Things Heard & Seen (2021) Review

This film made its way to Netflix today and I managed to find two hours spare so I watched it and here is my review for Things Heard and Seen. The premise of the film sees a couple move to The Hudson Valley where things start to unravel and there might even be supernatural forces in play. 

Main Character

Amanda Seyfried and James Norton plays the two leads here and they both do okay jobs. Neither of their characters are particularly interesting but they are clearly two talented performers and they try to make the most out of what they have and that is some pretty good qualities. But you won't care about either of these two characters or there plights as it is just really dull and mundane with very little reason given as to really why these characters are in this situation. 

Supporting Characters

The amazing Rhea Seehorn is here and she is obviously the best part of the film having some great scenes and she is the best character in the film. This is the first thing I have seen her in since watching Better Call Saul and it is great to see that she is still really good here and despite every other part of the film faltering she doesn't for one moment. F. Murray Abraham is in this film and he is decent but his character is a bit all over the place but he is a presence on screen and it is nice to see him here. But the rest of the cast just play these generic characters that offer very little whether it be the young performers or Karen Allen of Indiana Jones fame they are bland. 

Story 

This story is absurd and not in a good way. It just doesn't work, despite a few okay performances there is nobody to really latch onto and the whole supernatural element is wasted and feels just like a reason for a wacky ending and to stretch this film to 2 hours long. It has plenty of clichés and the last act in particular is just ridiculous and comes out of nowhere and makes these characters feel more like actors playing roles then real people. Plus the awful ending and you have a pretty terrible plot. 

Script 

The script is also bad, the dialogue does nothing to enhance the plot or its characters. It just comes across as mixed convoluted and basic and these two styles just don't mix and make this a nightmare of ideas put into one film. 

Style 

The style of the film looks okay, it does a half decent job of showing the small scale of the place that this couple moves too and has some decent camera work and cinematography. But this film is just really boring and its pacing is lacklustre. This film should never been so long and probably could have done away with the whole supernatural aspect and it might have been a slightly better film. 

Overall

Overall, Things Heard & Seen is a poor movie. It just lacks any interest or intrigue, it is too slow and when it does try something shocking it fails at it. Give this one a miss. 

Rating - 3/10