STARS: ** �
DIRECTOR: Robert Zemeckis
PRINCIPLE CAST:
Michelle Pfieffer
Harrison Ford
TAGLINE: He was the perfect husband until his one mistake followed them home.
What lies beneath? Well, sadly, nothing much. I glumly must report that this is a rather disappointing film. I�m not saying the cast is bad, Michelle Pfeiffer gives a wonderful performance. I�m not blaming the direction, Robert Zemeckis manages to create a bit of tension. I�m not even blaming the script, which, though it does fall flat, is still entertaining. My main gripe with this film is the horrible trailer that gives far too much of the story away. The preview to this film basically cuts out the red-herring first half-hour and ruins the rest of the film for you by giving away every surprise. However, the trailer still has some of the better lines and scenes that were apparently removed from the still long film.
I must say that I did enjoy this film, but I had such high hopes for it that I was let down immensely. Watching the film, I was reminded of something Alfred Hitchcock could have made, but unfortunately did not. I could not help but think of Psycho while watching this film. We are given the opening plot, which seems to be the center of the story, and then changes into something completely different. This worked for Psycho because Marion Crane was a character we grew to feel for and relate to, but Mrs. Fyor of What Lies Beneath has no depth or any real relation to the story, so this is completely unnecessary. Next we are given a memorable shower scene� and another, and another, and another, etc. Fatal Attraction anyone? Basically, this movie rips off every suspense film in history, from Psycho, to Fatal Attraction, to Repulsion, to The Haunting. Frankly, this is what I enjoyed about the film. I found it to be a wonderful experience sitting through something that could have come out in the sixties. Unfortunately, I kept thinking �this is too Hitchcock to be a horror film and too supernatural to be a Hitchcock film.�
This could have been a great movie, but unfortunately it falls flat with predictability and clich� after clich� after clich� and that horrible trailer that gives away far too much of the story. I�m sure Robert Zemeckis must want to give the promotional people a firm kick in the rear for that. However, this film can still be enjoyable if you ignore the supernatural element and treat it as more of a mystery thriller. But you are still left with too many unanswered questions like �Why did the ghost choose now to come out?� So, once again, what lies beneath? Hopefully the trailer for this film because it really needs to be tossed into a nearby lake.
