1 I hated this false advertised movie!
I anxiously looked forward to seeing this movie when I saw a lengthy promo of it at one theater's 20 minutes worth of movie news and ads. It sounded like a spiritual film in the vein of "Dragonfly", which I loved. So, when this film was released, I eagerly went to the theater to see it. Things didn't look to good when I was the ONLY PERSON in the theater. The first half of the movie was reminiscent of "Dragonfly" (another spiritual film about a middle aged man whose wife dies and attempts to contact him). Another positive was that this film was set in Vancouver (one of my favorite cities). Then it goes down from there.
Since I was the only one in the theater, it was downright frightening when the movie took a turn for the worse. It went in the opposite direction as "Dragonfly" and instead of leaving the theater inspired, I probably left pale white and sickened to my stomach. In a word...this film is EVIL. I hated it. The only redeeming value I give it is to say that this film is meant as a warning...not to mess with some things of the spirit world that amateurs have no business wading into. I got that much out of it. This film is scary if you believe that there are evil earthbound spirits looking for humans to manipulate. Its slow moving though and if you're expecting another "Dragonfly" (which I give 5 stars), then you will be disappointed by this film. "White Noise" is more along the lines of "Se7en"...very dark and uncomfortable viewing experience. As one lady warned Michael Keaton in the film...don't say you haven't been appropriately warned.
2 was not what I expected
Hey you Horror Lovers;
Well let me say that I did not see gost the way they potraid it.
It was about a man, and his wife who was killed by a serial killer.
they showed these gost like image on tv. Then his wife trys to contact him through the tv, you see her asking him to go here and there, to save some of the women who was also being kidnap.
like I said, boring...and the ending was awfull..what makes sooo
upset is that they make it sound so good, when in reality, is boring..and it does not make sence...
3 Made for TV movie
This movie sucked in plain in ENGLISH.... seeing the previews for this film did look very good and creepy. I am into horror movies and I got to say this movie didn't scare me at all. To me this movie should have been made for television like NBC who usually have movies like this one. I sat in the theater with my friend and we both were bored and couldn't wait for the film to end. Not to forget the acting in this one is pretty bad and Michael Keaton really looked old, nothing against this actor but he didn't impress me at all. I know I'll never bother to see this film again I rather watch The Exorcist The Beginning..... even though this one wasn't good either but better than White Noise get it? I'm sure you do....
4 EVP: Entertainment Vs. Predictability
When I saw the trailer for this last year, it looked like it was going to be one of the creepiest movies in a long time. The trailer had ghostly voices of dead people coming from all sides of the theater whispering things like "Get out of my house" as you watched a screen full of green static. It gave everyone I know chills when they saw it, and when I found out Michael Keaton was going to be in it, I thought it would be even better. Then, the movie came out.
How this movie failed to give chills down the spine, I do not know. The set-up and premise were perfect. Alas, the director decided to make a low-rent variation of 'The Sixth Sense'. Keaton plays a father who loses his wife and then starts to hear voices coming from the static in his radio. Instead of seeking professional help, he decides to stalk a weird guy who's been stalking him outside his office and finds out about EVP, which enables you to hear the dead speak. Keaton wants to try and contact his wife, but is told not to mess with the phenomena, for certain "strange things" have happened.
A fascinating movie could have come from the phenomena of EVP, and a very scary one as well. Instead, the story goes downhill, flashing CGI at us, showing us evil ghosts that are somehow connected to the static and want to escape. This really should have been something, and Keaton deserves a much better comeback vehicle than this.
5 White Noise, indeed.
"Meh..." I thought as I walked out this movie.
Completely disregarding the fact that it is a January movie, I had high hopes for "White Noise". There are some creepy situations one can explore when speaking of EVP. This film fails to find even one thing creepy.
The Opening:
It began VERY, VERY slowly-- It took quite a while for Michael Keaton's wife to die. Everyone who saw the trailer new she was going to die, so why not get that part over with? Anyway, even after enduring the snail-like beginning, I still was quite intrigued.
The Body:
Not too bad, actually, to a point. The plot was alright, until the fortune-telling part.
It wasn't the greatest setup, but the situations had some potential to hit the audience with an ending so large and spectacular, it would render them catatonic. Who were the three shadowy figures? Were they some sort of angels, demons, robots? What was their motive? Did they need human flesh to survive in the upper world, so that they could assimilate into the body of the president and take over, uh, Morocco? Why did the woman, who had no suicidal tendencies jump off a balcony? Was she possessed? Did she see an Oreo on the sidewalk? Who knows! 'Cause they don't tell you a single thing! You know, I like movies that leave a few unanswered questions to get the audience thinking, but DUDE! Tie up a few of those loose knots, will ya? I started to loose faith in the movie when they went from speaking to the dead to predicting the future. Now, c'mon! That was gettin' a little ridiculous. The plot became so absurd, that I swore little forest imps would appear to give Mr. Keaton the power to fly. Sheesh!
The End:
I thought I had seen it all until this monstrosity appeared. The ending was an M. Night Shyamalan wannabe, but totally failed on every level...I just can't explain it in words...It was horrible, ridiculous, absurd! They best summary I can give you is that it...sucked. If you want to see it, by all means, try to figure it out. Otherwise, save the cash.
6 Oh dear!
This film starts off with some genuinely chilling effects but by the end leaves you wondering how it ever got produced. The ending is completely cliched and it is very difficult not to laugh as the credits roll. One worth missing.
7 scariest movie i have seen in a long while
while in the theater getting ready to watch shawn of the dead, i saw a preview for white noise, and it scared me. i immediately thought i must see this film. so a week after it came out( i waited for my friend to get leave) i went to see it. it was kind of cheesy at times, but it delivered the goods. i was frightened, and jumped out of my seat more than once. i will buy this movie on dvd for the surround sound alone. the sounds in that film are freaky, and boost my rating of the movie. i dont know if i would recommend it for a definite buy, but it sure warrants a rent.
8 A Scary And Entertaining Movie!!!!!
My name is Tucker and this movie is so,so,so,so scary when I saw it in theaters. Everybody was screaming at a scary part and clapping because it scared them so much. If you hate screaming then you won't like this movie. Because two teenage girls scream the whole movie.
9 A Great Movie!!!!
This is a great movie I've mentioned that before but I just can't stop saying it after I saw this movie. It has a lot of scary and frightening parts in the film. If you think this movie isn't scary than you don't know scary. Buy this movie and you won't be sorry.
10 Mommy, do you see the people in the t.v.?
To start off: I don't like horror movies, so that my cloud my thinking in whether or not this was a good movie, but I thought the plot was lame. Yes, it was scary, no doubt about that. (Think about it...How would you like people screaming at you through your television, and no, it's not an infomercial?) So the story starts off as usual. Guy's wife dies mysteriously, guy tries to go on with life when stranger confronts him and tells him he can speak to his wife. Guy then becomes obsessed. BLah blah blah, you know the rest. However, the scary moments in White Noise were scary. The noises were kinda annoying, but it was scary. I will so not deny that. So it sums up to this: If you like horror movies that have no plot whatsoever but provide the freaky factor, get this movie. Otherwise, move to a different movie.
11 Excellent movie
This wasn't like any horror film i've ever seen, you have to do some thinking, but when you think about it it was clever. I liked the part where his dead wife shows him people in trouble, like when he put his nose to the moniter and that lady came up, that made me jump. also when he went to rescue her, he rested his nose on the glass window of the car, and she scares the heck outta him. Very clever.
12 This Movie Sucks So bad i cant even describe it.
If i had the option to give this movie 0 stars i would. The trailer is better than the actual movie. I think is one of the worst movies i have ever seen. The grudge was a peice of crap too but it was way better this this garbage. If you like this movie you seriously have some mental problems. 0 STARS. Not worth renting and definitly not worth buying. If it was offered to me for free i wouldnt take it. And i am not one to turn down free stuff but this i would.
13 For the love of God, don't ever watch this
This movie is one of the worst movies I have ever seen. If you have an IQ over 60 and aren't a fan of horrible cookie cutter movies with no real plot, horrible acting, and a just plan retarded premise DO NOT waste money on this movie. I wish I had the 2 hours and $8 back. That idea is more scary than the movie, it actually keeps me up at night...
14 100% Crap
I really had high expectations for this movie and I was sorry Michael Keaton had to be in this P.O.S. movie. It's sad that true fans of this genre have to sit through so many bad cookie cutter PG-13 horror films just so it will make a few extra bucks.
15 the movie is AWESOME!
This was a great movie. It kept me in suspense the whole movie and that's what thrillers are all about. I admit, it was a little hard to understand, but after I pieced everything together, I figured it out. I think everybody who thinks it's a waste of time is WRONG. I highly recommend going to see this movie.
16 What a shame !
Is there any explanation for this big waste of time ? I'm really upset to pay 8? for movies like this. Poor Bruce Wayne, now he can stop the acting job. There's no more good movies.
The story begins but never ends. The best part is when the 3 shadows get out of the screens and kill Keaton. I don't get it.
By the way, you never speak of the dead that way! people don't have any respect! My advice, don't waste your money for this piece of trash.
17 More noise, less cliche
White Noise tells the story of widower Jonathan Rivers (Michael Keaton) who is contacted by his late wife using EVP (Electronic Voice Phenomenon). The opening scene is a by the book `meet the happy family' moment that turns sour when Jonathan's wife goes missing. Barring one rather confusing and unexplained plot twist, this formula thriller is as predictable as they come. Like in other slow ghostly suspense films, most recently The Others, Sax tries to characterize his settings as co-conspirators. What he ends up with is about forty minutes of location footage that should have stayed in the scouting binder. Interestingly, Jonathan Rivers is an architect, and there are numerous aerial establishing shots that mirror those small cardboard plans that architects hover over, and the attention Sax lavishes onto Rivers' waterfront home and apartment home borders on the obsessive. Clearly, there was some intent in all this, perhaps to establish `everything' as haunted and ominous, but it fails. Michael Keaton stumbles through the film like a zombie, hitting his lines near the mark if not directly on. His performance is only dull because the character is dull. He falls into the same horror movie traps as they all do, backing into rooms for no reason, persisting ahead despite strange noises and terrible tidings. As a result, White Noise does offer up a few scares. I'll leave the details of the one plot twist out so as not to spoil it for anyone dead set on seeing this film, but like I mentioned before, it doesn't make sense once you think it out. If checking your brain at the door and slow paced suspense films are your cup of tea, then there are worse ways to spend two hours than White Noise, but not many. Sadly, on DVD all the fun cheap scares will be subdued, so if you must see this, try to see it on the big screen.
18 Great concept, but film itself is laughable
It just goes to show you that with some good editing and a good concept, a movie preview can make a film look good. This film was anything but good. Great concept, on the EVP phenomenon, but the story was anything but. I saw the film opening weekend, prior to hearing bad reviews and opinions. I even somewhat lower my expectations/standards for these types of films, because I WANT to like it. This film was bad. At a couple of points in the film, I started laughing at it. There were alot of people in the theater the night I saw it and as the film ended, the consensus was that it stunk. I have since shared that with everyone I know so as to save them some money. I told them to watch it on video, when your laundry is caught up, you're caught up on your errands, your cable is completely out, you've got nothing to read, and IF YOU'RE BEING PAID TO WATCH IT. I wonder when the actors in the film knew it was bad: when they read the script, when they were filming it or when they saw the finished product. I would like to think they realized it stunk on paper, but maybe went ahead with it anyway because the mortgage was due...
19 umm....
There's no explanation, no plot, no climax. It sucks that the guy dies at the end but it doesnt explain what is going on and why things happened the way they did. I would not recommend this movie even when it comes out on video and I am very upset at myself for paying $8 to see it.
20 White Noise rants and raves
I saw this movie on opening day, expecting it to be a great movie, since I am extremely interested in the types of things that they said were in this movie.
Honestly, I thought the movie was deceiving because it turned out to not be anything like they showed in the previews (with EVP). The ending was especially disappointing.
It's a pretty average thriller.
21 Ive seen better by anthony m jones
White noise is a run of the mill suspence horror but it has some creepy moments like when the main character rests his head up a gainst the computer and his departed wife jumps out at him from the computer.its has a pretty basic and ordinary story line to it. A man (michael keaton) finds out the dead can contact him from radios, tvs, computers,etc so he tries to contact his wife who has crossed over.He ends up dealing with evil spirits that try to kill him and are trying to kill everyone else who knows about how the dead contact people. Through his computer he can see who dies and where they die in the future.Im not going to spoil the movie for you but it has some interesting parts and predictible parts plus the plot seems so over rated. Im not recomending white noise but its definintly worth a shot.Plus check out my review on jeepers creepers 2I hope this review helped you outand in the future I hope to review A-V-P (ALIEN V.S PREDATOR).
22 It was good, but it was obviously a tool
I went to see this movie because I have been into the whole ghost hunting and paranormal bit for a long time now. When I saw a couple of the T.V. spots, I was absolutely ecstatic that I could see what sort of take Hollywood could conjure up regarding the idea of communicating with the dead. It all seemed "true to life" so to speak, until the scene with the psychic-lunatic-fringe girl that started going on about how EVP was bad and it wasn't a good thing. This started to make me see what the movie is really about, and what message they were really trying to beam into the heads of the audience (especially ghost hunters like myself who may have been attracted to the theater). For anyone who considers themselves active in the paranormal field, it is widely known that the christians consider communication with those in the afterlife as a ticket to instant damnation. They are very frightened by EVP as it completely shakes their beleif structure to its core. Now here is where my opinion could make you think I am paranoid and on the lunatic fringe myself. The movie's official website tries to cover up the fact the movie is a tool invented by some christians by inserting a link to the American Association of Electronic Voice Phenomenon. But, the message of the movie is still unchanged: Don't attempt communiaction with the world beyond, because the results could be disastrous. I heartily encourage other ghost hunters like myself to go see this movie and make their own judgments. As for me, my opinion is formed and I believe that this movie is a tool made by some christians designed to frighten
those who are curious about such matters. The movie ends with the screen reading: "1 out of every 10 Recorded EVPs is threatening". Nice try, but I am not scared. Call me crazy, but that's just what I think.
UPDATE: Okay, after doing my research, I discovered I was wrong. The Amercian Association of Electronic Voice Phenomenon actually provided a lot of input for the creators of the movie. Boy, I feel like an ass. Overall, this movie is pretty decent aside from a few holes in the plot. Once again, I encourage anyone who entertains the notion that contact with the other side is possible to go see this movie.
23 White Noise - A Blah
While "White Noise" has some very interesting supporting materials, the movie simply didn't make it out there.
As a horror movie, "White Noise" has everything that it takes: the suspense, the "jumping-out-of-nowhere" scene and the visuals. However, as a story-telling movie, "White Noise" definitely needs many improvements on character development and portraits. For example, who the heck is the "real killer"? That lunatic guy at the end who made a short apperance at the beginning of the movie is a big confusion factor. It almost feels as if the audience needs to know a little bit more about him. How did he become the devil helper? What is he doing? And ect.
"White Noise" was kind of disappointing. But given the chance, I definitely would go to see another movie based on similar topics and materials.
Purple_Garden
24 Better than One Good Cop, Jack Frost & Clean and Sober
I agree that the critics have been a little harsh with this film. First of all, the fact that Michael Keaton statrs in it, is frightning in itself. If you are in any way interested in, or curious about this type of phenomena, you will definately enjoy it. There are plenty of minimalist scares in this film to sustain a creepy atmosphere. If you surrender to this film and bring your own fears to it, you should at least be a little creeped out. The biggest dissapointment was the conclusion. It is absolutely lame. If this film isn't scary enough for you, try watching the news instead.
25 Very over rated
This film starts good and has some interesting thought provoking parts, but the ending is dia. It makes the watcher conclude that EVP is total nonscence.
26 I have never been so scared in my life
I watch horror movies all the time and I'm used to all this
scary stuff, but White Noise was scary as heck. I was very scared but I loved the movie over all. There are many types of scaring in this movie. There's parts where your startled and part where you jump out of your skin. I think they mixed the reviews up with Darkness and White Noise. Because White Noise was actually scary, Darkness was not scary at all. If I was a movie credic, I would say that Darkness is the worst horror movie. I bet White Noise was as scary as people say The Grudge is scary, which I really wish my parents would let me see.
27 Excellent Movie
It's not the kind of "Horror Film" You're used to... this one makes You think, at it's based on fact, which is even creeper than stuff that's made up.
28 worst movie
i admit i did jump a few times in the movie, but maybe thats becasue nothing was happening the whole movie besides for the 2 scary parts. i didnt get 1/2 of this movie. at the end i was just thinking "so wat?" basically the best part was the people in back of me wehn.............................................
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the girl jumps off a building 10 flights and survies with a bruise, he falls 1 flight and dies the whole movie theatre was hysterical laughing abotu how stupid the ending was.
29 WOW could it of been any worse?
Well let me see. When i asked two of my friends about this movie they said it was absolutely terrible, however when my friends and i found ourselves out at 12 am we thought might as well see it, it cant be that bad. Well it turns out we were dreadfully wrong! This movie was a let down to the max. It made little to no sense, the plot was miserable..."Go now"....yea go see a real movie now! Do not waste $9.50 watching this terrible flick, and definatly do not go rent it when its out on video, b/c i can garuntee it will be just as bad at home...
30 Sucksssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss
So stupid its not even funny, not even scary, just stupid and so not scary. I dont recomend this to anyone. Just so stupid. The plot of the movie was good. However, the way it turned out was just so horrible and stupid. Very very dissapointed in this movie. But Chandra West and Deborah Kara Unger are hot.
31 All My Friends Agree: White Noise Stank!
"White Noise" had a lot of potential to be a very good movie. It could have been up in the league of other ghost movies like "What Lies Beneath," but this is the kind of horror film that doesn't rely on creativity as much as cheap tricks to scare it's audience. Now, this movie did have me covering my mouth a few times in horror of what was happening. I have to give it credit for that. It seemed to scare other people as well. So if that is the kind of movie you are looking for, that go see "White Noise." If you would rather see a mind stimulating horror film that leaves you thinking afterwards, the stear clear of this film.
The premise is that Michael Keaton is happy with his life. He has a satisfying and successful career and is married to a celebrity writer who is expecting a baby. Her sudden unexpected death completely shatters his world and also causes some weird electrical surges around the house causeing all of the radios to suddenly turn on to (what else?) static. He also starts receiving phone calls from his deceased wife's cell phone, which is no longer operating. He is viseted by a man who tells him that he has received messages from his wife for him. It takes him a while to realize it's true, but when he does, he gets addicted to white noise. So much so, that he devotes all of his TV's and his computer to listening to ghosts. However, there are bad ghosts out there who only want to cause damage! Duhn duhn duhn!
The numerous plot flaws really bugged me. The audience didn't really get to know the main characters new wife, so it was hard to feel sorrow for her loss. He also had a son from his previous marriage that got the shaft when his fater was consumed by white noise and also was completely unnecessary. It seemed as if the writers had filled the story with characters just to fill up time, but a lot of them were not needed. They also found it very hard to write themselves out of the ending. You see, the writers never bothered to tell the audience who the bad ghosts were or why they were doing the things they did. Their explanation was simply that they liked to cause damage. They didn't explain a lot of things. And it wasn't in a good way like "Donnie Darko" was. It was in a stupid way. They didn't tell us because they probably didn't know themselves. And my biggest gripe with the ending (drumroll please...) WARNING: I AM ABOUT TO SPOIL IT SO IF YOU DON'T WANT TO KNOW, SKIP TO THE NEXT PARAGRAPH! They killed off Michael Keaton, the main character, because they had written themselves into a hole. It wasn't like in the end of "The Grudge" where Sarah Michelle Geller thought she had defeated the curse and then you see the creepy oriental woman behind her. Oh no! The bad ghosts killed him and then there was his funeral where his own son didn't even cry!
So I highly recomend you don't waste your money on "White Noise." If you really need to see a horror film, I suggest trying your rental store. This movie was horrible.
32 Super quick review of White Noise
I didn't like this very much.
It was a bad mix of Final Destination, Ring, and Mothman Prophecies
Good idea, but with no good movie
33 Finally, some restraint!
It is a pleasant surprise to walk into a movie expecting to dislike it, and to leave the theater satisfied.
Having read some of the reviews on this site, as well as some professional reviewers, I think they've missed the point of this film entirely. Reviewers on this site have also gotten their facts wrong. For example, Keaton has been in three movies since Jack Frost (yes, I agree that film was a disaster), and he served as the Executive Producer on another.
Jonathan Rivers' (Keaton) wife dies in a car accident and like all husbands who adore their wives, he grieves. One day he sees a man sitting in an SUV across the street from his house, and when he gets to work that same day, the man is sitting on a bench across the street. Rivers rushes out to ask why he is following him, and the man introduces himself as Raymond Price (Ian McNeice). Price claims that Keaton's wife has passed over, and that she has communicated with him. Rivers immediately dismisses this, but Price leaves him with a card, asking that he keep it.
The movie skips ahead six months, and we find Rivers moving into a new apartment. Unlike the home he shared with his wife, it is forbidding and cold: the walls are either blocked glass or grey cement.
Then he receives a phone call on his cell, and the "name" that comes up is "Anna's Cell". He rushes home and pulls out the bag of effects that the police gave him from the crash; one of the items therein is Anna's cell phone. It's off. Then he receives another call, this one while he is holding Anna's cell phone, and it too is from "Anna's Cell".
One morning at 2:30 the beeping of his answering machine awakens him. He gets out of bed and finds that there is one message. He plays it, and it is garbled with static.
These oddities are enough to cause Rivers to contact Price, and Rivers is introduced to the world of EVP, a phenomenon whereby one can receive messages from loved ones that have passed on through recorded white noise, and sometimes cause images on a monitor. Price has, literally, hundreds of video tapes and recordings, and he plays Rivers the voice of his wife, which, I believe, said something along the lines of "I love you John". With the white noise, it was hard to tell.
Here's the first possibility of a "gaping plot hole" - Rivers immediately believes it is real, and becomes obsessed with getting to the next level of communication: seeing her face on a television screen. I have to agree that I thought he bought into it a little too quickly; however, hearing the voice of one's dead spouse can evoke emotions that make a person do things they normally wouldn't. As a person who has lost a spouse, trust me on this, I know.
Before Rivers is able to get to the next level Price winds up dead, all of his monitors and audio equipment (of which there was a considerable amount) destroyed, with Price buried underneath them.
This causes Rivers to set up a station of his own in his home, where he all too quickly develops a tremendous facility with highly advanced equipment. That may be another gaping plot hole, but it's forgivable. Do we really want to see Rivers poring through training manuals and teaching himself how to use this equipment? Of course not. *That* would be boring and unessential to the plot.
Assisting him is a client of Price's that he met when he first visited, Sarah Tate (Deborah Karah Unger). The more time Rivers spends with his own equipment, the more obsessed he becomes, to the point of having his ex-wife watch their son for longer periods, to flatly ignoring his son when he has physical custody. (That's unforgivable, but understandable when caught in the throes of an obsession.)
After a frustrating amount of time where nothing happens, suddenly he starts receiving messages from his wife. They're no longer the simple I Love You messages, but are instructive, telling him to go to certain places to save people.
This is where the movie gets interesting, because this is where the horror element kicks into high gear - and this is where I gained tremendous respect for the film. We had already received hints of external interference (apparitions), and we start to see more of them. There were several scenes where typical cheap horror frights could have been inserted just to get someone to squeal, but the director showed tremendous restraint, and for that I have great respect for him.
The ending was a complete surprise, and a very satisfying one, as it doesn't end like virtually every standard, schlock horror movie - which our country seems to produce as quickly as rabbits procreate. You don't need to be a genius, but you need to think about the ending, and remember bits of what has happened earlier in the film. If you don't pay attention, you'll miss it, and it might make the entire film seem irrelevant. But if you do pay attention, and you understand what is going on (I'll just say this: pay close attention to the fact that in the final sequence there is a set of monitors *just like Price and Rivers had* - and what could that possibly be for), it makes for a very clever ending.
The dŽnouement is touching, although the final view the movie presented to us was unnecessary, and almost qualified as a stupid horror movie ruse, which this movie avoided almost entirely. Thankfully.
I thought to myself as I left the theater: finally, a horror movie whose main goal wasn't to make me hop out of my seat through cheap tricks, is well filmed, well acted, and directed with subtlety instead of a ham handed hammer and a bag full of tricks.
34 It'll Creep You Out
I thought it was pretty good. One of the better attempts lately at making a believable, scary movie.
35 The Lifetime Movie Network goes supernatural.
White Noise (Geoffrey Sax, 2005)
Michael Keaton took some time off from the movie world, having appeared in only four films since the career disaster that was Jack Frost. White Noise marks his return to full-time cinema, and to be honest, we should probably have known what to expect, given that he's coming out with a Herbie: The Love Bug movie later this year.
Geoffrey Sax (Tipping the Velvet) makes the leap from small screen to big screen here. Some people understand what it taken to move from TV directing to movie directing. Sax does not, which does have the benefit of ensuring that White Noise will make for a good DVD rental. Save your money where theatres are concerned, though, as thirty-six-foot-wide screens do nothing to enhance what charms this movie has.
The film, which plays out in the trailers as an edge-of-your-seat suspense thriller, is actually about Jonathan Rivers (Keaton), an architect whose wife disappears one night and is presumed dead. Keaton has to adjust to life without her, and in the process of doing so, becomes obsessed with trying to contact her spirit. Which, when it comes right down to it, is your basic Lifetime Original Movie, except that the star is male and it has a supernatural element to it. The first hour contains very little in the way of actual suspense, though there's a baldly manufactured subplot meant, I assume, to inspire some.
The suspense shows up in the last half-hour, and to be fair, the movie does contain a few moments of genuine creepiness. Sax, however, is incapable of sustaining it for longer than a moment at any one time, leaving the viewer with an odd, slow-motion version of the feeling one gets when watching a generic slasher flick. You jump, kind of, for thirty seconds instead of an instant.
It's a watchable movie, but not much more than that. The trailers and TV ads call it "the most disturbing movie in years." Sorry, guys, it's not even the most disturbing American movie in years. Overseas, there have been comedies more disturbing than this. (Go rent Ichi the Killer and see what I mean.) ** ?
36 White Noise
When Anna Rivers (West) says goodbye to her husband one day, Jonathan (Keaton) does not realize that it will be the last time he sees her alive. Her mysterious death leaves him shrouded in mourning. Enter Raymond Price (McNeice) and a client of his, Sarah Tate (Unger). They are able to convince Rivers that his dead wife is talking to Price via EVP, or Electronic Voice Phenomenon. EVP is when the dead talk to the living through prerecorded static.
Once a believer, he throws himself into getting as much of it as he can, buying a lot of equipment to help him communicate with Anna. The only problem is that it might not be Anna who is communicating with him, but something more sinister.
"White Noise" takes an interesting idea and mangles it to death. The movie would suggest that it is quite easy to communicate with the dead. After all, Jonathan has tremendous success almost right off the bat. Also, the idea of talking with the dead is overshadowed by evil spirits that apparently just like to kill people. I am probably playing spoiler with some plot points here, but I am not too bothered. There are some interesting ideas presented in "White Noise" besides EVP, among which is obsession, but they are glossed over for the cheap scares that are easy to see coming. Michael Keaton has not had a notable movie in years, and "White Noise" will not change that.
37 White Noise is an entertaining movie that falls a bit short
I saw White Noise this past weekend and I thought it was entertaining. I thought this movie was better than The Grudge and the suspense kept me interested in the movie almost the entire time. What really caught my attention about this movie was when I saw the commercial mentioning Ruth Baxter and how the dead can communicate with us through EVP (Electrical Voice Phenomenon). Sadly to say the commercial was misleading since this movie did not go very far in to the EVP pheomomenon. White Noise got bad reviews from many critics but despite the negativity it did a great job the first weekend of its release opening in a very immpresive #2 with 24 Million dollars. To me this movie was entertaining and not half as bad as what the critics would expect you to believe. This is only rated PG-13 so it is not going to be as scary as you might think, but it is a good movie that is worth watching.
38 Good movie, but it could've been better.
I just saw this movie last night, and I thought it was pretty good. But it could've been better. Sure it has so pretty good scares, tension, but somethings just didn't add up. But I'm not going to say what dindn't add up so I won't spoil it for anyone. Go see this movie, but see it during matinee.
Rated PG-13 for violence, disturbing images, and language.
39 Could have been great
I went to see this movie on the second day it was released and the theatre had only a couple people that alone says something. I think with this plot they could have made an excellent movie, however I thought this one was terrible. The story was weird and at times boring and Michael Keaton was fine, but the other actors were terrible..at times you wonder wether they actually cared,they talked in the same bored tone and you find yourself wondering when is this movie going to be over. If your looking for a good freaky movie rent the 6th sense or something along those lines. I would not recommend seeing this it would just be a waste of money.
40 Not bad at all, but falls a a bit short of good
~ENDING SPOILER~
White Noise is another one of many "scary" PG-13 movies to come out recently (i.e The Grudge, Darkness, The Forgotton,) most of which I haven't cared for. But I saw an interesting trailer for White Noise some months ago and decided this one might be worth checking out. As a kid, I remember being frightened by stories of EVP (Electrical Voice Phenomenon,) on shows like Sightings and the thought of it still freaks me out today. So I was instantly drawn to this idea of a scary movie.
For the most part, White Noise was moderately scary and that's a lot more than I can say for movies like The Ring or The Grudge, which I didn't find scary at all. The movie has a slow start, but the scary scenes it does have come unexpectedly. This is probably the first scary PG-13 that has actually made me jump at a few parts. With movies like the The Grudge, I completely anticipated the next scene where the ghost would pop and scare everyone in the audience except me. White Noise actually caught me off guard a couple of times. Plus, the general idea behind the movie itself was creepy, because there are plenty of real life EVP happenings on record and if you have ever heard an actual sound wave of one, you know that it makes the hair on your neck stand up on end.
Some things I didn't like about the movie. It did have a slow start. It almost got boring right before the first really scary part. I also found the climax to the movie a little confusing as far as storyline goes. I'm also kind of sick of seeing an ending where a CGI ghost that looks like black smoke attacks for the climax. It was almost a let down in the movie having a suspenseful buildup to the climax and end it with three computer generated ghosts freaking out indistinctly. Not a very scary ending. And I also thought the part right before the end credits, the part that's supposed to leave you on edge when you leave the theater, was kind of dumb and didn't really make that much sense.
All in all, not really too bad of a movie. I found it scarier (not saying I was scared out of my wits or anything) than a lot of these PG-13 movies coming out and a much better idea. But a dull ending kept the film from being good. Probably could've done with two or three more scary parts as well.
***1/2
41 great movie for any1 curious about paranormalities
i actually enjoyed this movie allot, it showed facts of paranormal activities with an added and some-what believable storyline. great sci-fi thriller...
42 Ghost in static
Keaton:Plays John Rivers -A man who just lost his wife from a accadent on her way home from a freinds house. A stranger follws him home and too his work @ which time he goes over too question why he is being followed.The stranger just wants to help:him reach his wife from the beyond..The man has audio and visual equipment set up inordered too help others talk too the dead(EVP).Rivers is warned about using EVP& how these messages could be misinterpited:-Nevertheless: he continues too use it, despite the bad chain of events going on around him.He becomes convinced that his wife is talking too him so that he can help others.But ,hers is not the only voice tring to get a message through,Will Mr.Riviers find a happy ending or will he send his on transmission over a static montior and the White Noise of emptyness from beyond?
Good movie good fx-and a fair amount of shock moments that caused reaction from most of the audience.Deffently worth seeing if this stuff-is of interest or a (hobby) too you.
43 Mr. Mom Is Back
Its good to see Michael Keaton back in a film after what seems like quite a long hiatus. He's always had some indescribable charisma and he puts it to good use here in 'White Noise'. The film itself is based on an interesting, but obscure, real life subject: electronic voice phenomena.
The movie unfortunately doesn't really do anything with its fairly original premise. Its fairly by-the-numbers with no major surprises. But the thing thats stands out in the film is the four or five times that you are literally chilled to the bone. Some scenes are truly terrifying. Too bad the rest of the film wasn't as well done as these bits were creepy.
All in all, 'White Noise' isn't a bad film, but its not great either. What it is though is a good film to reintroduce Michael Keaton back in to leading man status. And those few creepy moments that I'm still thinking about...
44 Good movie--if you are just in it for the entertainment!
If your are just in the mood to get a couple of scares and a little of the creeps, this is the movie to see. Michael Keaton plays a somewhat overly happily married man that seems to have everything until his wife's car is found on the side of the road, and she is announced as missing. He is then approached by a man (Ray) that says he has been contacted by her and that she is dead. (She, in fact, does turn up dead three weeks after she goes missing.) Keaton's character is relunctant, at first, to accept what this total stranger has to say. However, after the death of Ray, he becomes OBSESSED with the whole EVP thing. He becomes convinced that his wife is contacting him from the dead to help save some of the other citizens of the area where he lives. Not to ruin anything, but as it turns out, this is not why she was contacting him. The plot is suspenseful enough, but never really develops more than that. After watching it, I was left asking myself several questions, wondering if I had missed something. (I was after all surrounded on one side by three drunk young men who thought it was hilarious when Unger's character did the "Nestea Plunge" from her fourth floor balcany, and four overly stupid and giggly teenage girls on the other who talked through the ENTIRE movie. Not to mention the guy in front of me text messaging whomever throughout half the movie--my what a bright screen on that phone! Love people like that, by the way, makes the movie-going experience a joy!!) My biggest question would have to be: "If she knew that John's life was in danger, and was really trying to warm HIM--why did she make contact and draw him into this whole series of events in the first place?" Like I said, good to see for fun, but don't try to make too much sense of it.
45 good , but a sad ending
ok ,this movie starts as does happy family's movies Keaton's wife was pregnant , he was so happy ,but after that she goes to work and said she'll be back by 6:30pm ,but then police found her car near a beach , saying that she had drown . by the next day there's this really weird man Raymond , who said to have a message from Keaton's wife ,from the other side ,but he didn't believe him , the next day police arrived and said that his wife was dead.keaton goes to visit this man raymond , to hear the message from his wife,he heard it ,he couldn't believe it that it actually was his wife.then after raymond continues to record the dead but there are some bad spirits that kind of hate him , and cause him death , then keaton follows his steps , starts recording the dead and everything , he keeps receiving messages from his wife , triying to help him save other people from dying ,then one day he gets this message from his wife telling him to ''go,go'' but then he's like''go where?'',so confusing, she was triying ti save a woman who was about to be killed by a man , the man said ,''they told me to do it'', the bad spirits who appeared on the recordings,then does things attack keaton , causing him death . that is all i remember people i saw the movie 5 hours ago , and that's all i remember. i gave it 4 stars because i did not likehow the ending was , keaton dying....
46 Terrifying And Spectacular!
White Noise is probably going to be one of the scariest movies of 2005 (aside, from my predictions, of The Ring Two, Hide and Seek, and Boogeyman). It stars Deborah Kara Unger (Thirteen, Leo) and Michael Keaton (Mr. Mom, Multiplicity), who do an outstanding job in this horror movie, just released nationwide yesterday.
White Noise is about a divorcee architect who remarries to Anna (Chandra West), who is writer. They are a happy couple living with the man's bilogical son, and everything is just right-until Anna's car is found abandoned at the side of a lake, along with one of her heels. The man aka John (Keaton) is trying to get over it, when a man follows him to his office and tells him that his wife is dead and he has had contact with her with a cassette and player, video, computers, and a static telvised program or EVP. John does not bleive him just yet. That night, he founds out that she is dead and it cuts to six months later, where he is moving with his son. That's when he starts noticing things. Anna's cell phone is calling his cell phone, Anna leaving him blurry messages. It's all so hard for him-so he goes to the man who told him about his wife aka Ray Price (Ian McNeice) and asks him to help him communicate with his dead wife. He hears her...and others. He hears people asking for help and saying they're happy...and MEN telling him to back off and that Anna is all their's. He tries to figure out what is happening, when Ray winds up dead by his static television. Then, he buys a load of televisions and sets them up at his home. Anna starts to tell him things-showing him future deaths of people he doesn't know. This is when the movie unravles into a series of deaths caused by three lifeless men...who will stop at nothing to achieve their goal-everybody to die. John temas up with one of Ray's ex-clients named Srah Tate (Unger), a bookstore owner. She has all of Ray's tpaes and cassettes. Anna keeps sohwing him these messages. I'm not going to ruin it for you, but there is an ending that could be a happy one to some people and a disappointing one to others.
This movie is terrifying romantic thriller. It is a must-see and it will have you screming and crying before it even ends.
47 Michael Keaton Vs. the Evil Ghosts in the airwaves.
White Noise is definetely a "hell-raiser" spook fest. It's more original and it serves some chilling sound effects and visuals. Michael Keaton gives a haunting and moving performance, and it's one of his best in recent years. He was able to portray all the fear and curiousity in his character. The story is intense and suspenseful from start to finish.
Michael Keaton is Jonathon, and his wife Anna died in a car accident and the body was found days later. It was suspected that she might have been murdered. Durinig his early grieving days, he was visited by EVP specialist named Raymond Price, and he was told that his deceased wife was trying to contact him. He ignored the man, and didn't take his advice. Eventually, he started to get phone messages that had his wife's voice. He went back to Price to seek his help to contact his wife. There, he meets Sarah(Deborah Kara Unger) who had been assisted to hear messages of his deceased fiance. Together they set out to find answers behind the noises and fuzzy pictures on the screen......
There are some really disturbing and frightening scenes in this movie. When Jonathan visited a blind psychic, he transmitted an image of a screaming ghost to her mind, and she was terrified. Another moment is when Jonathan was trying to talk to Anna on the TV screen, and an angry ghost suddenly appeared on the screen. It's very spooky when in the middle of nowhere unexpectedly, the evil ghosts jumps out. Also, it's ending is quite twisted. Keaton carried the entire film and appeared in almost everyscene. He was captivating when he was alone in the dark. Unger(Crash) was underused, but she had a few freaky moments to endured.
48 Scary, but horribly plot-holed.
PLOT: After Jonathan's wife dies in a car crash, a man comes to Jonathan telling him that he can contact the spirit of his wife through EVP. (EVP is when images and sounds of the dead come through on electronic devices, such as on blank radio or TV stations.) Initially resistant to this, Jonathan finally hears some garbled messages from his wife, and decides to contact her further. He sets up a multi-TV/VCR/radio station in his apartment, and attempts to seek her. But the messages he receives include the image of three shady looking figures, and then he begins getting images on the TV of people not yet dead...
MY THOUGHTS: If you're looking for a movie to scare the daylights out of you, White Noise just might do the job. However, most of its scares relies on "BOO!" moments: BANG! A screaming face pops into the calmly fuzzing white noise on the TV. BOOM! A freight truck cuts in front of Jonathan's minivan.
While the scares are mostly effective, they get tiring after a while. The atmosphere of the movie is clean and bright instead of eerie and haunting, and when it's over, you're left with the feeling that you've suffered through ten or twelve heart attacks, but with no real spooky chills down your spine.
The plot is greatly flawed, suffering from a VERY slow and boring beginning and a rushed ending that fails to explain what exactly happened to the characters. Lots of aspects of the plot (the three shadowy figures, for instance) are left dangling. Also, certain aspects of the EVP images require a suspension of disbelief: Like, how do they appear on the screen? Who frames these shots? A ghost cameraman?
I gave this movie 3 stars because it does what it's required to do: to scare you, even though it did use cheap scares to do it. I docked 2 stars off due to the movie's inconsistent pacing, thin atmosphere, and unanswered questions at the end.
49 Terrifyingly Real
For most of us, there is a morbid curiosity of what happens beyond. In White Noise, Michael Keaton's character, a paranormal researcher, gets contacted by his deceased wife. I've read that the paranormal research technology shown in this movie is as realistic as possible. The portrayal of Keaton's character is believable, as well. A cast of lesser known actors rather than A-list stars, except for Keaton, the movie appears less Hollywood. This realism lends the movie more credibility so when you see the phenomenon, the event is a lot more terrifying than a regular horror movie.
50 The Sci-Fi channel made this movie....
I only say that because this movie looks like it has a few big name stars working with a non-existent script of a man's dead wife talking with her husband on the computer, Right, and we have some fake looking CG effects and a lot of pointless direction, and that's it. Michael Keaton must really be deserate for work that he takes a sap role like this.
51 Looks Creepy-As-Hell!!
This looks to be the first horror/thriller movie to bring something new to the table in a long time. All other horror movies of late just present the same old boring material. But WHITE NOISE actually explores real scientific methods of paranormal research. At first I thought E.V.P. (Electronic Voice Phenomenon) was just some stunt they used for the movie . . . . . . . . . an incredibly creepy, disturbing stunt, but a stunt nonetheless. But this stuff is very real. Researchers are doing it right now, today. I've heard some actual recordings (not some fake baloney on some sixth-rate backshelf website), and it is incredibly eerie/disturbing.
Anyway, about the actual movie . . . . . . . . . I've never heard of the director, but I'm just excited to see Michael Keaton in a big-screen movie again! I haven't seen him in a long while. But in a way I think it's better that they picked relative unknowns for such a subject. Big name stars would've taken away from the effect.
I do realize that there is just as much a chance that the movie uses EVP as some minor story element just to sound smart and scientific, to trick critics in thinking it's a good movie. WHITE NOISE could be just another run-of-the-mill "I see dead people" thriller, but I'm hoping for the best. If the trailer alone doesn't creep the heck out of you, then I don't know what the heck is wrong with you, but rest assured, something is seriously wrong with you.
