It was just under a year ago that this "thriller" was released.  It was panned by critics and only took in $11.6 Million Domestic, and another $6.4 Million Foreign.  I can't find any info on what the budget was, but I think it's safe to conclude it was a Hell of alot more than $20 Million, meaning, this thing was a big flop.

Flop or not, panned or praised, i give them all a chance, and I gave the Blu Ray a spin yesterday.

I like Amanda Seyfried.  She's cute.  She seems cool.  I like stories of this vein.  I liked the opening scenes during the credits and thought maybe, just maybe, everyone was completely wrong about this.  They weren't.  This is one terrible movie, adapted from a terrible idea/script by Allison Burnett (a male, although the name sure doesn't sound like it), who's written a number of fairly big budget flicks.  The Director, Heitor Dahlia is not so well known, and probably won't be anymore known after this, but word is that he was so pissed at the studio involvement that he considered turning this into an Allen Smithee film.

The longer this went, the more apparent it was that it just plain old sucked.  I stayed with it, hoping for the best, but again, the longer I watched, the more upset I became, culminating in my eyes rolling, my head shaking, and my mind wondering just what anyone was thinking with the central concept, as well as the execution.

It's not a bad looking film.  It's not poorly acted or shot.  Production values seem pretty high. What's the problem here?

Well, there's a number...a pretty big number, actually.  I'm going to blame the writer, though, because this is a perfect example of how not to write a script, and I'll throw out a few things that anyone who watches this should be aware of, so they don't make the same mistakes.

We never really see or know anything about the Antag.  Completely unacceptable.

There are so many completely worthless characters here that have absolutely no reason to be in the script/movie, as they do nothing, have no impact on anything, and disappear with no resolution whatsoever.  Some are blatantly obvious red herrings, being played by recognizable actors/actresses, but there's no way this is going to work.  Period.

The efforts of our heroine, Miss Doe Eyes Amanda Seyfried is downright silly, to the level of a Scooby Doo cartoon.

The inadequacy of the police force is shockingly pathetic.

The amount of silly, unrealistic contrivances is staggering.

The finale/payoff is flatline, ridiculous, silly, and completely inept.

Too bad, because there's obviously a market for serial kidnapper/killer type flicks, but this was just handled so poorly, it's actually shocking.

Love the Portland setting, hate the end result.  Very, very poor on so many levels.  Why this hack Allison Burnett continues to work in the industry is a question I can't answer, but as far as I'm concerned, he should be black balled and beaten on the way out the door.

Damn, Jeff.

After reading this from you and everybody's replies to that other movie with the green cross-eyed Gumby monster, I'm never going to set any of my stories in Oregon.  They just don't do good, there, do they?

First Blood?

Thirty-one years ago, Jeff. Just saying...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Films_set_in_Oregon

There you go.

Well, 3 out of 73 isn't bad.

Which 3?

Quoted from myself movie with the green cross-eyed Gumby monster

  Remember that horrible crap bag of a film we were all bashing on that one thread... 'The Oregonian'?

Quoted from Dreamscale Which 3?

The ones I actually enjoy; Coraline, Kindergarten Cop and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. There's others I can stand watching, but don't necessarily like, like Elephant, Mr. Brooks, Overboard and WarGames.

Goonies?

Never liked it. I know, I'm like the only one in the world.