Broken, The

Stars: Lena Headey, Richard Jenkins, Melvil Poupaud, Michelle Duncan, Asier Newman, Ulrich Thomsen

Director: Sean Ellis

According to this horror film, evil doppelgangers are waiting to take over our lives. Why? To what end? At any rate, broken mirrors are signs that they are in our midst.

Headey is Gina, who's supposed to be a radiologist, although one doubts her credentials when she diagnoses one condition as 'not uncommon but pretty rare'. While in a phone box, she spots a woman driving by who looks exactly like her and follows her (on foot?) to her flat. Soon afterwards, she's involved in a car smash.

Her father (Jenkins) is solicitous, but boyfriend Stephan (Poupaud) seems oddly distant and, on release from hosdpital, Gina feels he is 'not the same man'. More mirrors break, while the cinematographer creeps around in the dark to rack up the suspense. People seem to be forever bathing or showering, while we wait (and wait) for something to happen, in this very slow movie that kicks off as a what's-going-on? mystery, but ultimately disintegrates into formula horror.

David Quinlan

UK/France 2008. UK Distributor: The Works. Colour by Eclair.
85 minutes. Widescreen. UK certificate: 15.

Guidance ratings (out of 3): Sex/nudity 1, Violence/Horror 2, Drugs 0, Swearing 0.

Review date: 25 Jan 2009