This boring british video is long on talk and is really hard to figure out. It has something to do with experiments on mentally ill people and a drug that opens the mind to parasites from another dimension( I think). There are some bloody scenes that liven it up a bit but this movie is so slow and disjointed they don't help. Maybe a bigger budget and script rewrite would have helped.
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toomuchman687 May 2003
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Ciaomaniac27 October 2003The artwork on the box that this DVD came in was infinitely more entertaining than the film (using that term loosely) itself.
I feel as though the creators of this film had a very good Stephen King type idea, but miserably failed at making it into a watchable movie.
Great story. Poor acting and poor filming, perhaps due to a poor budget?
Maybe someone out there will see this movie and re-create it to it's full potential... -
MillBay29 November 2004Whoa! This movie was bad. I can't believe how the DVD box in my local video store totally contradicted the actual movie itself. However, I won't claim false advertising. I was a sucker and blew about $2.00 Canadian to rent this thing. $2.00 that could have gone towards something far more useful, like bent paper clips or defective elastic bands. DO NOT BE TEMPTED BY THE MOVIE BOX. THIS IS A TERRIBLE FILM. The acting is wooden, the audio is worse. You really do not care what happens to the characters. It has already been mentioned that the idea was good, but it was not done right. I agree. The people who made this film did have a good idea and could have done a lot more with it.
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williammarts6432 January 2004Ok horror flick that has some good ideas. It's a little short on production budget though and some of the acting does suck but by in large the film kept you going with some intersting ideas, a good score and occasionally gory effects. 6 out of 10
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heyteegs28 November 2006Everything written about this movie in the other user comments is correct. The acting is good (Jeremy Minns, Terry Aaron), bad (Kiki Kebdrick, Azucena Duran), non-existent (Uri Geller), and over the top (Jared Morgan, Harold Gasnier). The music is very good; the editing is not. The story holds interest but is never fully explained. The dubbing is poor but not really intrusive because the dialogue is so trite.
So how did I get through this movie? Well, I didn't get (until they tell you at the very last minute) why the narrator was twenty years older than his on screen version. I didn't get how, at the end, the daughter was so involved when she was never before in the sanitarium. So, I watched it 2x FF. (I had to quickly relearn my Spanish to do this as there are no English subtitles.) This enabled me to enjoy it...somewhat. -
Absolute rubbish-no way does this story connect to anything resembling reality. Its a hotch potch of unfinished ideas and the most absurd plot line imaginable-the patients NOT injected are the ones who end up infected! Suddenly 5 people are shot and killed just like that. At the beginning the patients on the ward are cackling then suddenly they stop. There have been some great movies made with the mental home theme but this isn't one of them. I thought it can't be me-does anyone else understand this junk? Its either too damn clever for its own good -in which case its enough to give your brain a hernia-or perhaps its me who's mental.
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Where do I start with this one? There is no doubt that this is one of the worst pieces of trash I have ever seen. No, I'm not saying that because I disliked it a little and I'm definitely not exaggerating. This is on my list of top 5 worst films I have ever seen. The production values are absolutely TERRIBLE on the Region 1 DVD. I had my speakers on full volume and could barely make out what was going on. It was so full of static that it made me wonder if there was something wrong with my television. The visual aspect of the film is awful as well. It looks as though it was filmed on a Viewmaster.
It's hard to comment on other aspects of the movie like acting, simply because it's difficult to get past the disgraceful audio/visual quality. The storyline, however, is so convoluted and ridiculous that my head began to spin. If you can understand what's going on, or care enough to know what's going on, then you deserve a medal.
I see several 10/10 rated reviews and I can't help but think we're being duped. There is absolutely NO way that this film can be rated that high. I respect others' opinions, but these people MUST be associated with the film in one way or another.
It's utterly disgusting that trash like this gets released. People, such as myself, rent or buy stuff like this expecting a decent film and end up with a $20 frisbee. Stop releasing garbage like this! It's a disgrace to the horror genre and its fans. We should use films like these to torture Osama bin Laden if we ever find him. -
sgcim16 July 2005The fact that some people thought this film was good, shows how subjective the film experience can be.
The fact that this happens with every
film on the IMDb only supports that theory further.
However, this film seems to go out of its way
to reach new levels of badness.
When I saw that the co-writer and co-director was also the film's composer, I knew I was in for a treat.
Sure enough, the music consisted of two things, repeated over and over again for the entire movie. One was a piano arpeggiating a minor chord over and over, and the other was a pitiful attempt at some Bernard Herrmann marcato string lines, ala "Psycho".
The rest of the movie, acting, directing, writing etc... was just as bad. The ending was incredible- "They're testing it again!" End of movie. -
Sniperkay6 April 2005Sanitarium has shaken my cinematic beliefs. I once thought that Nymphoid Barbarian in Dinosaur Hell was the single worst film ever made. Now, i'm not so sure. What seems like quite a good idea for a plot, soon descends into needlessly complex twists, and just complete craziness. And not in a good way. Filmed in what looks like an old school, and using what looks like a £200 digi-cam, and edited on what looks like I-movie, the quality of the film leaves a lot to be desired. And that's putting it nicely. Presumably the budget didn't stretch to a microphone, as the entire thing seems to be dubbed over, making everyone's voice exactly the same volume, despite their location on screen. If this wasn't amusing enough, a lot of the blood appears to have been bizarrely animated by computer. All of this could be forgiven though, if the acting was any good.
The acting. Oh yes. i'm not sure if the cast consists of friends/family/general bystanders, but it ranks amongst the worst EVER. The acting in my friend's media coursework was far superior. The actors read in monotone, and with little change in pitch or tone, even the expression of the most simple of emotions seems beyond them. Maybe this is due to the voice-overs, but who knows. One highlight is the use of swearing, randomly placed around the script, making it 'gritty' (presumably). Max is the best, 'FFFUCK!' he pulls of with incredible emphasis, yet a monotone voice. Surely an achievement to be proud of.
The casting of the Uri Geller was totally pointless. He adds nothing, can't act, and just his being in the film immediately raises hilarious expectations. Though, much to my disappointment, he fails to bend any spoons or even natter on about how brilliant his mate Michael Jackson is.
This film is disastrous, the clunky, electric keyboard soundtrack compliments the woeful attempts at something serious. If the idea of a fat man dancing around balloons strikes you as scary, than this is for you. If you can believe someone requiring a tiny pocket torch to walk through a perfectly lit hospital corridor, than you'll like this. If you find the site of Uri Geller in a horror film neither amusing or cringingly embarrassing, then you'll get something out of this film. But I for one couldn't, so it's straight into the bin with you Sanitarium! -
peterjacob_19611 October 2003I got this movie after reading a review on digitallyobssessed.com and I have to say I was plesantly suprised - a low budget horror film that actually had a brain - this is not your average teens in a wood horror film - a lot of care has gone into the construction of the story line and it really keeps you hooked to the end - there are some nice sfx and a great atomsphere and bizzarley an acting turn by Uri Geller. Further unlike most low budget films these days it was actually shot on film rather than dv so it doesn't look like someone's home movie! Well worth a look - especially if you're after something a little bit fresher and more stimulating than a masked killer slicing and dicing people. Great score also!
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adam-byrne126 December 2005I know for a fact this was SHOT on £3,000 which is nothing and parts had to be dubbed and done again costing £7,000 in total. The whole story and idea of it is a pretty damn good one, the dialogue is not brilliant in places, but it is a good film tho. Not the best film obviously, but i liked it. It shows what can be done with feck all money. The acting isn't great, but you cant afford top actors when you have no money, the actors conveyed the story well enough to be watched. Uri geller....foock man what the hell....oh well. The film was not a Hollywood multimillion dollar project, it was a few thousand pounds shot on 16mm, so you cant expect the best things ever from it. Its not a bad film none the less. If you like your small budget Indy style films, and know what to expect from them then you will be a lot less critical about this film than others. Not really a scary film, some bits may make you jump, but it needs a little bit of thinking to understand the film properly, but it is good don't get me wrong. Mr Roberts new film forest of the damned is supposed to be a huge jump from this one. I am looking forward to it muchly. And I hear from certain sources that the film in the works station 13 is going to be much much bigger budget and will be one to really look out for. Watch this film, and bare in mind it was shot on almost nothing, and is a quite early attempt at film making by the director(s) watch the other newer films and watch the progression. wow i wrote a lot.
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RealHanzo4 March 2004I am almost 100% sure this movie was created from a videogame with the same name. If you are into video games and like the classic point-and-click adventure style, you're gonna love this one. Definitly you need to see both (the video game and the movie) before you can tell anything about the movie. Of course, the story is a little different, but it is the same thing. Actually the name of the main guy is the same: MAX. The plot seems to be a cliche, but as the real story reveals, you find out it is not such a thing! Forget about the low budget. This movie is awesome. The music is great and certain scenes make you believe you are really in a sanitarium. After all what could you expect from a movie with such title? Just what it has: Confusion, darkness, suspense and chills. This movie has it all, so, from my perpective, the movie reaches its goals. I am sure it was created not to be a big time but to create discussion, and leave you with a taste in your mouth. What taste? That depends on you...
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riyju4418 January 2006Check out this plot: experimental drug in a sanitarium ends up making all the people there go completely nuts, because of sanity juice sucking inter-dimensional parasites! I thought it was made in the early 80s due to the film quality and sound quality, but it turns out it was actually 2001! If you like bad horror movies, then this one is fantastic! There are so many things in this movie that make so little sense that you will be rolling around laughing hysterically.
The lights dim and all the colors in the room go weird and stuff sort of blurs, then someone will go "they really ought to fix that!" this happens with increasing intensity and no one seems to notice that anything is wrong. -
sarahsarah701812 January 2004I really enjoyed this - well written, low budget horror/thriller. It was just a great story and the ending defies belief - old mental patients dancing with ballons to gothic music, it really has to be seen to be believed!
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Sharp18 June 2004If this film was an intentional spoof, this film may have been watchable. What i find infuriating is that it was a serious horror flick. What a joke.
Of course, having a low budget will give complications and limit ones vision, but this film made no sense, the lighting was poor the sound was at a low and I have never seen such a bunch of wooden talentless actors. I'm just puzzled on how a film like this gets commissioned.
The plot was weak, it seemed to be based on a computer game as issues within the film were vague and when you feel there going to get to the point, it trails off into nowhere.
The camera work was sleepy, this is due to the directors lack of direction. How many wide shots would you like in a sequence. Far too many were used. i felt you are cheated out of beats because of this
To top it off, it was dubbed. A very poor attempt. I don't find the low budget to be a valid excuse as university projects are of better quality. If I handed this into my tutor. It would be a first class fail.
Uri Gellar? Get a grip. -
fundanny13 September 2003Goodness where do i start. Should i first mention this film's absolute inability to be coherent or maybe i should lament upon some truly awful wooden acting(especially Uri Geller's 'star' turn). Did i mention that the special effects are so side splittingly ridiculous that for a minute i seriously considered that this film might have been mislabelled and was actually intending to be a comedy? The basic plot is an unoriginal tale of strange goings on in an asylum, a new drug is being tested out and its introduction has coincided with a few gruesome(and gratuitously paraded)deaths. The faults that i have already referred to, along with some truly awful dubbing and a complete lack of a set budget(they must have spent the money on Geller's fee)destroy what little chance this film did have of creating any sort of atmosphere.
Save your money and leave this one for geeky medical students or hermits who would have no idea what a good film was if it slapped them in the face -
enri-5587410 March 2021This film looks like it was recorded with your dad's 1988 jvc vhs mini handheld used for recording home movies with the unsteadiness of a Parkinson's patient behind the camera. Avoid at all costs. Lent this movie to a friend; he chose tho watch it on a first date with a fellow horror movie fan... there was no second date. I have serious doubts about the forthcoming Resident Evil movie.