A Cure for Wellness

Through the years sanitariums or 'spas' have been great fodder for Hollywood films. We've seen many: "The Wicker Man" '73 and '06, "Shutter Island" '10, even last year's "The Lobster" and the like, so why the obsessiveness with these institutions? Not sure, but depending on the writer, they can certainly keep their audience biting their proverbial nails. So when "A Cure for Wellness" came along, what it brought was that same eerie feeling that their predecessors brought.

 

An ambitious young executive, Lockhart (Dane DeHaan) is sent by his company's boss Hank Green (David Bishins) to retrieve the company's CEO, Pembroke (Harry Groener) from an idyllic but mysterious "wellness center" at a remote location in the Swiss Alps which is headed up by Dr. Volmer (Jason Isaacs). He soon suspects that the spa's miraculous treatments are not what they seem. When Lockhart begins to unravel its terrifying secrets, his sanity is tested, as he finds himself slowly becoming diagnosed with the same curious illness that keeps all the guests here longing for the cure. Will Lockhart be able to retrieve Pembroke while evading the eerie deeds of Volmer et. al.?

 

Others to round out the cast are Mia Goth as Hannah, Ivo Nandi as Enrico, the driver, Adrian Schiller as Deputy Director, Celia Imrie as Victoria Watkins, Craig Wroe as Morris and Peter Benedict as Constable.

 

This was intensely directed by Gore Verbinski ("Mousehunt" '97, "The Mexican" '01, "The Ring" '02, "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" '03, "The Weather Man" '05, "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" '06, "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" '07, "Rango" '11, "The Lone Ranger" '13). This filmmaker truly knows how to get his actors to exude that certain emotion given the scene. By his very resume, he has directed some very interesting characters--some that are over-the-top. It was effectively written by Justin Haythe ("The Clearing" '04, "Revolutionary Road" '08, "Snitch" '13, "The Lone Ranger" '13) based on a story by Haythe and Verbinski. With the exception of "The Lone Ranger", this writer definitely gravitates toward serious and somewhat depressing in storyline. Even "The Lone Ranger" has a certain darkness to it amongst the comedic moments. The main problem with this script is the lack of cohesiveness in places. And with a few places of slowness, the running time could've been cut by about 15-20 minutes. This particular premise doesn't typically exude a running time that exceeds 2 hours. Where there were places of lack of cohesiveness, the few surprises this has makes up for it. If you like Haythe writings, not to worry, he has written "Red Sparrow" which is filming right now for a November 2017 release.

 

Dane DeHaan is a young actor who is carving his niche as an effective actor and this film showcases this, and the supporting cast was effective as well. This is a film that will stay with you after the end credits roll, but, at the same time, will leave you wondering what's going to happen to him next.

 

Out of 4 Stars: 2.5                                   Rated: PG-13                                    146mins.