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22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
3.5; warning: might make you paranoid, July 6, 2007
Awhile ago, I had to watch a documentary based on the Crumb brothers, 3 artist/painter brothers with incredibly odd and bizarre personalities. One of them, Robert, responsible for the "keep on truckin'" and the comics of Fritz the Cat, is probably the most mature and seemingly intelligent of the 3 yet he's got abnormal views on racism and sexuality. The male character in this film is the same way: he's quite intelligent, he's friendly and there's nothing really off-putting about him...except you know, he's kind of crazy.
Shot entirely using small cameras, we follow Doug (Colin Hanks), a lonely kid who one day sees Amy (Ana Claudia Talancon) in a park. He becomes smitten yet he goes about it the wrong way: buys small cameras that are to be hidden around her house such as her bathroom, living room and bedroom. He then slowly gets into her life: rents a movie that she just watches, music that's rather obscure. But just because a guy is nice doesn't mean a girl will like you and he becomes a bit jealous and isn't above doing anything wrong to "teach her a lesson". Now it's just a case of how long until Amy figures it out.
There's a certain depraved quality when you're watching this movie, almost as if there's scenes that make you see things differently than what's on screen. Talancon for example, goes naked a couple times and normally this would be titilation but here, it's almost creepy and you almost hope you don't get turned on. But the big question is how believable does it feel and at times, depending on your view, this can stretch credibility. When he knows the specific movie and music she listens to and even conveniently calls when an accident happens, you kind of wonder how naive she is, or whether how trusting we all are.
The film is by and large a 2 character study and luckily we have 2 actors that pull it off well. Which is surprising considering they're not really flashy roles, there's no "Oscar moment" but it's that sense of normalcy and realistic that makes it more plausible. Initially I was worried about Colin Hanks since he's always been a more meek, mouse-y kind of guy in movies but here he's inviting but with a degree of weirdness. Playing the attractive sex bomb, Talancon is sympathetic although at times you kind of wonder how completely trusting she is since most girls I know would've been like "how the hell did you know that movie?"
It's the kind of film that's it best to watch once. There's not a lot to bring you back in; sure it's unique looking but it's also slightly hollow and wouldn't benefit from repeat viewings. Now let me go debug my room.
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13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
modest but innovative thriller, July 4, 2007
***1/2
Eric Nicholas` "Alone With Her" starts off with a rather alarming Department of Justice statement that every minute three new people become victims of stalkers, and that, thanks to modern technology, even your garden-variety voyeur, who used to be restricted to what he could see by aiming a pair of high-powered binoculars into the neighbor`s window, now has access to high-tech devices, once the sole province of the CIA and the FBI, to help him with his peeping. Through its innovative, you-are-there style, this low-budget, independent thriller really drives that message home.
The stalker in this case is a young man named Doug, a techno-savvy misfit with extreme sociopathic tendencies, who through an elaborate network of hidden microphones and cameras, has found a way to keep the object of his obsession - a beautiful young woman named Amy - under surveillance literally 24 hours a day without her knowledge. Slowly but surely, he worms his way into her life, manipulating her emotions and earning her trust along the way.
In form as well as in style, "Alone With Her" is a cross between "Peeping Tom" and "The Blair Witch Project," with the audience viewing the action entirely through the lenses of Doug's strategically placed cameras. This innovative technique effectively puts us in the shoes of the voyeuristic stalker, making us, in some strange way, complicit in his actions - and isn't all moviewatching, when you get right down to it, just another form of voyeurism? The real chill, of course, comes from the realization of just how easy modern technology has made it for our rights of personal space and privacy to be violated. If this movie doesn't turn you into a raving paranoiac, nothing will.
"Alone With Her" is more than just a mere exercise in style, however. Thanks to compelling performances from Ana Claudia Talancon, Colin Hanks (who appears off-screen for most of the film) and Jordana Spiro, the movie emerges as an engrossing human drama as well, one that makes us empathize with the various characters whose story we are being compelled to watch. For beyond the threat posed by all the technical hardware, the film unnervingly points out the risk we all take by simply opening ourselves up to friendships and relationships with people we actually know very little about.
Some people may find "Alone With Her" too low-keyed in its approach to be truly frightening. However, it is just that lack of sensationalism that makes it so convincing in its creepiness. It's true that the movie, like many thrillers, falls apart somewhat in its third act due to its budgetary constraints as well as a certain predictability in the plotting. Still, "Alone With Her" illustrates the truth of Marshall McLuhan's observation that "the medium is the message" better than any film of recent times.
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14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Complete Squirmfest, But Good, May 13, 2007
**SPOILERS**
This movie chronicles a dysfunctional loner's ("Doug" played by Colin Hanks) voyeuristic obsession with a beautiful young woman ("Amy"), played by the interesting Ana Talancon. Basically, he commits a B&E and sets up hidden video cameras in her apartment. With the information he obtains from watching and listening to her, he is able to insinuate himself in her life.
Thumbs up to Tom Hanks' son for picking unique material like this. He does an excellent job playing the socially inept stalker, esp. when you consider it's probably 180 degrees from his real life.
What stands out about this movie is its verisimilitude, even in this age of reality TV. I thought the writer (Eric Nicholas) had a good grasp for the way things play out in real life. For instance, the scene with Doug and Amy's friend on the stairs right before he kills her was just spot on. She didn't over do it with seeming freaked out, but clearly she was unnerved by his sudden appearance on the scene. And the way she conveyed that just rang true.
Finally, the ending. Wow. I don't think audiences are ready for something that realistic and dark, but we'll see.
Overall, well worth watching. I love movies like this with a unique point of view.
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