Greetings And Salutations, and welcome to my review of The Sender; here's the breakdown of my ratings:
Story: 1.50 Direction: 1.50 Pace: 1.25 Acting: 1.50 Enjoyment: 1.50
TOTAL: 7.25 out of 10.00
I fell in love with The Sender right from its understated opening sequence. It possesses a bewitching element, both in its story and cinematography. Chiefly it's based around the mysterious Sender of the title. Who is he? Why did he try to kill himself? Does he possess the supernatural powers the other mental patients believe he does? Albeit other mystifying events occur and enigmatic individuals apparently appear from thin air.
The writer, Thomas Baum, opens with The Sender waking up by the side of a road in the middle of nowhere. We follow him as he walks down the long roadway to wherever. We see him turn into a lakeside beauty spot. He stops by a family, and they eye him warily as he picks up some large rocks, stuffs them into his jacket, and then walks calmly out into the lake. It's an eerie and perfect beginning to a mystery story. So what is this teen's deal? Baum then begins unfolding the puzzle of the sender. However, many of the answers offer up extra conundrums. Will the good doctor, Gail Farmer, solve them before anybody gets injured or worse? What made this story for me was the characters. Setting the narrative in a mental institution gives scope for a plethora of individual persona types. You have the soldier who believes the Vietnam war is still ongoing and suffers from PTSD. The Messiah considers himself the second coming and instantly fears The Sender when he arrives - he sees him as an imposter to the throne of God. Then there's my favourite, Jerolyn, who claims to be The Sender's mother. She's quiet, calm, enigmatic, and subtly dominant. These individuals and the plot provide enough interest to engage anyone's attention.
But, should that not be enough to hold your concentration, you're lucky because the director, Roger Christian, is good at his job. The picture is a slow burn of a Horror-come-Dark Thriller, and Christian utilises the slow tempo of the movie to capture the story's eerieness flawlessly. There's nothing too elaborate in the filming. Christian principally stays with the point and shoot style. However, his use of composition and soundtrack is all he requires to make The Sender memorable. For example, the mesmeric opening sequence. We start the movie down on the ground with the sleeping Sender. A passing truck wakes him. Christian pans slowly up the boy's slumbering body to show us he's asleep under a tree. As we reach the tree trunk, the truck enters from the right, behind the tree, with its horn blaring. Simple but effective, as is the rest of the opening sequence. When he stands by the side of the family, he's on the right of the screen, the family are left to centre, and you can see the questioning annoyance on their faces because this stranger has entered their personal space. Then when he strolls to his suicide in the lake, Christian gives us a downward shot as he walks into the water and past the bathers, who halt their enjoyment to watch the strange stranger. Next, we're in front of him as his head begins to submerge. The camera is half in and out of the water then we're fully immersed with him in a tight close-up. The Sender's opening is one of my favourites in my movie viewing history. Fortunately, for us, Christian keeps up the virtuous direction until the finale.
The cast is superb. Shirley Knight, as the enigmatic Jerolyn, is outstanding in her portrayal. She adds the ideal amount of quiet calmness while emitting a sense of preeminence. She was the perfect choice for this role. That isn't saying that everyone else is below-par. Knight just lucked out acquiring Jerolyn. There are no small parts in the picture, and nobody outshines the rest of the performers. Even Tracy Harper portraying the mute young girl is magnificent. She instils in her the correct measure of shyness and bashfulness. Everybody should be proud of their work in this film.
I wouldn't say The Sender is a must-watch film, but it is worthy of at least one watch. I enjoyed it the first time I caught it on Telly, back in the late 80s, and I still delight in it today, some thirty-odd years later.
Now wake up, stop your foolish dreaming and check out my Absolute Horror and Guilty Pleasures lists to see where I ranked The Sender.
Take Care & Stay Well.
Story: 1.50 Direction: 1.50 Pace: 1.25 Acting: 1.50 Enjoyment: 1.50
TOTAL: 7.25 out of 10.00
I fell in love with The Sender right from its understated opening sequence. It possesses a bewitching element, both in its story and cinematography. Chiefly it's based around the mysterious Sender of the title. Who is he? Why did he try to kill himself? Does he possess the supernatural powers the other mental patients believe he does? Albeit other mystifying events occur and enigmatic individuals apparently appear from thin air.
The writer, Thomas Baum, opens with The Sender waking up by the side of a road in the middle of nowhere. We follow him as he walks down the long roadway to wherever. We see him turn into a lakeside beauty spot. He stops by a family, and they eye him warily as he picks up some large rocks, stuffs them into his jacket, and then walks calmly out into the lake. It's an eerie and perfect beginning to a mystery story. So what is this teen's deal? Baum then begins unfolding the puzzle of the sender. However, many of the answers offer up extra conundrums. Will the good doctor, Gail Farmer, solve them before anybody gets injured or worse? What made this story for me was the characters. Setting the narrative in a mental institution gives scope for a plethora of individual persona types. You have the soldier who believes the Vietnam war is still ongoing and suffers from PTSD. The Messiah considers himself the second coming and instantly fears The Sender when he arrives - he sees him as an imposter to the throne of God. Then there's my favourite, Jerolyn, who claims to be The Sender's mother. She's quiet, calm, enigmatic, and subtly dominant. These individuals and the plot provide enough interest to engage anyone's attention.
But, should that not be enough to hold your concentration, you're lucky because the director, Roger Christian, is good at his job. The picture is a slow burn of a Horror-come-Dark Thriller, and Christian utilises the slow tempo of the movie to capture the story's eerieness flawlessly. There's nothing too elaborate in the filming. Christian principally stays with the point and shoot style. However, his use of composition and soundtrack is all he requires to make The Sender memorable. For example, the mesmeric opening sequence. We start the movie down on the ground with the sleeping Sender. A passing truck wakes him. Christian pans slowly up the boy's slumbering body to show us he's asleep under a tree. As we reach the tree trunk, the truck enters from the right, behind the tree, with its horn blaring. Simple but effective, as is the rest of the opening sequence. When he stands by the side of the family, he's on the right of the screen, the family are left to centre, and you can see the questioning annoyance on their faces because this stranger has entered their personal space. Then when he strolls to his suicide in the lake, Christian gives us a downward shot as he walks into the water and past the bathers, who halt their enjoyment to watch the strange stranger. Next, we're in front of him as his head begins to submerge. The camera is half in and out of the water then we're fully immersed with him in a tight close-up. The Sender's opening is one of my favourites in my movie viewing history. Fortunately, for us, Christian keeps up the virtuous direction until the finale.
The cast is superb. Shirley Knight, as the enigmatic Jerolyn, is outstanding in her portrayal. She adds the ideal amount of quiet calmness while emitting a sense of preeminence. She was the perfect choice for this role. That isn't saying that everyone else is below-par. Knight just lucked out acquiring Jerolyn. There are no small parts in the picture, and nobody outshines the rest of the performers. Even Tracy Harper portraying the mute young girl is magnificent. She instils in her the correct measure of shyness and bashfulness. Everybody should be proud of their work in this film.
I wouldn't say The Sender is a must-watch film, but it is worthy of at least one watch. I enjoyed it the first time I caught it on Telly, back in the late 80s, and I still delight in it today, some thirty-odd years later.
Now wake up, stop your foolish dreaming and check out my Absolute Horror and Guilty Pleasures lists to see where I ranked The Sender.
Take Care & Stay Well.