Renée Zellweger stars in her first horror film in 15 years (her last one being 1994's 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation') as Emily Jenkins, a social worker who is given Case 39, a file containing a child abuse case involving a young girl named Lilith (Jodelle Ferland). As the case goes on, Emily becomes fond of Lilith and eventually decides to adopt her after Lilith's parents try to murder her. Emily, however, begins to notice strange happenings occurring around Lilith that cannot be explained.
One major issue that comes from any "big twist" type of movie is the problems with predictability. If a viewer figures out the whole secret of the film, nothing but boredom will ensue. 'Case 39' is one film that greatly suffered from this problem. The entire movie can be figured out within the first few frames of the film. From that point on, it becomes a clock-watching game until the final act when the "surprise" is supposed to be revealed. Typically, this problem can be made more bearable with an interesting cast of characters or some creative filmmaking. 'Case 39,' however, has nothing to rescue viewers from the boredom. Throw in some bad CGI, some unthrilling action sequences, and a thoroughly typical finale, and we have ourselves 'Case 39.'
Final Verdict: 4/10.
-AP3-
One major issue that comes from any "big twist" type of movie is the problems with predictability. If a viewer figures out the whole secret of the film, nothing but boredom will ensue. 'Case 39' is one film that greatly suffered from this problem. The entire movie can be figured out within the first few frames of the film. From that point on, it becomes a clock-watching game until the final act when the "surprise" is supposed to be revealed. Typically, this problem can be made more bearable with an interesting cast of characters or some creative filmmaking. 'Case 39,' however, has nothing to rescue viewers from the boredom. Throw in some bad CGI, some unthrilling action sequences, and a thoroughly typical finale, and we have ourselves 'Case 39.'
Final Verdict: 4/10.
-AP3-