Blur (2007)

A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

It could have been great. It starts with the distorted reality of a painter, described in slow (sometimes too slow) detail, and it evokes that "old school" feel of knowing the characters and getting into their world with them. And then the movie goes sideways, loses control, hits a tree and dies.I tell you, rather than release this film they should have thrown away the last quarter and remake it into something that made sense. It is difficult for me to explain what is wrong with the film without giving away the ending, so you have two choices: watch it and be lenient or don't bother.

I was intrigued by the first part of this movie, where an interesting idea is given shape, a painter that is obviously psychically gifted which shows in his work, and in the obvious premonition flashes he gets. The characters, however, stay flat, aren't given much depth, and the attempts at establishing clear relationships between the characters in the movie fails because of it. With the introduction of suspense through the "mysterious neighbour" the plot starts to turn towards a rather negative and unfortunately also quite predictable direction. There is some mystery but it gets debunked soon, which leaves us just with the painter who is obviously losing it, and who is also obviously a complete spaz that shouldn't be left near sharp objects because he'd get someone hurt.The worst nosedive happens when he ends up with a firearm in his possession and kills his friend by accident. All logic goes out the window, and the movie turns into a series of really bad clichés where all the worst and most stupid responses from characters are shown that have been thought up in Hollywood. The killing was an accident, but even the rational wife who offers a perfectly viable course of action gets ignored, and then swayed to the absurd. At this point in time I looked at how far I was in the movie, and decided to sit out the last part of it. It didn't get any better, only worse.Please don't waste your time on this movie. It starts interesting, but turns into the worst kind of drama you can imagine.

Although I was sketchy while first recommended via NetFlix, I decided to check it out. Let me first say, I am a HUGE Nicole Rayburn fan, I think she is highly underrated and i will watch anything she is in. Yes, I've seen "Candy Stripers" and "Boo!" The film starts out with this great title sequence showing these great art pieces... with vivid vibrant colors. We then are taken into the art infused work of Adrian Jonas, who is painting one of his pieces in preparation for his big show in SoHo. The day takes a turn for the worst when Adrian has a vision that something bad is going to happen.The film is not what I expected, i seriously thought I was going to be watching a bad horror movie, with bad acting and bad dialog. I was pleasantly surprised when I was proved wrong.The film is both intelligent and intriguing. I was taken into this world of this artist who could possibly be on the verge of something extremely creative or extremely terrifying.It almost felt documentary-style. Almost like I was peaking into someone's private life, where I shouldn't be. Salvatore Xuereb was just astonishing, he really took the role to the next level and gave you such a great feeling. Wendy Carter was also great as the wife who may be in danger. Jana Kolesarova was a true gem and a surprise when she came onto screen. She really was the true standout for me personally. And of course, Nicole Rayburn was my personal favorite. I hope this girl does more, I really enjoy her.At the end of this film, I was in shock. I couldn't believe what I just saw and I was blown away. After second viewing, I pieced more information together and I was extremely excited and enthusiastic.I would recommend this film to everyone. This is a film that you want to talk about after you've seen it.

I thought Blur was a solid debut film for Nick Briscoe. Well written with a great storyline and a twist ending that no one would expect. The directing is fantastic...so good that you find it hard to believe that it is his debut film. The camera angles, lighting, and editing are all superior to what you would expect from a small independent film. The acting is a little on the amateur side, which is the only thing that keeps this film from being a 10. But that is to be expected in a small indie film such as this. If you like suspense films and surprise endings in the tradition of The Sixth Sense, I highly recommend checking out Blur. All things considered, I would say you can expect great things from Nick Briscoe and Belvedere Films in the future. Given a much larger budget, I believe the sky is the limit.