Or ‘Bauer through the Looking Glass’ if you’re a 24 fan…

Kiefer Sutherland takes time out of his busy 24 filming/Parole schedule to star in this US unofficial adaptation of Japanese Horror movie ‘Into the Mirror’.  He plays a shamed LA cop and recovering alcoholic who takes a job working security for a burnt out department store, only to experience sinister visions in the surviving mirrors.  He soon finds that the mysterious goings-on aren’t limited to his work place and though greeted with scepticism, he fights to protect his family.

“Some of the inherent scariness is lost in the transition…”

Mirrors bears all of the hallmarks of J-horror remakes, like ‘the Ring’ and ‘the Grudge’ before it, with the film tapping into universal fears and twisting them into an inescapable, relentless evil, whilst throwing in snapshots of distressing imagery along the way.   Like its contemporaries though, some of the inherent scariness is lost in the transition, presumably in trying to make it more accessible to western audiences.  Also, whilst there are some effectively eerie scenes, the frights that follow don’t come nearly as frequently as they should, the plot devotes more time to the shallow detective work as the history of the building and its sinister events are unearthed. 

“…events are freaky enough to catch Bauer on the back foot”

French director Alexandre Aja – who also directed ‘The Hills have Eyes’ remake – has made a shrewd move casting Sutherland as the focus of the film.  His character here is indistinguishable from 24′s Jack Bauer (bar a few scars) -even down to the clothes he wears, so character building is largely discarded as unnecessary and if events are freaky enough to catch Bauer on the back foot, then it can only boost the fear factor can’t it?  It doesn’t do Sutherland any favours though; he’s even more likely to be typecast after 6 seasons of 24 and this on his CV over the past half decade.

“It’s not for the squeamish”

There are some twists and turns along the way, and it’s not for the squeamish, but Mirrors is formulaic horror fluff.  All the usual ingredients are present, the haunted house, small child possessed, and the disbelief in the film’s protagonist (is it all in his head?) and you can’t help but feel as though you’ve seen it all before, and done better. 

On reflection, this is a viable alternative to the next re-tread of the Saw franchise this Halloween, but it’s standard stuff and Kiefer Sutherland starred in much better horror films 20 years ago – why not rent out the Lost Boys or a 24 box set instead? 

Rating **

Listen to the review as featured on BBC Radio Sheffield, Leeds and York on Wednesday 29th October.   The Fundulgence radio reviews feature in their weekly Wednesday slot (around 10.30pm) – tune in at 88.6FM or listen online.