No matter how derivitive and unoriginal a film sometimes might be, you can still, against your better nature find yourself getting kinda swept up with it. Now don't get me wrong, there is nothing in this film that is memorable or truly original, but for what the film does, it does it well. Following on from the likes of "Single White Female" and particularly "Pacific Heights", "The Resident" is a film about a dangerous obsession of another. Here it is Hilary Swanks Doctor who falls victim to her new landlord, the unnervingly sweet, but shy Max, played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan. Simply put, the film prays on the trust we sometimes give to others without ever fully knowing who they are. Max seems nice, but anyone watching within the first ten minutes will tell you that all is not what it seems. There is a system of peep holes Max watches Juliet unbeknownst to her. Even when Juliet leaves her apartment, Max does some very wrong things in her bath tub. His dangerous obsession grows ever more violent and intrusive. Of course facades soon fall and we discover Max's true psychotic nature all too late. Generic, very much so, but the film features typically solid performances from its two leads. The handsome and naturally charasmatic Dean Morgan playing a loner psycho was initially something I thought was going to fail to convince, but he managed to convert me very early into the film. This the second film in Hammers newly renewed production company after "Let Me In". So far both films have delivered on what they set out to do and hopefully promises more interesting horror from them in the future. Nice also, to see the face of Hammer, Christopher Lee back again, here playing Max's grandfather. It is only Lee Pace who is unfairly wasted here. Playing Swanks ex-boyfriend he is given next to nothing to do and as anyone who has seen the visually stunning "The Fall" will know, he is far better than seen here. Other nice additions are that it's shot by Guillermo Del Toros regular cinematographer, Guillermo Navarro. The film looks gorgeous as is typical of his work. John Ottman also more than ably scores the film in keeping with the high standard of his previous soundtracks. In the end, these aren't huge things, but go some way in adding to my enjoyment of the film. Everything about this film is predictable, but it handles its cliche ridden conventions well, and is done with style. It could be seen as the equivalent of junk food; it's not good for you and you feel terrible when it's done, but was fun while it lasted.
Verdict: 5/10
Cliches and predictability stalk this film at every turn, but it handles its conventions well and does it to the best of its ability. Completely unmemorable, but slightly effective nontheless.
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