Vacancy

Release date: April 20, 2007
Directed by: Nimrod Antal
Starring: Luke Wilson, Kate Beckinsale, Frank Whaley, Ethan Embry

Tinseltown has been riding the horror movie bandwagon pretty consistently since the release of Scream. Expect this trend to continue a little longer due to lower-than-average budgets and lowered expectations. Plus, these films are killing in the DVD market.

The latest edge-of-your-seat thriller is Vacancy, a film that appears to give away most of its plot in the trailer. David (Wilson) and Amy Fox's (Beckinsale) marriage is in tatters. They're driving back from what will be their last trip together before signing the dotted line on their divorce papers. David takes a short cut off the interstate on to a desolate road and gets lost.

Things go from bad to worse when the car starts acting up. Fortunately, a gas station and a motel are in the distance, so David and Amy go there for help. A lone station attendant informs them that they've been going the wrong way. They back track, but their car breaks down a mile away from the gas station. But before going back, they banter back and forth bitterly.

Realizing that the station attendant is gone, David and Amy get information from the motel clerk (Whaley), whose creepy behaviour makes them uneasy. He suggests the honeymoon suite and they reluctantly check into it. While trying to unwind, David discovers some videocassettes and plays one. Initially he thinks it's a slasher film, but then realizes that the people are being brutally murdered in the same room he's in. After the couple discover that they're being filmed, they try to escape the room before unwillingly becoming the next snuff film participants.

Vacancy is the second outing for director Nimrod Antal since Kontroll, a favourite on the film festival circuit a few years ago. This film is packed with horror movie cliches and a Hitchcock flavour. But Antal isn't trying to recreate the wheel. He's made the same cat-and-mouse, roller-coaster ride before. This is essentially about watching the helpless duo try to make it out alive.

The idea of Vacancy is good, but the execution is a little flat. The film lacks suspense and twists. But to its credit, Vacancy doesn't purport to be something that it's not. It's fast-paced, clocks in at under 90 minutes and would be a fine escape as a late-night rental.