Irresistible (2006)

(Some slight Spoilers) Well acted and written story about the heart-breaking loneliness of being abandoned at a very young age and how it's shapes the mind to the point of conjuring up a twisted sort of pseudo-vengeance and false sense of justice on the part of the person effected.

Sophie Hartley has been going through very hard and stressful times of late with her mothers unexpected death and having to look after her elderly father. But Sophie's job as a writer and illustrator of children books of-sets them keeping her mind focused on her work.

Happily married to Craig with two cute and loving daughters Anna & Ruby Sophie is getting over her moms death until a number of strange things start to happen to her. things which she later strongly suspects are being orchestrated by her new next door neighbors wife, or live in girlfriend, Mara. Mara for her part is at the time working for Sophie's husband Caig, an architect, as his assistant which has Sophie strongly suspect that she's trying to steal Craig away from her.

Beautiful but somewhat on the weird side Mara seems to be mimicking Sophie In everything that she does. Even wearing the same cloths that in one case when one of her dresses go missing, Sophie suspects that she stole from her home. Slowly being driven insane Sophie falls behind in her work and almost causes her daughter Ruby to overdose on cough medicine. Because her mind is so out of focus over her fear of Mara and what Mara is trying to do to her and her family. It later turns out that Mara is indeed interested in Craig and pulls out all stops one evening in his office just about throwing herself at him. With Craig at first reluctantly then gladly giving in to her advances.

Sophie for her part has become so obsessed with Mara that she sneaks into her home, looking for items that she suspects Mara of stealing from her, and is arrested for breaking and entering. At her trial Sophie is ordered by the presiding judge to stay as far as 500 yards away from Mara, and her boyfriends Jimmy's, home. Losing her mind and not caring what happens to her Sophie again breaks into Mara's place looking for the family cat who was seen there and is trapped, by Mara, in the basement. This happened as both of Shphie's children, Anna & Ruby, are upstairs playing and dancing together with Mara.

Trying to break out Sophie looking through a number of personal effects of Mara stored there in the basement sees the real reason for her violent dislike of her and why she's going to such great lengths to hurt and even kill Sophie. Which leads to the final and fiery confrontation between the two with both of them ending up in the hospital emergency ward. The really big surprise comes at the very end of the movie when you think that you've already found out the reasons for Mara's strange and unstable behavior. And it's about as shocking, as well as surprising, as anything you'll ever see in a surprise-ending film.

Susan Sarandon and Sam Neill as Sophie and Craig Hartley are excellent as the befuddled and targeted, by Mara, couple who have no idea to what's happening to them throughout the entire movie. with Emily Blunt as the cunning and manipulative Mara pulling all the strings and driving both of them out of their minds and in the case of Sophie almost into prison or a mental institution. It's without a doubt the ending to "Irrisistable" that's so effective yet cryptic ,that you have to watch it twice to really figure it out

Fmovies: Dreadful mess of a film. Lousy, mixed up plot, poor direction, strange choice of location, indeed a complete balls up of a film. Why Sarandon, an otherwise decent actress chose the script I can't imagine. Besides that, Sarandon is too old. Sam Neil is wooden, something which does work to his advantage in previous outings but not here. Emily Blunt is best as she is creepy, I suspect in reality too... The worst aspect of this film is it's sheer verbosity; with the dialogue stripped down 80% it would have been less risible. The locations were largely unsuitable, reminding me of Ramsey street; although with some variation and careful camera work their mundane nature could have added some desperately needed tension. The director isn't one I've heard of, hardly surprisingly; I'd suggest they turn to making washing powder commercials.

I was pleasantly surprised by "Irresistible", which turned out to be a deftly made thriller with just enough twists and turns to keep the viewer guessing. Some were a bit more predictable than others, and others really came from left field and will likely be the dividing point on this one, but it was a surprisingly enjoyable view. What seems to begin as a genre piece leaning heavily on the excellent 1940's films "Gaslight" really mentally becomes three different parallel story lines. The questions that stick in your mind throughout much of the film and offer those three simultaneous scenarios are due to a first rate performance by Susan Sarandon. A lesser actress would have been a complete embarrassment in this film, but her no holds barred presence builds up what could have been a little throwaway flick.

Irresistible fmovies. Irresistible is a stunning, tense drama with a great cast. Susan Sarandon is brilliant as a working mother of two - we're never quite sure if she is going mad or just overwrought due to deadlines she can't meet. Sam Neill gives a wonderful performance as her husband trying to be supportive but not quite sure how to handle the situation. UK newcomer Emily Blunt is great as Sam Neill's beautifully seductive co-worker. Irresistible is an intelligent and captivating drama - the directing is superb and the performances are strong. It held me at the edge of my seat. This is another impressive film to come from Australia. I highly recommend this excellent film!

I noticed this listed in the TV section of the Sunday newspaper, and with its stars, and 2006 release date, assumed I'd missed it last year when it must have played theaters here, and I was out of the country for an extended period.

I also glanced at a few of this site's first few comments, and just encountered some highly-enthusiastic ones. Didn't have time to look at others, and then tonight tuned it in.

What a piece of nonsense - and I wish I had read some of the later comments. Can see why it went "straight to video." And as I read some of the later comments here during the earlier part of the flick, I must admit, though, I got somewhat fascinated by its awfulness.

Some movies are so "bad," they're almost fascinatingly "good." This wasn't one. The word DULL describes every aspect of the movie: the writing; the acting; the dimension (i.e. lack thereof) of the characters.

The little girls were cute and totally "cardboard" additions to the cast. Sam Neill looked like he needed a gallon of coffee, strong enough to provide a caffeine high, with a half-bottle of uppers dissolved in the brew. Susan Sarandon has proved herself a real pro at schlepping around in some of her past performances, but positively outdid herself here. The new, young ingénue, whom others here have praised, was only a bit less wooden than Sam, and did her share of schlepping as well.

I really had trouble even relating (much less caring) as to just what in the hell Susan was doing in her work. As an architect, it would seem that Sam, with his level of energy, would probably take a year to design a chicken coop.

And the ending's "big twist" (after a previous twist), was slightly confusing, too brief and undramatic, and by then, who in the hell would care anyway?

Was it the worst movie ever? No. Was it below mediocre? Yes. Surprisingly poor development for a reputable cast. I don't blame the actors, but rather the writer, director and editor. timing was off, story development was poor and unimaginative. I kept expecting it to go somewhere other than the obvious. It didn't. The ending was amateur at best. Don't rent it. Wait until it comes on the Sunday morning showcase on public TV when the weather forbids you from going outside, there are no children's shows or Gilligan's's island reruns on to compete for your attention, and you've already vacuumed 4 times. While it wasn't so offensively horrible like the other reviewer insinuated, there are definitely better things to do with your time (counting spots in the carpet, memorizing the different Chinese dynasties, talking to an imaginary friend).