Abandon(2002)-5/10

[Puck Bond]

Abandon is a psychological thriller that suffers from any lack of real identity. What is this film trying to prove, show us? It left me with many questions and these were brought up 3/4 of the way through the film. It was meandering so much that I literally asked myself where this was all going, what it was leading up to. It does throw in one helluva twist of an ending but still it left me feeling disgruntled and generally pissed. Katie Holmes is good as Katie a senior at an upscale college finishng her thesis, studying for finals and looking for a job. The sort of organized neurotic go-getter who is always going to get what she wants but will eventually crack under the pressure. Apparently 2 years ago her charismatic, free-spirited, pretentious boyfriend Embry just disappeared without a trace and now a detective played by Benjamin Bratt is investigating Embry's whereabouts. Over the course of his investigation he begins to fall for Katie while she seems to think her boyfriend has come back, she beleieves she is seeing things and it turns out he is back! Beyond that I won't go into detail...but I generally found this movie, dull and uninspiring...the film is generally well made and the acting is pretty good...the only real saving grace is Zooey Deschanel as Samantha, Katie's promiscuos and outspoken friend. The music is chilling and there is a gloomy down in the dumps atmosphere all around. I just found it depressing and uninteresting. Katie Holmes character seems lost in what she wants to be and what she really is. Overall Abandon is a disappointing psychological thriller because there are too many questions left unanswered and the film lacks focus.

[ilovemovies]

Abandon
*** (out of ****)
7.5 out of 10
Grade: B+

Directed by Steven Geghen
starring: Katie Holmes, Benjamin Bratt

Abandon is a haunting psychological thriller about a truly disturbed collage student. Katie Holmes plays a collage student who is very close to graduating when cop Bratt is called in to investigate the disappearance of Holme's boyfriend. The cop slowly starts to find himself becoming obsessed with her. But just as this is happening she starts to see him around and believes he has returned. The directorial debute of screenwriter Steven Geghen, who won an oscar for his screenplay in Traffic, he does a good job of creating an eerie and creepy mood but the real reason to see this movie is for Katie Holmes. Holmes is simply superb. Right from the beginning we can tell there is something deeply disturbed and troubled about this girl. And Holmes never misses a beat. I might add how gorgeous she is and that I'm crazy about her. This is her first lead role too, after having supporting turns in movies like Wonder Boys and Go (unless you count Teaching Mrs. Tingle and Disturbing Behavior as lead roles). Benjamin Bratt is also quite good as the cop. I found the twist at the end to be predictable and saw it coming a mile away, still Abandon is very good movie.

[Mike]

ABANDON (2002)


I'm a little surprised by how much I liked Abandon. I thought the trailer was weird and it didn't really do anything for me. The TV spots weren't very good either. It was advertised as a predictable thriller, but that is far from the truth. Don't even expect a thriller from Abandon, or you will be very disappointed. I see it more as a psychological drama than a thriller. It's definitely not for everyone though. The pace is slow, but it didn't bother me. I was interested the whole time and never bored.

I can't get over how well made Abandon is. The music by Clint Mansell (Pi, Requiem For A Dream) was absolutely perfect. It was so hypnotic and dreamlike, I loved it. I also thought the cinematography by Matthew Libatique (Pi, Requiem For A Dream, Phone Booth) was fantastic, a real treat for the eyes. My favorite scene would have to be the strobe light scene. It was so trippy and magical. I'm a huge cinematography buff and I was really impressed by the work done here. Director and writer Stephen Gaghan (Traffic) did a teriffic job with this film. I really liked the claustrophobic feel of the dorm rooms and at the party. I also loved the darkly lit library, it was so perfect. The colors in the film are great, most notably the greens and blues. It really helped give off a cold and lonely feeling.

Katie Holmes was great. There's no telling if this film would have worked as well without her talent in the leading role. I found her to be very believable. Benjamin Bratt was alright and got the job done, but his performance was hardly anything special. Zooey Deschanel was good in her small role. Charlie Hunnam didn't impress me very much. I didn't give a crap about his character, who was basically just an annoying jerk for the most part. Katie is definitely the highlight of the cast.

I loved the twist ending. I knew it had a twist ending before seeing it, but it was different than I expected. I thought it was very wicked and it definitely put a smile on my face. It was a very nice touch.

I can't even describe how relieved I am that this wasn't the predictable connect-the-dots thriller that it looked like. It definitely won't appeal to everyone and is not the thriller it was advertised as. It's for mature and patient audiences. I'd almost compare the pacing to Unfaithful and They, which were also slow moving but interesting movies. If you are easily bored, then Abandon probably isn't going to appeal to you. You have to be in the right mood for it. I wouldn't recommend watching it tired, otherwise you'll probably be bored. I found it very interesting and was in awe of the cinematography and music, but there's a lot of people who don't feel the same way. I know I'm in the minority here, but I thought Abandon was very well done. In my opinion, it's a pretty underrated movie.

Grade: 7/10 or B or ***1/2 of *****

[dh1989]

"Abandon" is an awful film. The writing is vomit-worthy. It is all very juvenile. A thriller for 10 year olds who need everything to be simplistic. Anyone over the age of 10 should be able to see the ending before you put the DVD into the machine. Katie Holmes does try her best, but the writing is below her talent. The same goes with Benjamin Bratt. They are really slumming it. After "Traffic", we all know Gaghan is a great writer, but he obviously can't direct himself out of a paper bag. He has no sense of building tension. I felt calm during this whole film. Never was on the edge of my seat. Nor is the atmosphere creepy, mysterious, or interesting. Overall, a bland film with tons of flaws.

4/10

[The Arrow]

My first viewing of Abandon was far from satisfying but my second one was way more fullfilling. Knowing the game the narrative played from the get-go, I picked up on so many subtleties throughout, Katie Holmes still rocked and the depressing cinematography/style was the money (I love that shite).

If only the film had tightened up its pace, had less grating side players (Embry can kiss my ass and that male "friend" with the glasses was begging for a beating), had toned down on the Bratt subplot (and the guy is a drinker...yeah right) and had a more "unique" ending (too obvious).

Overall I dug it more the second time around and would give it a 2 1/2 on 4 now. So that would be a 6 on 10 I guess.

[Mike]

Originally posted by The Arrow
My first viewing of Abandon was far from satisfying but my second one was way more fullfilling. Knowing the game the narrative played from the get-go, I picked up on so many subtleties throughout, Katie Holmes still rocked and the depressing cinematography/style was the money (I love that shite).

If only the film had tightened up its pace, had less grating side players (Embry can kiss my ass and that male "friend" with the glasses was begging for a beating), had toned down on the Bratt subplot (and the guy is a drinker...yeah right) and had a more "unique" ending (too obvious).

Overall I dug it more the second time around and would give it a 2 1/2 on 4 now. So that would be a 6 on 10 I guess.

I agree! The cinematography was just excellent. It was a great movie to look at. After hearing how horrible it was, I was pretty surprised with it. It's not for everyone and people expecting a thriller will be disappointed, but people that don't mind a slower paced and very moody movie should be able to enjoy it. In my opinion, the music and cinematography were superb and was a very big part of why I enjoyed this one so much, not to mention the lovely Katie Holmes.

But I do agree with you about Embry (Charlie Hunnam) and that one geek in the glasses. Embry annoyed the shit out of me and I thought he was a preppy dick. And the friend in the glasses was also annoying. He was totally gay, not that it matters or anything, but it was obvious. I have no idea how a straight guy could actually just sleep in a bed with those three hotties (during the strobe light scene), so I'm sure he was gay. Plus, those girls seemed pretty much like his only friends. Anyway, both Embry and gay glasses guy bugged me.

I'm glad you enjoyed it more on your second viewing Arrow ;).

[RicochetShaw]

Originally posted by The Arrow
My first viewing of Abandon was far from satisfying but my second one was way more fullfilling. Knowing the game the narrative played from the get-go, I picked up on so many subtleties throughout, Katie Holmes still rocked and the depressing cinematography/style was the money (I love that shite).

If only the film had tightened up its pace, had less grating side players (Embry can kiss my ass and that male "friend" with the glasses was begging for a beating), had toned down on the Bratt subplot (and the guy is a drinker...yeah right) and had a more "unique" ending (too obvious).

Overall I dug it more the second time around and would give it a 2 1/2 on 4 now. So that would be a 6 on 10 I guess.

Weren't you in this movie?

[The Arrow]

Originally posted by RicochetShaw
Weren't you in this movie?

Yup but my scene was cut out of the final cut (story of my life). You can catch a glimpse of it on the DVD though in the "Deleted Scenes" extra. I'm in the “Alternative Theatre” deleted scene. That mime getting his ass whipped in the last frame of the feature is me.