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"Best way to get over the past is to start something new."
When psychologist David Calloway's (Robert De Niro) wife Alison (Amy Irving) takes her own life in their NYC apartment, their nine-year-old daughter Emily (Dakota Fanning) becomes nearly catatonic. David decides that they both need a change in order to move on so he and Emily move to a house bordering the woods in a small town in upstate New York.
Emily continues to be withdrawn and shuns David's attempts to spend time with her and provide her with interaction with others. She gloms on to an imaginary friend she calls Charlie and becomes even stranger when David befriends Elizabeth (Elisabeth Shue), a young divorcee. Emily blames all manner of freak and horrible incidents on Charlie.
In the meantime, David realizes that the sheriff (Dylan Baker), the real estate agent (David Chandler), and the nearest neighbors (Melissa Leo, Robert John Burke) are also weird.
Long-time family friend Katherine (Famke Janssen), who was also one of David's students, is a sounding board for David and becomes Emily's confidant when Katherine comes to visit. Katherine sees how disturbed Emily is and wants to take the child back to NYC for evaluation. David wants two more weeks but soon finds other things that show that Emily is trying to punish him for her mother's death.
David tries to make sense of it all and find out who this Charlie really is but instead he must face his own demons.
Directed by John Polson.
Run time: 1 hour, 51 minutes
Rated R for frightening sequences and violence.
My personal rating: B
When psychologist David Calloway's (Robert De Niro) wife Alison (Amy Irving) takes her own life in their NYC apartment, their nine-year-old daughter Emily (Dakota Fanning) becomes nearly catatonic. David decides that they both need a change in order to move on so he and Emily move to a house bordering the woods in a small town in upstate New York.
Emily continues to be withdrawn and shuns David's attempts to spend time with her and provide her with interaction with others. She gloms on to an imaginary friend she calls Charlie and becomes even stranger when David befriends Elizabeth (Elisabeth Shue), a young divorcee. Emily blames all manner of freak and horrible incidents on Charlie.
In the meantime, David realizes that the sheriff (Dylan Baker), the real estate agent (David Chandler), and the nearest neighbors (Melissa Leo, Robert John Burke) are also weird.
Long-time family friend Katherine (Famke Janssen), who was also one of David's students, is a sounding board for David and becomes Emily's confidant when Katherine comes to visit. Katherine sees how disturbed Emily is and wants to take the child back to NYC for evaluation. David wants two more weeks but soon finds other things that show that Emily is trying to punish him for her mother's death.
David tries to make sense of it all and find out who this Charlie really is but instead he must face his own demons.
Directed by John Polson.
Run time: 1 hour, 51 minutes
Rated R for frightening sequences and violence.
My personal rating: B
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