directed by:
Cassandra Bryson written by: Cassandra Bryson genre: Thriller, Horror |
Eighteen-year-old Clara Banks has a problem, and it's not what you think. Her problem? She's simply having too much fun catfishing random men online and receiving tokens of their affection. For those who don't know, catfishing is the act of pretending to be someone you're not - and Clara has it down pat. Not only does this all entail emails and such back and forth - but also pictures. Pictures Clara has scraped online. As said in the film, it's not like she was cheating on her boyfriend or anything like that - the pictures were not even her own.
Most people reading this will understand what happens next. This is a thriller, after all. Clara gets the attention of someone she will come to wish she didn't - and all hell breaks loose. Literally. "Fisher" is a film that enlists a lot of help from religion. At first, I thought this would end up being a "Se7en" clone, but I'll admit that I was pretty far from the mark. As Cassandra Bryson's flick edged closer and closer to the finish line, it slowly became evident this was another beast altogether. There was no comparison at all by the time Clara's brake lines were cut during the movie. But does that mean "Fisher" is completely unique? No, reader, it does not. However, that's not a bad thing. By the time the final scenes unraveled - followed by some events a few months later, I couldn't deny that "Fisher" definitely had its charms. Perhaps not a perfect film, but it did the trick. Anyone interested in the thriller, slasher genre - "Fisher" may just tide you over until the next big blockbuster. Did I mention this was a low-budget indie flick and still kept me interested for around two hours? Nice job. So, reader, Yes. I'll concede that I rather enjoyed "Fisher" much more than I thought I would. With that said, however, there were a few aspects I had wished to see more of, and perhaps others less. The first thing that I think of when writing my thoughts on this movie? It's about half an hour too long. There's a fine line between building depth and adding a little too much. That's why they invented director's cuts! Where would these cuts come from? In my humble opinion, the first sixty percent of the film because I felt absolutely no lag during the final act. Hard choices? Sure. But I think that this film would have earned another half star or more with a slicker and stricter edit. There was a lot of repetition or unnecessary elements during this movie's first one and a half acts. As for what I would have liked to have seen? More scenes involving the relationship between Micah and his father.
Now, what did surprise me? The generous use of religion within the story - but not for the reasons you probably think. "Fisher" plays off like a religious cautionary story, and it is - with one big difference. As the film unfolds, you begin to realize that Bryson's film is not painting religion as a thing of perfection. Quite the opposite, actually. I found it pretty intelligent to use religion as a crutch of sorts and slowly twist things. I won't say much more on the subject and recommend anyone reading this to watch for themselves. As I more or less states earlier, you won't be sorry you did. When it's all over, I only really have one thing to say. "Fisher" far exceeded my expectations on almost every level. Perhaps it could have been a little tighter in spots, but Bryson's film gave me two hours of entertainment overall. What more could you hope for? For some, the first act and some of the second may feel a little slower-paced - but trust me, things pick up quickly. A solid three and a half stars. Well done. |
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