers to them. It seems as though each year there is at least one film that manages to capture everyone's attention and may even cause some to watch fearfully through their fingers as the drama unfolds. That's the scenario that the creative minds behind Hide and Seek are banking on, and having a few big names associated with the film isn't something that is going to hurt either.

Hide and Seek definitely isn't something that you will be associating with the childhood game that we all played. In the film, psychologist David Callaway (Robert De Niro) has recently lost, but this wasn't natural causes. She'd committed suicide, and unfortunately their young daughter Emily (Dakota Fanning) witnessed the tragic results. Since then, Emily has been trying to cope with the loss and the emotional pain, and David think that he may have the perfect therapy.. He is moving the two from the hustle and bustle of New York City to life in the country, but the simply life isn't going to be a cure all.

Emily soon has a new friend, Charlie, but he isn't some stuffed animal or family pet. Charlie is her imaginary friend, something that both David and his fellow psychologist Katherine (played by Famke Janssen) believe is a means of her avoiding her own pain. However, soon things begin to occur in their own house, and now David is trying to determine if Charlie is indeed a real imaginary friend that Emily is using as a means to release her own inner trauma, or if Charlie is someone, or something, entirely different.

I want to make it clear that while many of the trailers may have made Hide and Seek appear as though it was going to be a horror film, this is in fact a thriller, not unlike something like The Sixth Sense or The Panic Room. It's a mystery to a certain degree, making you wonder what exactly the Callaway family is really dealing with, but that's merely on the surface. There is a bit more going on in the film besides simply trying to scare the viewer.

Hide and Seek really deals a good deal with emotional pain and suffering, something that actually Dakota Fanning portrays perfectly. While I have never been terribly impressed with any of the other films I have seen her in, Hide and Seek shows that honestly, she has a good deal of potential at such a young age. She's brooding, at times she looks mentally unstable, and it all works perfectly for not just the mood of the film, but the way that her character is supposed to be. When you place her in scenes with a legendary actor like Robert de Niro however, it improves the scenes tremendously. Emily however is really the main focus of the film, and there are times when in fact the way Dakota delivers the character to us makes us wonder what really is happening. Is this simply an overactive imagination trying to cope with loss, is there really a Charlie, and if so, who or what is he?

There is something of a return to film making styles that aren't seen too often, essentially the very idea that in our minds, we can create something even worse than anyone can ever show us on screen. Hide and Seek doesn't let us know what Charlie really is up until the last fifteen or twenty minutes of the film, so we're often trying to either picture in our minds what it could be or trying to second-guess whom this entity might physically be. The only really problem with that however is that the film tries a little too hard at times, and much of the time the clues given are all too obvious in the fact that they are really meant to divert you from what Charlie really is. Charlie in fact really is . . . . . I'm not going to tell you, after all, that would really ruin the point of watching Hide and Seek. For some, it should become obvious very quickly, for others, there is definitely going to be a surprise twist.

I have to give Hide and Seek some credit for also not taking the typical Hollywood ending where everything is wrapped up in a pretty package with a ribbon tied around it by the end, and in fact, that idealistic approach is literally thrown out the window early on. David meets a love interest, Elizabeth (played by Elizabeth Shue) very early on, but this is met with almost immediate opposition. Emily isn't pleased about the new woman, and Charlie has told her that daddy likes this new woman as much, if not more than mommy. This gives us a nice point of a child doing what they can to scare away the interloper, but it's ultimately not misbehavior that gets her out of the picture, but what does eliminate her again gets rid of the all too common happy ending.

I also like the visual approach in the film. There aren't any blatant attempts to use colorful lighting to create a mood, and instead everything looks natural. More importantly though is the fact the director, John Polson, has a very good eye. He never hits a scene in such a way that it seems overly done, he uses just the bits to keep you guessing, and he doesn't rely heavily on graphic gore (not that I'm against it, but this is a film that doesn't need it) nor flashy special effects. Instead, Hide and Seek shows that good acting and a good script can be the things to keep a movie going, not how much you've shelled out to the effects guys to digitally enhance a scene or create some computerize, fictitious world.

There is a rather nice collection of extra material on the disc. The feature itself has commentary from not only John Polson, but also the editor Jeffery Ford as well as screenwriter Ari Schlossberg and is always good for a little more insight, and this brings together the perfect creative forces to further delve into Hide and Seek. There are four alternate endings to the film, but these aren't just set up so you can take a look after the credits roll. You can choose which ending you'd like before you even start the film as well as view them independently, and unlike a few other DVD's that I've sat through that have something similar included, these are final versions, not time coded annoyances. There is also a great deal of deleted and extended scenes included, all with commentary. The included Previs Sequences I actually found quite interesting. These look at some of the concepts, shown in storyboard fashion, that were some of the intended sequences which ended up not quite working as well as hoped. Lastly, there is a short Making of featurette that really focuses mainly on Dakota Fanning and sadly, de Niro is nowhere to be found.

Hide and Seek may not be the scare-fest that many other critics and reviewers would like to claim that it is, but then again that all depends on just how many films of this nature you've seen. It isn't a bad film however and is done rather well. I love the fact that it is also ended in such a way that there really is no need for there to be a sequel, something that has plagued the film industry for some time now and really does need to be eradicated. Hide and Seek is a smart thriller that doesn't try and dumb things down or add in some ironic ending that causes you to groan. It has the right atmosphere and perfect cast chemistry to make it a hit for fans of the genre and will certainly even appeal to many horror fans that might normally find themselves balking at the idea of even watching such a film.

-mike-
 

Directed by: John Polson   Written by: Ari Schlossberg   Cast: Robert de Niro Dakota Fanning Famke Janssen Dylan Baker Robert John Burke Elisabeth Shue

DVD Features: ENGLISH: Dolby Digital 5.1 [CC] ENGLISH: DTS 5.1 [CC] SPANISH: Dolby Digital Surround FRENCH: Dolby Digital Surround English and Spanish Subtitles 4 Seamlessly Branched Alternate Endings with optional Commentary by Director John Polson, Screenwriter Ari Schlossberg and Editor Jeffrey Ward 14 Deleted/Extended Scenes with optional commentary by Director John Polson, Screenwriter Ari Schlossberg and Editor Jeffrey Ward 3 Pre-Vis Sequences Making of Featurette