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| Where's Sarah? Movie review: Shutter |
WEB RESOURCES
Movie review: Shutter |
The 2008 remake of one of the highest grossing films in Thailand is a must-see thriller. By Sarah Kozer I recently had the opportunity to attend a screening for the movie Shutter at Fox studios. I wasn’t sure what to expect but I could tell from the trailer that it was going to be a thriller! I’ve always been a fan of scary movies, but prefer supernatural suspense to blood-and-gore, so it seemed that this would be right up my alley. As it turned out, it was enough of both to have me checking my locks and sleeping with the lights on for the rest of the weekend! I will tell you about the film the best I can with the disclaimer that I had my eyes closed through at least a third of it … okay, half of it. ORBS Created by the producers of The Grudge and The Ring, Shutter’s storyline is based on spirit photography. Have you ever taken a picture that comes out with splotches of light or white circles on it? Those are actually called “orbs” and many people believe that these are paranormal ghosts or spirits caught on film. The other school of thought is that these light spheres are specks of dust in the air or on the camera lens, but hey -- that doesn’t really make for an interesting horror movie now does it? Occult photography is apparently a big deal in Asia; this film was shot in Japan and is actually a remake of one of the highest grossing films in Thailand. THE “FREE” VACATION THAT NOBODY WANTS For photographer Ben (Joshua Jackson) and his new wife Jane (Rachel Taylor), a photo shoot assignment in Tokyo was supposed to be a working honeymoon. Things start to go wrong on their drive to Mt. Fuji as an inexplicable accident foreshadows the doom to come. When they arrive on location, Ben, having worked in Japan before, quickly relaxes and reunites with old friends. Jane, however, is still spooked by the accident and is more prone than her husband to noticing the strange events that begin to occur. All of their photos start coming back with orbs and both of them begin to have supernatural experiences that Jane believes are tied to the accident. Ben tries to ignore what is happening as Jane’s determination to get to the bottom of things gets them in deeper and deeper. In the end, of course, not everyone is as innocent as they seem. SPIRITS STIRRED AT THE PANTAGES? The following afternoon, I attended the press junket at The Pantages Theater in Hollywood, mostly to see what Joshua Jackson looked like in real life. The stars were all doing private interviews, so I took the chance to walk around the theater and snap some photos. Via the magic of digital photography, I was able to check the photos right away and noticed something really ironic: some of the shots actually had orbs in them! I’m not sure if I’ve ever believed the rumors of the famous Pantages being haunted, but the mood of the day and those pictures definitely had the hairs on the back of my neck standing up. I tried to get some shots of the film’s stars during their interviews (a shot of the Dawson’s Creek celeb with a big scary orb in the background would probably be worth a mint in Thailand!), but the publicists nixed the photo op so I had to leave with just my own darkish, possibly occult pictures … and my imagination running wild. Watch the movie and then go back through your own photos … you might be surprised at what you find! ABOUT THE AUTHOR Sarah Kozer, best known for her role on FOX’s TV phenomenon, “Joe Millionaire”, has been featured on TV shows and magazines in the US and abroad, including UK’s “Back to Reality”, People, US Weekly, Time, Front, Loaded, Vanity Fair, and Glamour. She has been seen on Oprah, Jay Leno, Regis and Kelly, Saturday Night Live, Howard Stern, Jimmy Kimmel and CNN, and on the cover of Playboy! Voted one of the ‘Sexiest Women of Reality TV” the past 4 years, Sarah has hosted television programs including Extra! has written for USWeekly and is currently producing, casting, and writing for television, with several of her own shows in the works. She resides in Beverly Hills but spends much of her time away traveling and exploring the world! *Please tell us what you think of this week's newsletter! All information presented here is accurate at the time of publication but prices, dates and other details are all subject to change. Please confirm all information before making any travel arrangements. Pics From The Event
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