Stylish but barely mediocre overall

Really Surprised!

Great Film overall

It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...

After reading the review of one Mals13 who was up voted as the "most helpful" review of this title, i thought i would give it a watch.Mals13 stated that he worked in a video shop and that when people asked him to recommend a good horror movie he would point them in the direction of Session 9. First off, this is NOT a horror movie. It is a psychological thriller with a very minute horror element.He was right about one thing in that the actors all done a good job and that the characters portrayed your every day people not your usual fake, Hollywood trash you see in horror films.Mals states that it is the creepiest horror film he has i seen in years. I say Mals must not be much of a horror fan at all. He even states that the twists are a bit anti-climatic. Then proceeds to rate it 10/10 .. come again?It's a good watch, but not a horror film or a great film imo. It's all been done a thousand times before. Nether the less it is a decent movie worthy of your time if you're into psychological thrillers.But please do not call this a horror movie. Apart from a slightly scary setting of an old asylum (If you'd even call it scary) there is nothing that will leave you scared about this film.

Instead of relying on cheap scares this movie ultimately shines with its slow burn. It takes its time and comes perfectly full circle towards the end. The tension is ever-increasing and subsides only at the very end when the big reveal happens. Even with all that being said this movie isn't for everybody.One the movies biggest strengths is the believable portrayal of the protagonists. They all have their unique shortcomings which make the group dynamics more interesting and realistic. It is scary on a more psychological level but playfully dabbles in the paranormal every now and then. A lot of hints were dropped during the movie as to what's actually going on. Ending with the ultimate revelation as all pieces fall into place. It's quite meta.

Supremely creepy low budget get-under-your-skin type of ghost story about an asbestos abatement crew cleaning up a decaying insane asylum with a lurid history. Unlike most ghost stories, this one does not feature apparitions, conjuring, or poltergeists hurtling objects around. Instead, this film focuses on the psychological breakdown of the workers, framing their breakdown around a set of old patient recordings of session interviews of a patient with multiple personalities who did something quite awful that the interviewer and workers are trying to uncover, which builds to the titular ninth session. The cast is very strong, featuring David Caruso, Josh Lucas in a before-he-was-famous role, Paul Guilfoyle, and a number of other recognizable faces. "Session 9" was directed and co-written by underrated filmmaker Brad Anderson ("The Machinist" and "Vanishing on 7th Street"), and he's created what I'm sure is among the best-horror-movies-you've-never-seen.

Construction contractor Gordon (Peter Mullan) and business associate Phil (David Caruso) have bid on removing the asbestos from Kirkbride Mental Health Hospital, a large and abandoned insane asylum originally built in the 19th century and closed in 1985 (The building was actually Danvers State Hospital in Danvers, MA.). The entire structure is being reclaimed for local use. Gordon is so eager for the job that he claims his tiny crew can handle the asbestos abatement in one week (!). Any contractor worth his salt knows that the job for the entire structure will require six months. Even if only a partial abatement is specified in the contract, one week is insufficient for job completion. More than desperate, Gordon must be a tad unhinged. The crew will include folks who have personal problems, and some who do not like others. Gordon's newborn baby is unnerving him more than should be expected. Phil, the job foreman, feels the work will be difficult to complete on time. He does not think much of crew member Hank (Josh Lucas), a wise-cracking self-absorbed troublemaker who stole Phil's girl. Then there is Gordon's young teenage nephew Jeff (Brendan Sexton III), who is afraid of the dark. Rounding out the crew is former law student lawyer Mike (Stephen Gevedon), whose district attorney father was involved in a patient lawsuit that contributed to Kirkbride's closing. The official reason for closure is budget cuts but unofficially because of reports of patient abuse and unorthodox practices. The complex is eerie and seems to affect everyone's nerves in one way or another. Nearly vacant, it is grim, engulfed by peeling paint, graffiti, and patients' mementos stuck on walls. During the tour of the building, Gordon alone hears a voice call out to him in a creepy hallway with what looks like an old-time electric chair. Later, when he reflects on his wife and baby, we hear haunting screams. Hank pretty well disappears after covetously finding a cache of old coins hidden behind a brick wall. Mike discovers both a tape player left behind and also some compelling tapes from former patient (#444) Mary Hobbes, who had three personalities, "Princess," "Billy," and the disturbing "Simon." Simon's spine-chilling voice does not appear until Session 9; he lives "with the weak and the wounded." There is a spooky scene where Jeff is trapped in a corridor when the outside generator fails. He runs in sheer panic as each temporary lamp above goes out in rapid succession, the darkness chasing and overtaking the hapless lad. So is the building itself haunted, or are the guys only being bedeviled by their own demons? Filming on location is always a plus (note that the Danvers structure was mostly demolished a few years after the movie was made). The acting is plausible. But for such a rush job, we often do not see the few employees actually working as they are often on breaks or doing anything but asbestos abatement. Also vexing is seeing folks work while only sporadically wearing various types of safety equipment, like face masks and protective clothing (asbestos is harmful material). On the other hand, suspense builds as Mike advances deeper into the tapes, and Gordon becomes deranged. So, despite its drawbacks, the film is sufficiently chilling and worth watching.