RATTLESNAKE

RATTLESNAKE: C+

A hair above average run of the mill thriller full of formulaic yet fun suspense and practical yet immersing horror. Well structured, systematic set up, that felt as though it should have succeeded, but in many ways it didn't. Yet, it wasn't a failure either. It wasn't a swing and a miss. The bat connected with the ball. The ball soared in the air with potential to be a homerun, and somehow it kept going foul.

What needed explanation received ambiguity. What could have stood to have been left up to imagination, unneeded and unwarranted attention. Too much peanut butter sandwich and not near enough milk to wash it down. The internal struggle of the mother while battling external forces was interesting but not convincing. Her slow descend into what felt would eventually become insanity was awkwardly blocked in an unbalanced dual with rationality and conscience. Even worse at the pivotal moment of what appeared to be a dramatic change within the character, it was nothing more than a tease. She was the same person driving out of the town as she was driving in.

The film hit the objectives. The assignment complete. You have to give it at least a C because it followed the rubric. All of the standards and benchmarks complete. Yet it lacked energy. It lacked soul. It lacked substance