Customer Reviews

Headspace

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

For a film that boasts "gore and beasties and gratuitous nudity" and revealing that "the scariest place on earth is between our own ears," "Headspace" falls short of its proclamations. It attempts to be an intelligent thriller that relies more on the "what if?" factor than anything else. Sure, there are a couple of reasonably gory moments in the film, but nothing worthy of the praises or awards it features on its DVD case. The gratuitous nudity is late night Cinemax-worthy, but nothing to write home about.

The story involves the splitting of two young brothers by a seemingly uncaring father after the violent death of their mother. One boy has become super intelligent and is the focus of this tale, while the other is slowly revealed through flashbacks in the smart brother's mind. Our hero begins to have vicious headaches and horrible nightmares that eventually put him in the hospital. Unable to diagnose him, his doctor releases him into the care of a psychiatrist who attempts to figure out what's going on in his head. As the days go by, however, the body count grows. Eventually, the boy figures out what's really happening in his mind and attempts to struggle with his demons both inside and outside of his brain.

The story does have a nice twist to it involving a key character in the story, but I don't want to give away any more information. Had a little more time been spent on this tale, and less emphasis on tauting the gore, this could have been a wonderful, suspenseful tale. Instead, we get a movie that attempts to be both intelligent and gory at the same time and fails at both.

The acting is pretty good, but the bulk of the cast is towed along by former scream queen Dee Wallace Stone, ex-Juliet Olivia Hussey, the capable William Atherton, and the still lovely Sean Young. The rest of the cast is made up of newcomers.

The creatures in this feature are okay, but they do look somewhat like a cross between a pig and the vampire bat that Gary Oldman turns into in "Bram Stoker's Dracula."

In short, I'd consider this flick a one-time rental. It doesn't add or take away from the horror genre, but the DVD case will mislead you to believe so.

For a low budget indie, HEADSPACE isn't all that bad..unfortunately, it's not all that good either...but it maintained my interest and relies on atmospheric spookiness most of the time with a few scenes of gory terror. Although it's plot is sometimes nebulous, it is a psychological thriller focusing on "links" between our world and the "netherworld." Christopher Denham is very good as Alex, a young man plagued with horrific visions, headaches and the incredible gift of an almost photographic memory. His search to find out what's wrong with him leads him to a superior chess player, a sympathetic psychiatrist AND murderous demons.
Veteran performers Olivia Hussey, William Atherton, Udo Keir, Dee Wallace Stone and Mark Margolis are along for the ride and ultimately contribute to a better than average if not great thriller.

every now and again something comes out under the radar...Headspace is that something...the story is fairly intriguing and the acting is very good...I wouldnt say this is a horror film per se, but the premise and the conclusion is as close to true horror as it might get...all in all, a very solid film and I strongly suggest a viewing. (the cover art is kind of cheesy though)

HEADSPACE is the twisted tale of another realm beyond our own. It seems that a young genius named Alex has somehow opened a gate to this alternate dimension, causing it to bleed into our reality. This would be fine if not for the murderous demonoids that have crossed over! Alex must find out what is happening and try to stop it. Of course, no one believes him, and the trans-dimensional creatures kill everyone Alex touches! HEADSPACE has a heavy, grim atmosphere of utter doom throughout. I love it! I also enjoyed watching horror legends Dee Wallace-Stone (The Hills Have Eyes, Cujo, The Howling) and Olivia Hussey (Black Christmas) as a doctor and a therapist. Sean Young (Bladerunner) is also effective as Alex's mum. Larry Fessenden (Habit) plays dad. We even get Udo Kier as a priest! Highly recommended...

I can see why Stuart Gordon liked this alot.

While bordering on cliche, it's hard to discount some facts. This is a low budget film, with a first time young director and a very competent gore crew. With that in mind, you can appreciate some of the craft.

The flick begins with its most ingenious splatter scene. Sean Young gets a double barreled shotgun blast to the head, and we get to see through the head from the back, and then they cut to her still-functioning jaw and tongue among the gore as she hits the ground. I have to appreciate how much time and energy was probably spent on this FX for about ten seconds of footage. The story is predicated on the myth that we only use 10% of our brains, and then posits that the gate to ultimate knowledge is also literally the gate to hell. I'm not too keen on the obvious biblical overtone to this line of thinking, but there wouldn't be much of a horror genre if creators couldn't use these archetypes. You just have to suspend your disbelief.

Anyway, Udo Kier makes an appearance as a priest, then gets his face ripped off, and that's the end of Udo. Last time I saw Udo, he was in a short horror anthology where he feeds his intestines into a movie projector. Hard to top that, but this is worth a rental. You'll wonder why you are watching, but you'll watch, for some reason.

I enjoyed this movie the plot move a bit slowly but it is rather good. Like someone else said the movie is full of clichés but that do not make it bad. Clichés have become so well used that they have become clichés for a reason, they work.

The plot of the movie is nice, not a masterwork but nice, it is about a young man that after collapsing get diagnosed with an extreme form of ADHD and get smarter and smarter, soon he begin to become almost psychic and begin to see demons. But are they real or just in his mind?

There is not that much gore in this movie, but the gore that is that is gory, but the movie relay more on a good story than on gore. All in all I really liked this movie and I do recomend it.

THIS IS A VERY GOOD INDIE HORROR MOVIE. GREAT GORE, ACTING AND A WONDERFUL STORYLINE. THIS IS A GREAT WATCH. THE OVER ALL FEEL TO THE MOVIE LOOKED INDIE BUT HELD A PUNCH WITH MAKE UP AND BLOOD AND VIOLENT CONTENT.
THIS STORY STARTS OUT WITH A MOTHER GOING NUTS. TWO CHILDREN ARE THEN PUT INTO FOSTER CARE. YEARS LATER THE YOUNGEST SEEMS TO BE GOING THROUGH AN ORDEAL THAT HE AND THE MEDICAL FIELD DOES NOT UNDERSTAND. HE IS ABLE TO LEARN AND READ BOOKS AND KNOW THINGS THAT HE SHOULD NOT BE ABLE TO. IN SECONDS HE READS A BOOK. HE IS ABLE TO READ MINDS AND SEE IN THE PAST AND ALSO THE FUTURE OF WHAT IS HAPPENING AROUND HIM.
HE IS HAUNTED AND CHASED DOWN BY DEMONS IN THE DARKNESS. PEOPLE AROUND HIM START TO DIE, CLAWED AND CHEWED AND DESTROYED BY THE CREATURES ONLY HE CAN SEE. HIS SPIRAL DOWN FALL IS CLOUDING HIS JUDGEMENT OF THINKING STRIGHT AS HIS HEAD SEEMS TO WANT TO EXPLODE.
THIS MOVIE ITSELF IS DIRECTED VERY WELL AND THE OVER ALL HORROR FEEL AND WONDERFUL GORE AND BLOOD WORKS IN GREAT CAPTURED DETAIL. THE ONE FLAW I HAVE WITH THIS MOVIE IS THE CREATURE. I THINK WHAT THEY SHOULD HAVE DONE WAS NEVER SHOW YOU IT, BECAUSE THE COSTUME WAS NOT THAT GOOD AND THAT IS WHY I HAD TO TAKE SOME POINTS AWAY FROM IT. I WAS SO HAPPY WITH THIS LITTLE HORROR MOVIE UNTIL THAT MOMENT OF THE REVEAL WHICH LET ME DOWN.
THE FIRST HOUR AND 20 MINS WORKED PERFECT, GREAT ACTING, GORE AND STORY BUT THE DOWN FALL TO THIS MOVIE WAS THE LAST 15 MIN'S WITH THE IMAGE OF THE CREATURE. TAKING THOSE FEW SHOTS OF THE CREATURE OUT I WOULD HAVE GIVEN THIS MOVIE A 7 OUT OF 10 BUT BECAUSE OF THAT MAJOR LET DOWN I HAD TO RATE IT FARE.
GREAT MOVIE AND GREAT STORY BUT FAILED IN THE END TO HOLD IT TOGETHER.
5 OUT OF 10

The family dog is mutilated. The family is in danger so they jump into their truck to escape and it won't start. Two horror movie cliches within the first 5 minutes of the movie. I should have just turned it off and saved my time.

Alex is a 25 year old whose intellect begins to grow by leaps and bounds. He can read entire books in seconds and remember everything he's read. He teaches himself to be a chess master in a matter of days. He also sees creatures in his dreams that begin to come to life, murdering people Alex has come into contact with. He goes to friends and doctors searching for answers to what is happening to him.

The box made Head Space sound interesting but it wasn't. This was 90 turgid minutes of middling acting and bad plotting. The makeup on the creatures was ok. This movie wasn't exciting, suspenseful or scary.

This movie was just that-fast, fun, and frightening- what more could a horror movie provide? This particular horror movie also delivers an intricate, winding plot that leaves you thinking even after the movie is over. Headspace lives up to its hype as one of the best independent horror movies of the year.

Christopher Denham bursts from the unknown to deliver an interesting performance as Alex, a `real genius' type with something horribly dark fueling his sudden intellect. His back story and present are peppered with fascinating characters portrayed by a remarkable array of actors -everyone from Sean Young to Udo Kier. The real star of this movie, however, is the plot, which winds just enough to keep you hanging on, wanting more, without winding so much that you're thrown off. At the end, you're left with a smile on your lips and a mind full of questions (but which questions I can't say without spoiling the movie!)

As for major pros and cons, if you want something with really cool monsters, this isn't your horror movie. The monster make-up isn't anything that will leave chills down your spine (when people get killed the make-up is spot on, so don't worry about that). Headspace's biggest pro is simply that it is a cerebral thrill ride with great acting.

Highly recommended for anyone who wants a horror movie that isn't all about splatter or monsters.

The NY Times said that Headspace "has all the gore, violence and nudity that the genre requires." What they forgot to say is that it is also thought-provoking and suspenseful, with some excellent "jump moments" mixed in. I saw the film in NYC, and the audience was startled more than a few times. They even looked away from a few gruesome moments. (In horror films that's a good thing, right?) This is a breakout role for Christopher Denham, a young NY theater actor who has earned raves from the Times and the New Yorker for his recent stage work in "Red Light Winter." The bit where another NY stage vet, William Atherton (playing Dr. Ira Gold), tries to psyche him out is priceless. And it's always nice to see Olivia Hussey, Dee Wallace Stone and the ever-creepy Udo Kier with roles they can sink their teeth into. Literally. Yes, get Headspace and get scared. Once your blood pressure returns to normal, the images will still be there to haunt your dreams.