![]() We know Phil needs job security but doesn't want to risk job safety. We get it that Gordon has a new kid and a family to feed on top of running a business. We get the time necessary to learn who each man is, what their personal needs are, and how the stakes of their work conditions affect them. Characters are slowly introduced one by one. Rather than cow-tailing to modern conventions of quick splatter gore and parody, the film takes its time to build dread. 'Session 9' is a study in dark, disturbing, and methodical independent horror cinema. ![]() With the pressure on, with Gordon's stress at its peak, tools, personal effects, and members of the crew start to go missing, it's clear to the men that the asylum holds deeper and darker secrets than the ones reported in the media or recorded on those eerie tapes. When the recordings reveal an assortment of personalities contained within one woman, the crew start to experience strange things. The asylum's sordid history comes to light when the crew discovers old audio recordings of a patient named Mary Hobbes. Internal personal difficulties start to dominate the work as does the creepy and unsettling location. That should be the motivation to ensure the job gets done right.Īs the crew gets down to work, problems start to arise. However, if everyone comes together, busts their backsides and gets the work done, they get to split a $10,000 bonus. A job that should be done in at least three weeks, no less than two, must now be done in one week. In order to secure the gig from the property manager Griggs (Paul Guilfoyle), Gordon has to cut a lot of corners. As Gordon is a new father, he's also facing the collapse of his business as he has a harder and harder time outbidding the competition. For Gordon (Peter Mullan), his partner Phil (David Caruso), and his asbestos abatement crew Mike (Stephen Gevedon), Jeff (Brendan Sexton III) and Hank (Josh Lucas), that's what cleaning out the old Danvers state asylum should have been. Get in there, strip out the asbestos, make a quick bonus check, and then go home happy and a few thousand dollars richer. Such is the case with Writer and Director Brad Anderson's breakout independent horror/thriller 'Session 9.' While the film features a talented cast of actors such as David Caruso, Josh Lucas, Peter Mullan, and Stephen Gevedon, it's the film's location of an actual dilapidated former asylum that carries the film, drives the story forward, and builds the constant sense of dread and paranoia. While having these characters is absolutely essential, that sustained sense of ambiance and dread can make or break the final product. These elements can even outweigh the importance of clean, well-drawn characters played by talented actors. Atmosphere, mood, location, can often trump all other essential elements when it comes to crafting an effective and unnerving thriller.
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