Please don't spend money on this.

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

Ok... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

Wondering why this film was so terribly panned? Wondering if the reviewers are repressing loss and sadness and too uncomfortable to watch? If you are moving through sadness, this film may be a key to unlock... As it was for me, to allow me to release some of the pain I was holding, and perhaps let go... Or see things differently. Sometimes a film is much more as a whole, then just the sum of its flawed parts?

I didn't really enjoy this movie, but then like often happens later that night ideas start bouncing around and I can see something a bit deeper that redeems it. I have not seen reviewers mention these ideas so I thought I would write them up here in case it helps others appreciate them (or reject them if mis-thought).This involves the overall plot, so is all spoilers.When I watched it, I thought the story was stupid, how the people acted was silly, and that it was just a waste of time and talent. I sad guy is manipulated by his friends to try and get him to sell the company. The lady in the help group was actually his wife, that is kind of cool but then the lady on the chair when the daughter is passing is actually the old actor, stupid coincidence.But then its not, because now I believe the three actors were actually Love, Time and Death. Might have been manifestations or in someones head.Could have been they manifested for the three partners, who all had their connections with each: Absent father who needed to be forced back into loving his daughter, the dying man who needed to come to terms with death, the aging woman whose time to have a child has passed. In this scenario Howard may have had no need for them, he was already on his way to recovery, it is the three partners who needed them.Or it could have all been in Howard's head, the partners never contracted anyone, he imagined it all as a way to talk with these concepts and find his way through the grief and realize the needs of his partners, to find a way to help them.Clues: the direct connection between each contracted actor and the partner they interact with.the way they appear on the bridge but are not really there.the impossible situation of the the older actor being in the hospital with the wife.the video with them digitally edited out, possible but would be really difficult.I think no-one else in the movie interacts with the three constructs except Howard and the three partners?

This movie was a complete surprise in that I didn't expect to love it. Not long into it I figured out the hook, but it was all well done and completely worth my time. Beautiful piece of artwork. Cathartic, poignant, emotional. Well done.

There are many negative reviews of this movie. Things like screenplay and some other things I do not quite understand or even care about. The movie does hit the mark in that it really stirs your thoughts and emotions. I watched this movie over 2 months ago, and I cannot tell you how many times I have caught myself thinking about the movie! There are layers after layers. What a fantastic film! If you want something all processed and chewed up for you, then this probably isn't for you. If you want a story that makes you evaluate your own life, and makes you think about your own circumstances (without providing answers I might add) this is perfect. The answers are yours to find and are not included in the movie btw. Lastly, the acting: Smith, Norton, Pena, and Knightly, wow! Excellent! Smith however was simply astonishing. I really felt for him throughout the movie. I know he was acting, but I sincerely wanted to reach into the screen and give that poor man a hug. Watch this movie. Thank me later.