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Movies / On DVD / The Abandoned
The Abandoned

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The Abandoned (2007)

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Reviews Counted:31

Fresh:11

Rotten:20

Average Rating:4.7/10

Consensus: The Abandoned spends so much time setting up the creepy atmosphere, that it forgets to inhabit it with genuine spooks or scares.

Runtime: 1 hr 46 mins

Genre: Horror/Suspense

Synopsis: The expertly crafted 2007 haunted-house movie THE ABANDONED puts an original sheen on the well-worn tradition of the haunted house flick. Shot in Bulgaria but set in Russia, the movie centers... The expertly crafted 2007 haunted-house movie THE ABANDONED puts an original sheen on the well-worn tradition of the haunted house flick. Shot in Bulgaria but set in Russia, the movie centers around Marie (Anastasia Hille), an American born in Russia and abandoned as an infant. Marie returns to Russia 40 years later to visit the family estate with her brother, Nicolai (Karl Roden), who was also abandoned, but raised in Russia. Together they explore the old homestead in the hopes of rediscovering their pasts and unearthing the truth about the family they never knew. Like any haunted-house movie worth its salt, THE ABANDONED is all about the psychic residue left in the house following a tragedy. In this case, the spirit of Marie and Karl's father has summoned them back to the family home in order to finish the foiled infanticide he was attempting decades ago. The manifestations of the past--i.e. the things that go bump in the night--are terrifying. Director Nacho Cerda's cinematic "boo!s" come at the least expected moments and in unique forms, and his unflinching shots of Marie and Karl's decaying yet persistent doppelgangers offer some of the most chilling images in the movie. Ultimately, THE ABANDONED works because it takes viewer by surprise on so many levels. Thrills and chills abound, but they are delivered in unexpected ways. While the premise isn't entirely original and the script isn't completely free of holes, it is expertly made from a purely filmic standpoint, and there is something unavoidably chilling about the idea of never escaping one's past, particularly when the past is as horrific as the one depicted in THE ABANDONED. [More]

Starring: Paraskeva Djukelova, Karel Roden, Valentin Ganev, Jordanka Angelove

Starring: Paraskeva Djukelova, Karel Roden, Valentin Ganev, Jordanka Angelove, Annastasia Hille

Director: Nacho Cerda

Director: Nacho Cerda
Studio: Lions Gate and AfterDark Films

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Reviews for The Abandoned

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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And at the end of the equation, things just don't add up.

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment 1 Comment
08/02/09
Blake French
Blake French
Filmcritic.com

"This horror flick is atmospheric and often frightening, but the lack of a solid narrative creates a lethargic pace."

Full Review Source: Cinefantastique | comment Comment
03/09/09
Steve Biodrowski
Steve Biodrowski
Cinefantastique

It is, to put it simply, a totally kick-ass horror movie that should be seen by every self-respecting fear film fan.

Full Review Source: ESplatter | comment 1 Comment
06/17/08
Lucius Gore
Lucius Gore
ESplatter

All haunted house movies feature labyrinthine corridors and darkened rooms, but few achieve the tangible depth and texture of The Abandoned. After so many inferior generic excursions and aberrations, Cerdà's film feels like a homecoming.

Full Review Source: Eye for Film | comment Comment
05/19/08
Anton Bitel
Anton Bitel
Eye for Film

The work of a master visualist trying to walk the line between narrative and visual spectacle. The story is there, but it just sits on the side of the visual experience.

Full Review Source: PopMatters | comment Comment
05/02/08
Brian Holcomb
Brian Holcomb
PopMatters

A definite fascinating and creepy mystery that leads up to a very surreal finale I enjoyed...

Full Review Source: Cinema Crazed | comment Comment
07/11/07
Felix Vasquez Jr.
Felix Vasquez Jr.
Cinema Crazed

Despite some effective atmosphere at times, this multi-European produced supernatural thriller is a tedious snoozer

Full Review Source: Dark Horizons | comment Comment
04/24/07
Garth Franklin
Garth Franklin
Dark Horizons

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
03/10/07
Marc Savlov
Marc Savlov
Austin Chronicle

A sort of haunted house story, "The Abandoned" has scary atmosphere, decent acting, an interesting setting %u2013 everything but a coherent story line.

Full Review Source: Quad City Times (Davenport, IA) | comment 1 Comment
03/09/07
Linda Cook
Linda Cook
Quad City Times (Davenport, IA)
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
03/03/07
Deseret News, Salt Lake City
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune | comment Comment
03/03/07
Minneapolis Star Tribune

Cerdà quickly lets slip his woeful lack of skill with a curious, "arty" predilection for switching camera focus in the middle of a shot.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
03/02/07
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

...inert and inept...

Full Review Source: Sacramento News & Review | comment Comment
03/02/07
Jim Lane
Jim Lane
Sacramento News & Review

Director Nacho Cerdà succeeds in pushing the haunted-house movie into an abstract realm where the past and present fold into each other.

Full Review Source: AV Club | comment Comment
02/28/07
Scott Tobias
Scott Tobias
AV Club

The movie sinks so deep into deathly atmosphere that there's no life to it.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Weekly | comment 1 Comment
02/28/07
Owen Gleiberman
Owen Gleiberman
Entertainment Weekly

At its best, it's an effective shocker with an atmosphere that seeps into your very bones. The problem is it's not always at its best, and when it isn't, it really isn't.

Full Review Source: Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) | comment Comment
02/28/07
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Heralds the arrival of a new talent that every horror fan should keep their eyes on, if they're not covering them with their hands.

Full Review Source: UGO | comment Comment
02/27/07
Brian Tallerico
Brian Tallerico
UGO

The relatively tame horrors on display here may disappoint fans of the director's gut-spelunking short Aftermath, which made him an underground hero on the abra-cadaver circuit.

Full Review Source: Village Voice | comment Comment
02/27/07
Jim Ridley
Jim Ridley
Village Voice

As the heroine wanders around her old, rundown childhood home, the movie itself wanders, trying to find its purpose, meaning, and even, it seems, a worthwhile starting point.

Full Review Source: Mark Reviews Movies | comment 1 Comment
02/26/07
Mark Dujsik
Mark Dujsik
Mark Reviews Movies

Perhaps the worst offense of The Abandoned, however, is that so little effort is made by the screenwriters to make any 'sense' of it all.

Full Review Source: Boston Globe | comment Comment
02/26/07
Erin Meister
Erin Meister
Boston Globe
 
 
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Latest News for The Abandoned

April 02, 2007: Trailer & Poster review Opens in new window
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