The Collector (Road to Halloween)

Have you ever wondered what would happen if you were to mix the films "Saw" and "Home Alone"? Well look no further than "The Collector", brought to you by the directors from the later "Saw" films. A little bit of an attractive offer, but will it hold up to the review? Not going to lie...probably not.

An ex convict has found himself a job working for a rich family. He is part of crew working around their house and is actually casing the place so that he can steal from them. The plan was going to take longer, however, his ex wife is in need of cash and fast. She owes money to a loan shark, and needs to make the final payment by tonight, so of course he says he will get it.

He then arranges for the heist at the house to take place that night rather than later. It is fairly opportune that the family are going on holiday anyway, meaning that the house will be empty and all he needs to do is crack the safe. It turns out that he isn't alone at all...in fact someone else has been looking around the house, but not to steal things. He wants someone....

The house has been booby trapped and now the ex con is stuck inside with a killer. The family never made it out, and are being tortured. All he has to do to is survive and get out with the merchandise. Although it isn't that easy.

To be honest I didn't really have high hopes for this film as it isn't coming from the cream of the crop of directors and writers. However, I figured it should be entertaining at least. Turns out I was wrong. There is nothing fundamentally wrong with the film, but it is slow going and rather boring for something that should be full of action.

The acting is believable at best, with a great lead performance. Sadly, it turns out that "The Collector" would need more than that to be good. The part that I actually thought would be great was the gore, but it turned out to be generally lackluster and a little bit, well, not scary. Although I have realized I have an aversion to watching people have their teeth chiseled out; the best part of the gore.

For the most part I can't get behind this film. It is an interesting idea, all be it unlikely, but most things are possible. I just expected it to be handled with more care than it was. If you are looking for a cheap and cheerful movie, it should do fine, but it isn't a horror great. Similar in this way to the later "Saw" films that failed to grab my attention. Maybe I have just grown tired of the same recycled stuff, and it's time to grab attention in a new way? I will let you decide. Take notice though...this film will not leave you impressed.

Rating 2 out of 5

See it if you liked:
Kolobos
Saw II
Home Alone

What does IMDB say?

Review by Stephen King