The Resident

Again through the LoveFilm Instant service, this was another film I've seen recently. It tells the story of an ER doctor by the name of Juliette Devereau who is played by Hilary Swank, an actress I've heard of but I can't remember anything she's been in, without looking it up. She has split from her boyfriend and is looking for an apartment but they are all too expensive or undesirable. That is until an agent rings her about an apartment, I'm a little bit unclear about how she was contacted about it, suffice to say that it was "engineered", but more about that in a bit. So she goes to see the apartment and is completely blown off her feet by the size, location and price. It is being worked on, the landlord's family has owned the building for years. The landlord, Max, is an attractive guy with a kind nature and a smooth way with words, played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan. He first appears for Juliette in a facemask as he's sanding the floor. His father is played by Christopher Lee, bless him he must have been in his late eighties, who lends an air of threat and mystery just by his presence alone (he isn't in it for very long). Juliette moves in and she sort of entertains the idea of a relationship with the kind landlord but she realises she is not over her boyfriend and kindly cools it. Thinking that Max is cool with Juliette's decision not to proceed because, after all he's her landlord, she picks up again with her ex-boyfriend. Well, it then gets creepy. The film cleverly rewinds to show us some details we weren't aware of, we see from Max's viewpoint how his obsession with Juliette began at the hospital where she works and also how he engineered her visit to his apartment.
This is a good film but yes there are some holes in story, however these don't detract from this classy thriller. Hilary Swank is very good as the doctor but I think I was most impressed, if that's the right word for such a creepy guy, by Max played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan. This is another film about obsession but unlike The Roommate this one is actually creepy and leaves you feeling unsettled because someone seemingly good turns out to be horrible. The violence is not on the high side of the register but there is some, it's more creepy than scary. The finale is again fairly predictable but the pacing is good and you end up feeling that you haven't wasted your time watching this at the end of it.