[critical] The Ward

An asylum for young women is struck by the apparitions, the murderous ghost of an ex-interned.

Author’s Note

[rating:6/10]

• Release Date : 1 February 2012 in DVD and Blu Ray

• Directed by John Carpenter

• Film american

• With Amber Heard, Mamie Gummer, Danielle Panabaker

• Duration : 1h 28min

• Original title : The Ward

• Trailer :

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It is far the time where the master of the horror we made her shiver with fright with movies now worship as The Thing, in The mouth Of Madness, The Fog and the list goes on. John Carpenter was a shadow of himself, hoping to find a success far. Some were even went as far as to think that the director was a simple urban legend. Only now, John Carpenter is back ! It is not an April fool in advance because the film appeared in our rays on the 1st of February under the name of The Ward. The latter tells the sweet story of an asylum for young girls disturbed haunted in his spare time. Bouuuhhh it’s scary !

If in the background The Ward does not exclude a certain conventionnalité that will not cease to entice us into paths not trodden, but tilled to the utmost, the form is itself very correct. The atmosphere agonizing gaining in intensity as one enters more deeply into the subject, the decor is worthy of a genre film top of the range and the blatant lack of means has been eradicated thanks to a meticulous dosage of fantastic. Far from being back to its level of excellence, it is a John Carpenter more intelligent and less volatile than we have in the case. A director who prefers to play with what the viewer does not see to support a heavy atmosphere as possible and leave aside the visual effects, and awful if you don’t have a Kopek in his pocket. Its achievement an episode of a silly absolute in the series Masters Of Horror is the most beautiful example.

This was in addition to a cast that perfectly fulfills its role with in the head of the list a Amber Heard (All The Boys Love Mandy Lane, Hell Driver) in the role of this barbie doll evil that seems to stick to the skin. Then of course a few will be able to jeering against John Carpenter in reproaching him for having carried out a sort of Sucker Punch to the poor, and have therefore no praise to receive. To those people I would simply say this : in a world where the crisis makes people more numerous every day on the street, in a selfish world ruled by leeches thirsty for blood and power… Sorry it was my speech published on the website of Anonymous France. So, to resume where I was arrested : John Carpenter was obviously drawn to the right and to the left to find that inspiration that was lacking in recent years but he did it in a way so honest and intelligent that the entertainment is waiting for you.

Result is a genre film that will surely delight the fans of a movie based on a heavy atmosphere rather than on an excess of tripe, and sausage casings. Therefore, The Ward appears as a hybrid version of a Sucker Punch in collusion with The Ring or The Grudge. Not very creative I must admit but effective. One would expect little more from this direct-to-dvd.