Visions Movie Review (Spoiler Free)

Blumhouse's newest horror release offers a clever twist in an otherwise mediocre movie that stars a bunch of comedy actors.

Genre: Horror / Thriller

Director: Kevin Greutert

Cast: Isla Fisher, Anson Mount, Gillian Jacobs, Joanna Cassidy, Jim Parsons, John De Lancie, Bryce Johnson, Eva Longoria & Annie Tedesco.

Run Time: 82 min.

US Release: 19 January 2016 (Netflix Release)

UK Release: Unknown

German Release: 21 April 2016

Kevin Greutert (Saw: The Final Chapter, Jessabelle) delivers an intriguing but ultimately disappointing paranormal-horror flick. Visions first premiered in Turkey last year and hit Netflix in the US in mid-January, but it won’t get a cinematic release in Germany until late April. To tell the truth, I am not surprised that it wasn’t released in cinemas in the States, which makes me wonder why it obtained a place in theatres in Germany. Having said that, L.D. Goffigan and Lucas Sussman’s script shows real potential. 

A year after her car accident, Eveleigh Maddox (Fisher) moves with her husband David (Mount) to a vineyard to start a new life. Eve, who is suffering from PTSD after the accident, stops taking her medication when she learns of her pregnancy. One of the area's infamous wine distributors, Helena (Cassidy), accepts an invitation to their welcome party, though Eve later finds her standing in the bedroom, muttering in a strange trance. That same night, Eve obtains her first nightmarish vision, but it is brushed off as a returning PTSD symptom by her doctor (Parsons); her new friend Sadie (Jacobs), though, believes it could be something more sinister. 

What really disappointed me is that Visions has a great idea to start with but wastes its potential, with bad performances and poor delivery. I really liked the unusually fresh approach to the haunted house genre that gives the film a sense of novelty, but that great approach is overshadowed by the clichéd development of male characters, in this case Eveleigh’s husband, just like Dr. Mathison, who don’t believe her visions are true, simply shrugging them off as PTSD symptoms.

Still, the director makes a good attempt to thin out the number of jump scares, using them only when there is a logical reason to build tension that culminates in a surprising twist in the final act. Again, the steady build-up of tension is ruined by the fact that about 80 per cent of the movie is set up for a clever twist at the end, which also includes one of the laziest reveals. But what really hurts the narrative is the incredibly bad, messy dialogue. 

The characters are probably the worst part of this flick; they are poorly developed, as well as incredibly boring, even though the cast includes a variety of respected television actors. The problem is that these actors and actresses are better known for their comedic performances, never having been utilised in horror pictures. The issue is worsened, as the entire cast, apart from Fisher, is wasted on minimal screen time.

Isla Fisher plays the lead, Eve Maddox, a young fashion designer who, after a car accident, moves to the county with her husband as the new owners of a vineyard. Fisher, who until now played minor side roles, gives a pale, monotonous performance and, in my opinion, is completely miscast. Her line delivery is awful, and I didn't believe a word she said. Her persona suffers from horrific, scary visions that are supposed to create sympathy, but her irritating performance and carelessness leave the viewer not caring about her fate.

Eve’s husband, David, played by Anson Mount, is a waste of a character, only appearing after Eve experiences a paranormal vision. The only reason for this character to exist is to bind the protagonist to the house and confront her on everything she is experiencing. It is clear that his wife is suffering terribly when she is in the house; therefore, I found it irresponsible, as well as dislikeable, of him to make her stay. 

I only know Gillian Jacobs from the sitcom Community, but even there she was my least favourite cast member. Jacobs depicts Sadie, Eveleigh’s new friend from the pregnancy yoga class, as an incredibly weird person. From the beginning, she gives off a seriously crazy vibe that made me question Eve’s sense of human understanding. Jacobs gives the worst rendition in this horror film; her constant babble about the “mommy-sense” made me wish I could cut off my ears. She is the weakest link of the cast!

Eva Longoria and Jim Parsons are completely wasted. Longoria plays Eve’s best friend Eileen, used in only two scenes, which begs the question why she was cast at all if an extra would have sufficed. Parsons has a little more screen time playing Eveleigh’s gynaecologist, but he's miscast, like Fisher. I couldn't see past his Sheldon Cooper persona, which hurts his credibility as a Doctor, making scenes with him involuntarily funny. 

The cinematography in Visions is generally alright. It uses colder colour schemes, such as pale blues, when the lead character suffers from horrific visions, separating the dream world from the more lacklustre-looking reality. Still, the abrupt cuts throughout the horror turned me off plus pulled me out of the movie. I also disliked the extreme visual vibrations at the beginning of the movie, meant to show Eveleigh's state of shock. Other than that, I thought Visions is a nice-looking movie with solid special effects. 

Joachim Horsley composed a well-structured orchestral soundtrack for this movie. The slow but intense woodwind melody is a major contributor to the tension buildup, departing from the typical loud, abrupt noises used in today’s horror flicks. Apart from Horsey’s orchestral sounds, some scenes also included parts of popular pop songs.

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Verdict: Visions has a promising idea that gives the cliché-filled horror genre a fresh coat of paint, but a bad script wastes its premise by spending most of its runtime setting up the twist at the end. If the writers had focused on a more compelling story, the turn of events would have had a bigger impact. The actors are completely miscast and give forgettable performances, but I need to stress that the characters are also poorly written, with most making only two-to-three-minute appearances. As a horror fan, Visions truly disappointed me, so I'm giving it a 3.0 out of 10.

Have you seen Visions yet? If you did, leave a comment below to let me know what you thought of it. I finally managed to catch a screening of London Has Fallen & will upload my review for it tomorrow.