Lost Things (2004)

Overrated

One of my all time favorites.

I was totally surprised at how great this film.You could feel your paranoia rise as the film went on and as you gradually learned the details of the real situation.

I really wanted to like this movie. I feel terribly cynical trashing it, and that's why I'm giving it a middling 5. Actually, I'm giving it a 5 because there were some superb performances.

It tries really hard and seems to have a lot of heart but it's basically one big confusing mess that looks like it was released in it's draft phase. The acting is dreadful in parts and average in others, but I suspect that's largely due to the terrible script these young actors are wrestling with and some truly ham-fisted directing. This story had great potential but the execution of it falls flat on it's face. I skipped bits of it because it was getting repetitive & boring and clearly didn't miss anything important. The ending was far too predictable because the set up was done so very badly. You could see it coming from very early in the movie so that ruined what little suspense there might have been in this messy movie. It was also at least half an hour too long. It would have been better as a short.If you want to see Aussie horror done properly there are plenty of better options. The Loved Ones and Triangle are two that spring to mind immediately. Both of them are excellent and easily out-do many of the better American horror movies around. (BTW I noticed someone recommending Dead End as a similar but better movie - ummmm.... no! Please don't bother with that one either. In fact, if I had to choose between this movie and Dead End I would definitely choose this one.) I give this one 3 because it had some interesting aspects, nice atmospherics, decent cinematography and serious actors who gave it a damn good shot, but the whole thing was let down by an awful screenplay, bizarre unfinished editing and terrible directing.

A bunch of teens go out to an isolated beach for the weekend and find a bit more than the "good times!" they had planned. I was expecting this film, which was marketed as an Aussie teen slasher, to be bottom-of-the-barrel junk. Well, it wasn't a slasher and it was one of the better creepy films of the past few years. Taking its cue from 70s Aussie gems "Long Weekend" and "Picnic at Hanging Rock," (as well as several other low-budget American hits that will go unnamed here), this is a fresh and frightening little movie. It is well-acted (better than US teen horrors, anyway) and the middle half-hour of the film is actually quite frightening and doesn't skimp on the scares and eerie imagery. Unfortunately, the movie is a bit too ambitious for it's own good and leaves you thinking "huh?" in certain parts, but overall, I'd recommend this to anyone who likes psychological horror.

Don't expect a clichéd stereotypical slasher-fest with Lost Things(LT). It is thought provoking and makes you think and ask questions long after the credits finish.LT seems straight forward, the tale of 4 teenagers sneaking away for a weekend of supposed debauchery and unwholesome fun... well that's where the similarities end in comparison to the afore mentioned stereotypical slashers. LT makes you think. It is a cognitive tale that doesn't treat the audience as if they are all pubescent fools.However there are some glaring anomalies that seriously detract the viewer. Firstly the two lead teenage male actors are too similar in appearance and mannerisms; it was difficult to distinguish them at times. The screenplay seemed to lose its way with continuity and dialogue in places that was actually frustrating. And the editing and cinematography seemed to be jumbled and 'roughly cut' with shots and scenes thrown together haphazardly even when the viewer has the benefit of hindsight at the end of the film.Overall though LT is a clever little outing. It would score higher but for the technical downfalls. I for one though do appreciate a good cognitive thriller ... and Lost Things tried.

This film is a totally unremarkable no budget feature, where a competent technical crew try in vain to wring some suspense out of a one-note script and limp actors. Somehow they manage to drag it all out for 83 minutes, which is somehow supposed to create suspense despite the fact that the "twist" is blatantly telegraphed in the first 5.Don't you love the IMDb marketing strategy? If you don't know what I'm talking about, try reading the earlier "comments" for this film.If you're going to write a fake reviews, you could at least try to make it convincing by having SOME criticism in there. Encouraging mediocrity doesn't help the industry, it just means we keep making crap films.Oh, and "agendian" - Agenda Films... bit of a dead giveaway, huh?