Some movies scare me. Some movies make me think. And some movies get into my head and fuck around in there until I want to tear at my skull with an ice pick because it won't go away.
Session 9 is the third type of movie. I cannot stop thinking about it. Since last night after I turned it off to when I was in the shower this morning to right now as I type this review. Questions, visuals, and sounds keep swimming in my thoughts which not only make me discover more about the movie but also makes the movie more frightening with every thought I have.
Out of my head, movie!
Of course it didn't help that I was watching this alone, in the dark, at my computer, while Stac was on YIM telling me how many nightmares this movie gave her. AH the power of suggestion! Remind me to never watch something recommended by Stac in the dark again...EVER.
If you find me curled up in a fetal position in my closet, rocking back and forth as I drool on my own shoulder you'll KNOW who's fault it is.
The movie is a simple film if you try to write a synopsis. A team of asbestos workers are hired to work on an old broken down mental hospital so it can be used for office space. One of the workers finds audio tapes of therapy sessions with a patient named Mary. Mary suffers from multiple personalities and one in particular, Simon who doesn't show up until Session 9. Meanwhile, shenanigans...horrible horrible shenanigans occur to our team. To say more will be to give the movie away. And part of the fuckery of this movie is the surprises it has.
The film is one of those wonderful less is more type of movies. There is very little gore and absolutely no cat scares at all. But the very few moments of violence are intense and disturbing. You expect some evil thing to pop out of a door and scream in your face but there is never a heart stopping scare. What you do get is this overpowering feeling of dread, horror, and fear that suffocates you until you finally give in. The visuals are simply stunning using stark lighting, creepy rusting old furniture, and dilapidated rooms.
What I loved (and what disturbed me the most) about Session 9 was its use of sound. The use of screams in everyday sounds, the sounds of victims in their death throws, the strange tones of Mary's personalities, and the off putting music created the environment of the movie, making mundane images feel strange and alien.
The long shots that follow our actors from doorways to windows, sweeping across vistas of blackness as they pass a wall or a hallway make the viewer feel like someone was watching the team or workers at all times. In fact someone WAS watching them at all times. But I can't say who or it will give everything away.
The movie is all questions. From the beginning and almost to the very end. While the ending does wrap up the lose ends, it still leaves just enough mystery for the viewer to think "huh...wait..did what I see really happen?".
...crap I'm not sure what else to say about the movie without giving it away...
So before I give away spoilers and you don't want to read further let me say that if you like movies full of total mind fuckery this is a movie to check out. Don't let the slow pace and the beginning fool you. Its really freaky.
If you've seen the movie or if you like spoilers, continue on down.
SPOILERS!
Do not read further if you hate spoilers!
To tied you over, here's a picture of a kitten.
And a watermelon.
And a kitten with a watermelon.
Okay...Back to my thoughts.
So I went to do some research on IMDB...if you can call it research. What you usually find on IMDB are screeching Internet harpies claiming "OMG! This Movy is SOO nut SCARRY!!1!" on every message board. But if you wade through the crap, you can sometimes find a decent interesting post.
While reading through the forums I found that numerous people assumed that Simon was a demon. That Simon possessed Mary as a child during a moment of trauma and convinced her to kill her family. When our team of workers came in to tear the hospital apart, it awoke Simon and he took over Gordon and the cycle continued. I think that's a reasonable conclusion since the film is so ambiguous in its ending. But it really isn't the conclusion I came to.
I never really saw Session 9 as a supernatural horror film. Its creepy, strange and horribly unnerving but I really didn't see any supernatural elements in it. For me Simon isn't a demon but that deep, dark, nasty side that lurks in all of us. That dark side that threatens to come out whenever we're subject to trauma or pain or an overabundance of stress. Simon said "I live in the weak and the wounded". Both Mary and Gordon were weak and wounded. And when their time came, Simon took over and convinced them to kill. For me, knowing that Simon is an entity that lurks in all of us is far scarier than a demon someone happened to stumble upon.
I also found that the use of the camera movements were very symbolic of what was happening to Gordon. Throughout the movie he was losing his mind. He was always lurking about the building, watching his fellow team mates even though the audience never knew so. The camera would take on a voyeur style of filming with the other characters. But whenever Gordon was in the shot or the primary focus it went back to standard movie shots. VERY subtle and VERY clever.
I really don't know why this movie got me in the gut as hard as it did. But it REALLY did. Possibly because I don't like discussing my dark side. Oh I KNOW its there but I rather not have it come out. Session 9 gives us the idea that anyone at any time can turn into a monster. You can give to charity, have a loving family,or be a product of total normalcy but it still cannot stop that horrible monster from coming out of you and killing everyone. Everyone at some point feels weak and wounded and everyone at some point will fight the urge to let Simon take over.
Personally I don't want to deal with my inner Simon.
Session 9 makes you ask a lot of questions, not just about the film but about yourself as well.
Trust me...its worth it.
Just don't watch it alone...in the dark....while Stacy is poking you on YIM about how this movie will drive you insane.
Okay we weren't just talking about that. We were also talking about our creepy Japanese Dolls but STILL!
The next damn film I'm going to watch is going to MUCH more light hearted.
...I have the sudden urge to pop in Nightmare on Elm Street to cleanse my pallet.
