Open House (2010)

A couple on the verge of a nasty divorce attempt to sell their empty love nest and move on with their lives, separately. After a successful open house they are horrified to discover, days ... See full summary »

Director:

Andrew Paquin

Writer:

Andrew Paquin

Stars:

Brian Geraghty, Rachel Blanchard, Anna Paquin

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Brian Geraghty	...	David
Rachel Blanchard	...	Alice
Anna Paquin	...	Jennie
Stephen Moyer	...	Josh
Tricia Helfer	...	Lila
Gabriel Olds	...	Carl
Jessica Collins	...	Lauren
Larry Sullivan	...	Oscar
Ryan March	...	Hayden
Kris Wheeler	...	Brian
Mia Riverton	...	Meredith
Naja Hill	...	Bethany
Gerald Downey	...	Seth
Eddie Martinez	...	Jose (as J. Eddie Martinez)
Magda Rivera	...	Maria

Storyline

A couple on the verge of a nasty divorce attempt to sell their empty love nest and move on with their lives, separately. After a successful open house they are horrified to discover, days later, that a potential buyer didn't leave their home. While Alice is being held captive in the basement, the unannounced house guest moves in upstairs. She senses her capture is being kept a rebellious secret. She knows her way only way out if she can only get out alive.

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Plot Keywords:

house | basement | divorce | psychopath | open house | 

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Taglines:

Welcome to the neighborhood.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for bloody violence, some sexuality and language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

24 April 2010 (USA)

Also Known As:

Casa de Tortura

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

StoneBrook Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Features Falling Hare (1943)

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Soundtracks

"I Know I'll See You Again"
Performed by A Place to Bury Strangers
Courtesy of "A" Side Music LLC

User Reviews

A New Kind Of Serial Killer Movie Rendered Weak By An Incoherent Plot.

As usual, when I watch a film with psychopathic homicidal criminals who seem to have everything go their way despite taking ludicrous risks and being sloppy to the extreme, I sit there half angry trying to process it all.

The film is about a serial killer duo who apparently move from house to house, killing all the occupants, setting up residence for a week or two, then leaving to repeat the process again. Criminally speaking, this can go on successfully for a time and eventually they WILL get caught. They operate in a way in which they leave tonnes of evidence; fingerprints, witnesses, plus half a dozen dead bodies, people who had plans/appointments to come to the house and apparently NONE of them informing their loved ones or friends about where they were going, and thus, the police stay well out of the picture. This is what we know after having sat through half of the film, so at this point we realise 1. they arrive on scene ALREADY wanted by the police. 2. composite sketches should be being blasted all over the news. 3. chances are they should be identified by fingerprints and/or DNA (hair strands/blood). The fact that both killers, but the woman in particular are being so brazen during this film more or less gives them a 95% chance of being caught

All this being said, assuming they're the luckiest serial killers alive with an unnatural blessing to kill as many people as they want to (It's a weak poorly planned serial killer movie, so OF COURSE.), and assuming they are this lucky, let's examine the 5% window that this film lives in. One question people will always ask themselves is "how is it that no one in the neighbourhood took notice or showed suspicion." A valid question, though even more valid is the general lack of concern by people uninvolved. e.g. I once personally saw someone get kidnapped off the street and hauled into a moving van, and I didn't particularly care enough to call the police, as I was already late for my train, and I didn't see any of the other few people around reaching for their cell phones either, so this aspect of the film's integrity which other reviewers have brought up, is honestly not a worthy criticism.

Where I turn to now is the character's actions. The worst and most nonsensical aspect to me is the character driven premise... WHY does the male killer not simply kill the owner the second she walks into the room, finding her friend dead. He has absolutely no reason not to, has already killed 3 people in the house, so it makes no sense, as well as being really stagy how she backs into where he's hiding and then all fades to black and she SOMEHOW conveniently loses consciousness basically so the encounter/interaction between the two wont have to be dealt with and she can awaken later in chains. Not very smooth directing at all. That being said, the directing is VERY American school, as the film is riddled with 5 or so scenes where characters show up JUST at that pesky moment.

To top it off, an important criticism that many brought up was the dialogue and thus the motivation of the characters. Firstly, despite the owner stating that she believes the male killer is DIFFERENT than his female counterpart, he is clearly just as brutal as her, if not moreso, and there is no real worthy conflict between the 2 killers shown. He is really given NO motive, emotional, logistical, or otherwise to abandon his current companion for this new woman that he for no particular reason spared, and had no meaningful dialogue with, and thus no real basis for any emotional connection.

The ending however was more or less the final shitscoop on the turd Sunday we've been forced to swallow here; contrived, melodramatic, stagy, and the climax of an entirely unfounded plot premise for all the reasons I have listed above. Even though the acting is fairly competent, especially by the male antagonist, it really leaves you feeling nothing in the end, and honestly, I really cannot see the point in sacrificing any of your time on a film written/directed by someone who took no time to produce meaningful dialogue, and who clearly put no thought or planning into the nature of the criminal elements portrayed on screen.