If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

Funny, strange, confrontational and subversive, this is one of the most interesting experiences you'll have at the cinema this year.

This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.

Hide And Seek is an effectively disconcerting horror yarn that met some nasty reviews and and deflated box office expectations. It's perhaps not the white knuckle blast of terror that people were hoping for, and more of a slow burn as far as pacing goes, but the scares lie in the mounting sense of unease and atmospherics, which work well enough for me. If I recall correctly there are a few cheap and tawdry jump scares that are almost always false alarms in these type of films, but hey, nobody's perfect. Robert Deniro under plays the part of a grieving widower trying to pick up the pieces after his wife's suicide, with a growing concern from his daughter (a goth-ed out Dakota Fanning) who doesn't seem to be taking the residual trauma very well. She has an eerie imaginary friend named Charlie, whose behaviour is a huge cause for alarm, not those mention the girl's mental well being. Famke Janssen warmly plays her doctor, who is subject to Dakota's violent outbursts which she vehemently pins on this Charlie piece of work. It's brash, sensationalistic and loves it's premise maybe a bit too much, pounding each plot point in with the subtlety of a steamroller. That's not to say it's not entertaining, there's some dark thrills here and there and it's shot wonderfully to give us some spooky visuals and drab, ominous frames. Fanning does what she can and holds up her end well, Deniro is solid, if a little strained. There's also work from Elizabeth Shue, Dylan Baker, Robert John Burke, Melissa Leo and Max Payne himself, James McCaffrey. Sure it ain't great, but it's still in the margins of a solid horror thriller, and is at its best when the atmospherics kick in.

Nine-year-old kids come home from school with perhaps something they made in art class. Dakota Fanning, at the tender age of nine, turning ten on the set, played the female lead opposite screen veteran Robert De Niro, and matches his performance beautifully.Okay, so this is years ago, and I've not seen any of her recent stuff, but come on, I'll just bet NOTHING matches this. She was great! Okay, the movie leaves a lot to be explained, there are enough p(l)otholes in which to sink an army truck, but the two leads are absolutely brilliant. And with one of then just a mere little kid...By the way, how do you set out to make a movie featuring a little kid in such a major role? I mean, find a kid who is so mature as to be responsible enough to handle all that is expected of her? Surely there must be a lot of potential little actresses out there, yet we see very few really young children on the screen.Anyway, I heartily recommend this movie. It has its faults, its foundations are built on quicksand, but it is thoroughly engrossing, so for the sake of enjoying it, and marveling at the acting, do give it a chance!

Hide and Seek (2005): Dir: John Polson / Cast: Robert De Niro, Dakota Fanning, Elisabeth Shue, Famke Janssen, Amy Irving: Standard thriller about personality defects. Little Dakota Fanning witnesses her mother's death so her father moves them into a big country house but soon she begins relating to an imaginary friend named Charlie, which disturbs her father when incidents occur. Typical premise is pure formula until reaching the standard violent climax. Director John Polson does well with the plot twists but fails to entertain a screenplay worth them. He is backed with a cast worthy of better material than this. Robert De Niro struggles in helping his daughter dealing with mental and emotional issues. Fanning fares mutual with her blank flat emotion. We understand her trauma plus she is responsible for the few interesting twists. Elisabeth Shue appears as potential romance only. Famke Janssen plays a therapist concern for Fanning. The joke here is that Janssen will eventually have to take on the role of Wonder Woman. Amy Irving is refreshing to see in a key role but more of her would have been nice. She is responsible for a plot turn of sorts whether it matters. The theme of personality defects is hardly the point here. It is a typical dull thriller with good actors set against material that earns them little or no recognition. The screenwriter should hide and seek a better screenplay. Score: 2 ½ / 10

Horror and Extreme Horror Violence (read splatter) Fans were Universally Outraged, or at the Least Disappointed in this Psychological Picture with an All Star Cast and a Promising Premise. It is a Deliberately Paced (read pay attention) Movie that seems Better after its Over and the Events are Replayed in the Mind, then it was upon First Viewing.Dakota Fanning, Continuing Her "wise beyond years" Career as a Pre-Teen Haunted by the Suicidal Death of Her Mother as She is Intrusted with Her Father Played by Robert De Niro Playing a Psychologist.Things do Add Up Eventually and it is Tension with a Capital T as Things Unfold Creepily and it is Dakota's Acting that Keeps all the Other Actors on Their Toes and Really does Steal the Show. That is a Fear that Most Adult Actors, somewhat unfounded, have in Working with Children. But here the Myth is Manifested.Slightly Above Average and is Worth a Watch for the Child Star and De Niro's Against Type Attempt at Something Different.