Trespass [Blu-ray]

You will probably be tempted to see the movie by the two big name stars and maybe even the director but you could be disappointed. You already know there will be none of the violence of 'Funny Games' because Australia's sweetheart Nicole Kidman is in it and she doesn't do down and dirty. Nicolas Cage is quite restrained in his role and would have been better cast as one of the criminals. There is nothing new in this film at all even though the plot tries to twist and turn. Star of the piece is probably the house itself but even that is soulless and empty. The transfer to blu-ray is excellent and the soundtrack will never test your system.
If you must see it then rent it.

Nicolas Cage (Bad Lieutenant) plays Kyle Miller - a sharp-suited and even sharper-tongued diamond broker. His lifestyle has afforded him a beautiful wife, Sarah (Nicole Kidman - Eyes Wide Shut) a daughter, Avery (Liana Liberato - Last Sin Eater) and an even more beautiful mansion in the sticks. Things look pretty sweet for Kyle until his house is invaded by a group of armed thugs and they hold everyone hostage, demanding that Kyle open the biometric-safe on the wall. However things are not as straight forward as they seem; as fractures appear within the invader's group led by Elias (Ben Mendelsohn - Killer Elite) & one of the group keeps eyeing Sarah knowingly - just what is going on here?

Trespass is a tense and well-filmed affair, the mix of obvious amateurs & hardened professionals within the invaders group piques your interest from the off as it is obvious this is no regular hold-up. When this is coupled with Cage's silver-tongued performance trying to outwit the invaders it makes for an interesting stand-off. Everyone's acting is solid and Kidman deserves a mention for her truly unreadable performance and Cage only really goes 'hyper-Cage' once. Unfortunately, aside from Mendolsohn, the invasion crew are just a bunch of bit-parters and it really shows, a lot of the script is cheesily delivered and rather predictable. It's not that they didn't try; there is twist after twist, but you see every single one coming a mile off, the script is that obvious.

Extras: Just the one - "Trespass: Inside the Thriller" A 5-minute, on-the-set, featurette with comments from director Joel Schumacher & the rest of the cast.

It's difficult to pick apart exactly what is wrong with Trespass without revealing the story, but suffice to say, there are some scenes that are laughable and there are several points where things become a bit illogical. The ending is a real letdown and becomes a joke due to a dubious use of a nail gun - It's as if someone took an existing home invasion movie (Hostage or Funny Games) and then tacked on their own minor plot variations. The result falls well short of Fincher's Panic Room but it's not unwatchable.

'Trespass' is a psychological thriller film that released in 2011 to bad reviews and became a box-office disaster. The movie was released in theaters (within the US) and on Video-On-Demand at the same time. Also, 'Trespass' has beaten the 2003 box-office bomb, From Justin to Kelly's record of the fastest release from cinema to DVD within the US. It took From Justin to Kelly 29 days whereas 'Trespass' managed it in 18 days.

The movie tells the story of a married couple, Kyle and Sarah Miller (Nicolas Cage and Nicole Kidman) and their daughter (Liana Liberato) who are kidnapped by a group of robbers.

'Trespass' has been subject to harsh criticism but it's actually a watchable fare bringing back the action-feel of the 1990's, which I miss. Yes, it's a tried and tested formula and offers nothing new in content. However, the pace is fast and there are plenty of twists to keep you entertained. The ending is also quite good.

Where the movie deserves the flak fully is on the acting side, Cage and crew perform to Razzie award winning standards. I wasn't impressed. The screen presence of Cage and Kidman is sort of compensating though. I've always been a Cage fan but it wasn't nice to hear of reports that he left the project at one point as he wanted to play the role of the kidnapper and not Kidman's hubby. The makers were having none of it. Apparently, shortly after Cage returned to complete the movie.

Joel Schumacher gets it wrong when you compare this effort with his previous quality films like The Lost Boys, The Client, Falling Down etc. On the acting side of things from the actors, surely he must've noticed how bad it was. Schumacher has also received criticism due to the feature's canny resemblance to the disturbing and brutal 2010 Spanish flick, 'Secuestrados (Kidnapped)'.

Unfortunately 'Trespass' had production issues, flopped commercially and the list goes on. For me, the product is old wine in a new bottle and it tastes okay.