Session 9 (2001)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Brad Anderson

Writers (WGA):

Brad Anderson (written by) &
Stephen Gevedon (written by)

Release Date:

14 September 2001 (Italy)

Genre:

Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Fear Is A Place.

Plot:

Tensions rise within an asbestos cleaning crew as they work in an abandoned mental hospital with a horrific past that seems to be coming back.

Plot Keywords:

Asbestos | Mental Hospital | Baby | Asylum | Coin

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

David Caruso	...	Phil
Stephen Gevedon	...	Mike
Paul Guilfoyle	...	Bill Griggs
Josh Lucas	...	Hank
Peter Mullan	...	Gordon Fleming
Brendan Sexton III	...	Jeff
Charley Broderick	...	Security Guard (as Charles Broderick)
Lonnie Farmer	...	Doctor (voice)
Larry Fessenden	...	Craig McManus
Jurian Hughes	...	Mary Hobbes (voice)
Sheila Stasack	...	Wendy (voice)

MPAA:

Rated R for language and brief strong violence.

Runtime:

100 min | Spain:102 min | USA:97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Germany:16 | Netherlands:16 | Iceland:16 | Singapore:NC-16 | Malaysia:18PL | Argentina:13 | Australia:MA | Canada:14A | South Korea:18 | Spain:18 | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

703 Lynnfield Street, Lynn, Massachusetts, USA

Company:

USA Films

Trivia:

Actor David Caruso reports in the official Production Notes that he saw "something pass my window" when shooting inside the Bonner Medical Building of Danvers State Hospital. "I didn't want to tell anybody, because people would start looking at me strangely..."

Goofs:

Anachronisms: In the documents Mike comes across Mary Hobbs diagnosis is D.I.D. In the time period of the tapes D.I.D was still labeled as Multiple Personality Disorder, it was not until 1994 they changed it to Dissociative Identity Disorder to accommodate the DSM-IV-TR (a mental disorder diagnostic guide).

Quotes:

[first lines]
Phil: Gordy? You look tired, man. You look beat. Your turn to feed Emma?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Silent Hill 3 (2003) (VG)

Soundtrack:

Soul Ecstasy

Creepiest horror film in years...

Session 9 is the creepiest horror film I've seen in years. Brad Anderson has made a movie that is subtle, and features actors playing everyday people who not only act and talk like real people (which means none of the usual horror atrocities of going off in the dark alone, etc), but also aren't killed off one by one according to their billing in the credits. The tension builds slowly, without a cheap shock scene in sight, until it is almost unbearable. Towards the end, the plot runs out of steam and the twists are a bit anti-climatic. However, everything is so well-crafted and executed in this picture, from the writing, cinematography and acting to the use of sound and digital film, that it's a moot point. Anyone with an ounce of interest in the horror genre should rent this little known gem.