The Attic Expeditions (2002)

I wish I could recommend this one enthusiastically, but I couldn't quite bring myself to like it. It's odd -- it seems practically made for me: a sex-and-violence laden headtrip with no easy answers, an ambiguous ending, a lot of uncertainty about the reality of the situation and supporting roles for Jeffrey Combs and Ted Raimi. Problem is, the film's grasp of plotting vis-a-vis the headtrip genre needed work; the script tips its hand on what should be one of its main surprises real early on, which kind of defuses a lot of the attempts at mindfuckery, and at least one major plot point (the import of the ritual) was never clarified enough -- ambiguity is one thing, but there comes a point where it just feels like needless obfuscation. Still, there's enough good stuff here (lots of neato imagery, and Seth Green is quite impressive, much more so than the film's bland lead) to where I nearly gave this a recommended grade, and I just might change my opinion if I get a second viewing in.

Grade: C+