Brad Anderson's SESSION 9 is a thrilling psychological horror film that uses a haunting backdrop to weave a tale of deep terror. Called in to remove asbestos from the imposing,... more
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Session 9 [2001]
Few things are more sure-fire creepy than huge abandoned buildings, and Session 9 has one
... more
of the eeriest buildings you've ever seen. A hazardous-materials-cleanup company has been hired to eliminate asbestos tiles and other toxic material from a gigant...
Session 9 [2001]
Few things are more sure-fire creepy than huge abandoned buildings, and Session 9 has one
... more
of the eeriest buildings you've ever seen. A hazardous-materials-cleanup company has been hired to eliminate asbestos tiles and other toxic material from a gigant...
Advantages: This is a film about a lunatic asylum FILMED in a former lunatic asylum Disadvantages: Might be too slow for some
...being overcome with dread.
Session 9 works exactly on this premise and is one of the best films I have seen in recent months. I am a self-confessed horror movie buff, and to be frank, it takes a lot to either interest or impress me, but Session 9 achieved both and as I’m sat here on my own typing away, I still have that horrible prickly feeling down the back of my neck. If you had to pick the most disturbing location for a horror film, what ... ...the location of choice for Session 9. There is something inherently sinister about these buildings, born mainly from the fact that they usually have such terrible pasts. The twist here, however, is that the location used in Session 9 really WAS a lunatic asylum. As the cast wanders through the run-down wards and cells there is something extremely unsettling about the fact that the redundant equipment strewn around the lobotomy chamber really was ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Great atmosphere | Good acting | Very creepy Disadvantages: Pace can be too slow for some | Ending isn't perfect
...Session 9 tells the tale of four normal working class men on what they think is a routine job. The routine job in question is to clear out a sprawling building that used to be used as an asylum. Their boss, Gorden Fleming (Peter Mullan), is under a lot of pressure thanks to having a little baby he's desperate for the job so he wrangles a deal that will see them achieve their work in just a week in order to secure the deal. He has the help of Phil ... ...and suggestion. Hearing the Session tapes is certainly interesting to say the least and also a little creepy. The multiple personalities put on by the patient; each with their own voice and wildly opposite behaviours works much better hearing it than seeing it. The Session builds in intensity just as the film does and leaves its final 'person' in the tapes just as all the horror in the film is revealed. The film also plays on the sanity of the people ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Actor(s): David Caruso, Peter Mullan, Brendan Sexton III, Stephen Gevedon, Josh Lucas
Director(s): Brad Anderson
Genre: Horror
Classification: 15 years and over
Production Year: 2001
Running Time: 1 hour 36 minutes
Video Category: Feature Film
Plot: The Danvers State Mental Hospital closed down fifteen years ago. Now there's five strangers from the Elimination Company to clean it up. The hospital holds many secrets from its evil past...
Release details
DVD Region: Region 2 (Europe)
Studio(s): VISION VIDEO LTD.; UNIVERSAL MUSIC OPERATIONS
Release date: 17/02/2003
No of Discs: 1
Catalogue No: 907 017 1
Barcode: 3259190701717
Screenwriter: Stephen Gevedon, Brad Anderson
Executive Producer: John Sloss
Director of Photography: Uta Briesewitz
Producer: David Collins, John Sloss, Dorothy Aufiero, Michael Williams
Languages
Main Language: English
Technical information
Special Features: Audio Commentary, Deleted Scenes, Trailers
DVD Description
Brad Anderson's SESSION 9 is a thrilling psychological horror film that uses a haunting backdrop to weave a tale of deep terror. Called in to remove asbestos from the imposing, soon-to-be-renovated Danvers State Mental Hospital, the employees of the Hazmat Elimination Company are unprepared for what they're about to step into. The workers--Gordon (Peter Mullan), the troubled owner who has a wife and baby that he desperately needs to support; Phil (David Caruso), a crew chief who mourns his lost girlfriend by smoking marijuana; Hank (Josh Lucas), the cocky gambler who stole Phil's woman; Mike (Stephen Gevedon), a privileged law student who is fascinated with the hospital's history; and Jeff (Brendan Sexton III), Gordon's naive nephew--begin to unravel and give in to their own inner fears as the hospital wreaks havoc on their fragile mental states. As the week wears on, the disappearance of Hank brings the tension to a boil, resulting in a shocking series of events that only add to the creepy hospital's legend. With SESSION 9, Anderson proves that he is an immensely talented director who has the ability to work in a variety of genres and keep his deeply personal vision intact.
Professional reviews
Review: "...Startling and genuinely terrifying....SESSION 9 is a filmic experience that's impossible to brush off..." (Box Office, p.57, 01/08/2001)
"...SESSION 9 is a marvel of verite-nightmare atmosphere..." (Entertainment Weekly, p.44-5, 17/08/2001)
"...An ingeniously scary movie....SESSION 9 is so effective that its sense of uncertainty lingers long after the theater lights have gone up..." (Los Angeles Times, p.4, 10/08/2001)
"...The old hospital is a wonderfully photogenic place, full of picturesque rubble and odd spaces....The dialogue has an authentic working-class snap, and the performances are impeccable..." (New York Times, p.E15, 10/08/2001)
"...[The] sound design turns the psychological screws, and the score by band Climax Golden Twins creates its own atonal mental soundscapes..." (Variety, p.45, 13/08/2001)
