Before you read any further, disregard any other reviews you may have read about “Awake.” While other reviews may have pegged the movie as boring and predictable, this psychological thriller was anything but.
“Awake” brings to the silver screen a nightmare come true for anyone who’s ever gone under the knife: being awake during surgery. According to the tagline of the film, the phenomenon known as anesthetic awareness is more common than we would like to think.
Clay Beresford (Hayden Christensen) is the unfortunate victim of the film, an uber-rich businessman who lives with his controlling mother (Lena Olin). Fearing his mother’s disapproval, Clay avoids telling her of his engagement to Sam (Jessica Alba), his mother’s assistant.
After suffering a heart attack at a young age, Clay is placed on a waiting list for a transplant. His friend and the doctor who saved his life, Jack Harper (Terrence Howard), reminds him that life is short and he needs to marry Sam before he runs out of time.
Finally a match is found and Clay is prepped for surgery. As the doctor puts the knife to his chest, Clay realizes that he’s way too aware of his surroundings: He’s fully conscious, yet completely paralyzed and thus incapable of making anyone aware of his condition.
Although the filming of the procedure itself was rather comical, with an understaffed surgical team, a laughable operating room and some unlikely circumstances, the film has many redeeming qualities that more than make up for the shortcomings.
“Awake” features some fantastic plot twists, surprising “Wait, what?” moments that may cause audience members to turn to their movie-going pals with gaping mouths and wide eyes.
The twists keep coming too, building on one another and keeping audiences engrossed in the film.
Other reviewers apparently have ESP, because they claim that these same plot twists were completely predictable.
Though Christensen’s acting at first is rather understated – think Anakin Skywalker on sleep medication – he makes up for the drowsiness during his heart surgery, convincing audience members that he is indeed feeling his heart being removed from his chest.
“Awake” does have some gore – it is a movie about open-heart surgery, after all – but the most disturbing aspect is imagining the pain that Christensen’s character must be feeling as the surgical team preps him for surgery and performs the procedure. His screams are incredibly convincing.
Clocking in at 78 minutes, the film is the perfect length. It allows enough time to thoroughly introduce the characters, build audiences up, release some tension, build to a climax and come to a satisfying resolution, all without leaving time for viewers to lose interest.
Best of all is that the movie fully explains itself; audiences won’t be left with any hanging questions.
“Awake” is thoroughly satisfying; a 78-minute thrill ride capable of hooking viewers from the onset and keeping them interested.
Popularity: 5% [?]