The A in âExhibit Aâ must stand for Awful. Atrocious? How about Agonizing as in agonising to watch. This 2007 British indie film boasts to be a psychological thriller. Filmmaker Dom Rotheroe wrote and directed. Iâm quite certain MR. Rotheroe may not know what the term psychological thriller means.
Itâs found footage. A sub-genre thatâs often difficult to perfect. When itâs done well (âParanormal Activity,â âCloverfield,â âHostâ) itâs a perfect accomplice to standard horror. When itâs bad (âHeidi,â âThe Marked Ones,â âThe Visitâ) itâs downright woeful, and âExhibit Aâ falls into the latter camp.
The plot sucks
Judith (Brittany Ashworth) lives with her parents and obnoxious older brother. Her dad (Bradley Cole) is in the running for a big promotion at work. If he gets it, the family will move to a nice new house. They are all excited. Save for Judith, who doesnât want to move because she has a crush on the neighbor. The dad suddenly becomes an arsehole. Things get weird. Thatâs about it.
Oh, and Judith likes to film everything, for some reason.
Itâs short. Clocking in at 86 minutes. And thatâs where the compliments end. The acting is poor. There are no scares. Thereâs nothing in the way of tension. It opens with a police report, so we know whatâs coming. But by the time we get to the end, we donât care at all.
âExhibit Aâ is a total waste of time. I was shocked (but not shocked) to read it got praise in Britain and won several indie awards. Pish. Itâs boring. The found footage aspect is a crutch for a weak story and suspect acting. Weâre three weeks away from October. This one isnât worth a second of your time.
âExhibit Aâ is currently available to stream if you really want to.
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