The Sender

Insipid schlock that unconvincingly reshuffles a series of trite psychological horror tropes in a feeble attempt to hide the fact that it’s bereft of any fresh ideas: mental illness, check. Paranormal abilities, check. Prophetic dreams, check. Dark secrets of dubious interest, check…

Roger Christian, best remembered for that international motion-picture monstrosity that answers to the name of “Battlefield Earth” (the disastrous adaptation of L. Ron Hubbard’s decent mega-novel), seems to direct the entire movie with his hands tied behind his back. And blinders on. His direction, characterized by a light touch that borders on absenteeism, basically just lets the plot run its course, apparently hoping the protagonist’s ambiguous aura of mystery can single-handedly carry the film.

The cast – comprised of virtually unknown actors – isn’t too shabby, but in the long run, the film’s subdued atmosphere and its nearly systematic rejection of special effects contribute to plunge the unfortunate viewer into a state of drowsiness that’s difficult to shake.

So don’t be alarmed if you make it to the end of this lethal bore feeling an uncontrollable urge to cleanse your palate with a film by David Cronenberg or George Romero – it’s simply a normal physiological reaction that especially affects true fans of the genre.