The Forgotten

One of the few times she isn't running

As The Forgotten begins, Telly Paretta (Julianne Moore) is grieving over the death of her son Sam (Christopher Kovaleski) in a plane crash. Telly is wallowing in sadness, spending much of her time is Sam’s room looking over photos and watching family home videos. But her understandable grief turns into frustration when her husband, Jim (Anthony Edwards) and her therapist, Dr. Munce (Gary Sinise), inform Telly she never had a son. According to her husband and therapist, as a result of the trauma of a miscarriage, Telly has created her own reality where she had a son.

"Where is my son?"

The photos and memories of Sam that Telly cherished begin to disappear and while everyone around her doesn’t remember her having a son, she refuses to let go of her belief. To try and discover what is happening, Telly goes to the one person she believes is in the same position, she seeks out Ash (Dominic West) whose daughter Laura was also killed in the plane crash. After Ash begins to remember that he did have a daughter, the two set out on a frantic chase for the truth.

The new Mulder & Scully?

The Forgotten offers some genuine heart pounding moments and some moments that will literally make you jump out of your seat, but they are only moments. Overall, it is not a particularly effective thriller. It does however offer the standard thriller twist at the beginning rather than the end of the film and so enjoyment is gained by learning, as the characters do, what is real and what is not. Julianne Moore and Dominic West are not an impressive on-screen team, but they do what is required of them. They look upset and shocked when appropriate and do A LOT of running. The supporting cast, including Anthony Edwards from the TV series E.R. and the always dependable Gary Sinise are criminally underused.

The Forgotten is swiftly paced and only runs for 87 minutes and so while it may not be a particularly memorable thriller, it manages to entertain for its short running time. But if you cut the running time down to an hour, replaced Telly and Ash with Mulder and Scully, you would have an outstanding episode of The X-Files.

What did I forget?

The 1.85:1 widescreen presentation of The Forgotten is very good being both sharp and clear. The only problems with the print are small amounts of grain on the image and poor shadow detail. Both these problems are a result of effects. The grain is most likely evident because of the process used to create the overall blue look of the film and the shadow detail often suffers because of intentionally high contrasts. In some very dark scenes, details are non existent. Apart from these issues I couldn't spot any film artefacts, compression issues and thankfully the layer change occurs between scenes.

The Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack excels in every aspect. Dialogue is always clear and audible and there are no audio sync issues. The across all channels mix is disturbingly effective, with ample ambience and wonderful atmosphere. The subwoofer kicks in for low humming and rumbling, completing an excellent and faultless audio package.

The audio commentary by director Jospeh Ruben and writer Gerald Di Pego is an excellent collaborative commentary. These two are wonderful because they concentrate on scenes rather than telling long stories about the whole film. Both men are wonderful in discussing the story, casting, locations and the actors.

Remembering The Forgotten is a decent 30 minute featurette that includes interviews with all the cast, the director, writer and the producers. Substantial information is provided in the short running time and a lot of plot points are discussed, so be sure to watch the film first.

On Set: The Making of The Forgotten is a more promotional 15 minute featurette consisting of cast and crew interviews.

A set of three deleted scenes, including an eight minute alternate ending are well worth a look.

The final extra is a theatrical trailer plus trailers for other Sony Picture releases, Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid, Little Black Book, Resident Evil: Apocalypse and Secret Window.

If you watch The Forgotten by yourself, in a completely dark room, you will most likely be a little creeped out. But be warned that this film does leave an awful aftertaste of confusion and annoyance. As a wise master once said, A few scary moments a thriller does not make.