"GOTHIKA"
(2003) (Halle Berry, Robert Downey, Jr.) (R)

Alcohol/ Drugs	Blood/Gore	Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude	Frightening/ Tense Scenes	Guns/ Weapons
Mild	Heavy	Extreme	Extreme	Heavy
Imitative Behavior	Jump Scenes	Music (Scary/Tense)	Music (Inappropriate)	Profanity
Minor	Extreme	Extreme	None	Heavy
Sex/ Nudity	Smoking	Tense Family Scenes	Topics To Talk About	Violence
Heavy	Mild	Moderate	Moderate	Heavy

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QUICK TAKE:

Horror: A penitentiary psychologist finds herself haunted by a ghost and locked up in her own institution after being accused of her husband's murder that she does not recall.

PLOT:

Dr. Miranda Gray (HALLE BERRY) is a staff psychologist at the Woodward Penitentiary for women where she works with inmates such as Chloe Sava (PENELOPE CRUZ) who murdered her stepfather but claims to be raped by the Devil.

After saying goodbye to her husband and boss, Doug Grey (CHARLES DUTTON), and being escorted to her car by coworker Dr. Pete Graham (ROBERT DOWNEY, JR.), Miranda learns from Sheriff Bob Ryan (JOHN CARROLL LYNCH) that the road ahead of her is closed.

Accordingly, she takes the detour, but after crossing a bridge at night in the middle of a bad storm, she nearly hits a dazed-looking teen standing in the middle of the road. When she goes to check on the girl, the ghostly looking figure suddenly bursts into flames, as does Miranda.

When she wakes up, three days have passed and she's an incarcerated inmate at the same mental ward where she works. Accused of brutally murdering her husband, Miranda has no memory of what transpired after meeting the ghostly bridge girl. She then finds herself locked up with her former patients, including Chloe, who tells her no one will believe what she says since everyone now thinks she's crazy.

Things only get worse when the ghostly bridge girl starts showing up with the message "Not Alone," and Pete, who's treating Miranda, really begins to doubt her sanity. From that point on, and as she begins to suspect all of this had something to do with the late daughter of fellow doctor Phil Parsons (BERNARD HILL), Miranda sets out to do whatever it takes to prove her sanity and get to the bottom of her husband's murder and the ghostly occurrences.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?

If they're into horror films or are fans of anyone in the cast, they just might.

WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: R

For violence, brief language and nudity.

CAST AS ROLE MODELS:

HALLE BERRY plays a criminal psychologist who suddenly finds herself institutionalized in the same facility where she works, charged with her husband's murder that she can't remember. She sets out to prove her sanity and uncover the truth and uses some profanity.

ROBERT DOWNEY, JR. plays her associate and fellow doctor who ends up being her psychologist who tries to figure out what happened to her.

CHARLES DUTTON plays her husband who ends up murdered. He briefly smokes and drinks.

JOHN CARROLL LYNCH plays his best friend, the local sheriff who's now investigating the case.

PENELOPE CRUZ plays one of Miranda's patients who ends up being her confidante and briefly uses strong profanity.

CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO

HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE

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Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit?
Then read OUR TAKE of this film.

(Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below).

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OUR WORD TO PARENTS:

The following is a quick look at the content found in this R-rated horror flick. Profanity consists of at least 1 "f" word (used sexually), while other expletives and colorful phrases are uttered. Some brief, sexually related dialogue is present (that includes talk of rape), a partially nude woman is seen on a video playback (bare breasts, but she's a chained victim) and some female psychiatric inmates are briefly seen fully nude in a group shower (from a distance and in some shadows).

Violence consists of two bloody killings (one is only partially seen, but other bloody material is present), while a man tries to kill a woman, we learn about off-screen violence against women, and a woman is tossed around by both a killer and a ghost. Some of these scenes and various creepy supernatural ones (including many "jump scenes") will likely be unnerving, suspenseful or downright scary to viewers.

Some killers/kidnappers obviously have bad attitudes. Brief drinking and smoking are present, as are some brief tense family moments involving deaths in two families. Should you still be concerned about the film's appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home, you may want to look more closely at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content.

For those concerned with bright flashes of light on the screen, various instances of that occur throughout the film (from thunderstorms and faulty indoor lighting).

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ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE

We see liquor on a table in Doug's office.

Pete reports that Miranda tested negative for PCP.

We see Doug with a cigar and a drink in his other hand.

We see pharmaceuticals in the killers' lair.

BLOOD/GORE

We see quick, split-second images of bloody scenes, splattering and on a bloody body.

Miranda is led into a group shower where other female inmates are already showering. The ghostly bridge girl then flails away at Miranda, tearing up her arm (with bloody scrapes). Later, we see some of Miranda's blood flowing through the shower water (from a distance).

We see blood soaking through the full bandage around Miranda's arm. She yanks it off and finds the bloody phrase "Not Alone" carved into her arm.

We see color prints of the murder scene that show bloody images as well as the phrase "Not Alone" written in blood on the wall.

Miranda has a nightmare/vision of bloody images, including a bloody hand going down onto some steps. The film then visibly rewinds back to her encounter with the girl on the bridge (from above), including the girl and Miranda bursting into flames.

Chloe has some blood on her face.

Miranda returns to her house (where her husband was murdered) and slowly makes her way through the place (at night). She then spots her bloodied husband trying to crawl away backwards from another version of herself that's carrying an ax. After that scene disappears, she hears sounds coming from the bathroom. She slowly approaches and sees another version of herself in the tub that appears to be filled with blood or bloody water. That figure then stands (a head and shoulders shot) and has blood on her.

We see blood stains on carpeted stairs and a floor.

A drop of blood lands on a picture.

We see a woman with bloody scrape marks on her.

A gas leak is sparked and sets a man on fire (we see him covered in flames and then later see his slightly charred body). Miranda then shoots him in the forehead and we see a small, bloody hole there.

DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE

Chloe says that she cut her stepfather's throat in the past.

Doug jokingly states, "I am God" when brought into the equation of Miranda and Chloe.

We learn that two men were involved in abducting, abusing, possibly raping and killing young women.

FRIGHTENING SCENES

Scenes listed under "Violence," "Blood/Gore" and "Jump Scenes" might also be unsettling, suspenseful or scary to some viewers.

Much of the film is designed to appear spooky, even before spooky/creepy things begin to occur, such as when an umbrella suddenly opens behind Miranda (it's just Pete).

As Miranda drives across a bridge at night in the rain, her phone starts to sound garbled and she suddenly sees a teenage girl standing in the middle of the road. She swerves out the way and crashes (but is okay). She then walks up to the girl (a creepy scene) who doesn't initially respond, but appears to have cuts on her. That girl then screams and bursts in flames, as does Miranda (the scene ends abruptly after that).

Miranda hears weird noises in her cell, walks up to the large glass wall and then sees the moisture of what looks like breath appear on the glass. Letters then start forming on it, eventually reading, "Not alone." She then hears creepy breathing sounds all around her (and spins around trying to see who or what is there).

Miranda is led into a group shower where other female inmates are already showering. She then thinks she hears things and panics when she sees the bridge girl among them as well as the distorted and spooky-looking faces of some of the other inmates. The bridge girl then flails away at Miranda, tearing up her arm (with bloody scrapes).

Miranda has a nightmare/vision of bloody images, including a bloody hand going down onto some steps. The film then visibly rewinds back to her encounter with the girl on the bridge (from above), including the girl and Miranda bursting into flames.

A doctor states that his daughter died four years ago and Miranda recognizes her as the girl on the bridge.

We see wet footprints (from an invisible entity) crossing the prison floor at night.

Miranda sees the dead bridge girl inside the mental ward and walking across the hall in a creepy, stilted fashion.

Miranda slowly approaches a bulky mental ward cell door (in a creepy scene) that has a small, T-shaped window that's dark. As her face gets close, there's a sudden sound and the sudden view of Chloe's face. That's pulled away and a large tattoo suddenly shows up in its place.

Chloe tells Miranda that the figure tormenting/attacking her said that Miranda is next.

We see Miranda in her mostly dark cell, with some light coming from the lone door. She sees a shadow pass by the bottom of it, and when she bends down to look, we suddenly see the ghostly bridge girl behind her. The ghost then grabs and repeatedly throws Miranda hard against the walls of her cell. We then see surveillance followed by live footage of Miranda being smashed back and forth against the walls (prompting security, who can't see the ghost, to think she's trying to kill herself).

As Miranda flees, she knocks down one guard and then smashes a fence gate back into a nurse. Various guards then chase her and she tries to elude and then hide from them. During that, she climbs on the outside of a fence, slides part of the way down it, and then falls off, landing hard on the floor below. Moments later, she slowly enters the facility's large swimming pool and holds her breath underwater as guards make several passes by the pool. As she runs out of air, she closes her eyes, but when she opens them, the ghostly bridge girl is right there underwater with her.

Having escaped from the prison, Miranda flies down the road in a borrowed car with the lights out, exceeding 100 m.p.h. She then realizes the brakes don't work and sees an oncoming truck nearing an approaching intersection. She barely passes by it, clipping part of it (and causing some car damage). She then goes out of control, crashes through some barriers and stops on the edge of a sink hole.

Miranda returns to her house (where her husband was murdered) and slowly makes her way through the place (at night). She then spots her bloodied husband trying to crawl away backwards from another version of herself that's carrying an ax. That version of her then swings the ax and we only see the beginning of its contact with his arm. After that scene disappears, she hears sounds coming from the bathroom. She slowly approaches and sees another version of herself in the tub that appears to be filled with blood or bloody water. That figure then stands (a head and shoulders shot) and has blood on her. She then violently starts to shake her head that then distorts into the ghostly bridge girl and back.

Miranda finds a trap door in a barn and then slowly goes down into a secret room.

On a video playback, we see a man hovering over a woman who's chained to a bed in her panties.

Miranda slowly recognizes she's in the presence of a killer. He then grabs and pins her to a wall, and then throws her against another wall. She then jabs a needle into his neck and he wildly fires gunshots at her, hitting and rupturing a gas line in the process.

A killer chases Miranda through an office, firing shotgun blasts all around (and causing property destruction). He then spots a ghostly figure, shoots at it and shatters a glass wall. He then fires again, but this time hits something that sparks a gas leak and sets him on fire (we see him covered in flames and then later see his slightly charred body). Miranda then shoots him in the forehead and we see a small, bloody hole there.

Miranda spots a creepy-looking boy on the street who's in the path of an approaching fire truck. It then blasts through him, but we realize he was just an apparition and is gone when the truck passes by.

GUNS/WEAPONS

Handgun/Shotgun: Used to threaten, attempt to harm or kill others. See "Violence" for details.

A person uses an ax to attack another person (briefly seen, but with lethal and bloody results).

IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR

Phrases: "Psychiatric sh*t," "Hell of a night," "Don't screw up," "What the hell for?" "Screw it" and "That's screwed up."

Several characters have tattoos.

JUMP SCENES

An umbrella suddenly opens behind Miranda.

There's a sudden flashed image of the girl on the bridge (along with sudden sounds).

A hand suddenly reaches out at Miranda (but it turns out to be a nurse).

The sudden sound of a cell door unlocking might startle some viewers.

Miranda slowly approaches a bulky mental ward cell door (in a creepy scene) that has a small, T-shaped window that's dark. As her face gets close, there's a sudden sound and the sudden view of Chloe's face.

When Miranda bends down to look at something, we suddenly see the ghostly bridge girl behind her.

As Miranda runs out of air while hiding underwater, she closes her eyes, but when she opens them, the ghostly bridge girl is right there underwater with her.

Miranda spots the ghostly bridge girl in the back seat of a car via the rear viewer mirror.

A car's lights suddenly come on at night.

An owl suddenly surprises Miranda.

A cop suddenly surprises Miranda and aims his gun at her.

Hands suddenly grab Miranda through some steps.

MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE)

An extreme amount of suspenseful and ominous music plays in the film.

MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE)

None.

PROFANITY

At least 1 "f" word (used sexually), 5 "s" words, 4 damns, 3 hells and 1 use each of "G-damn," "Holy Christ" and "Oh my God."

SEX/NUDITY

Chloe tells Miranda about her encounter with the Devil (Miranda thinks she's recounting a previous rape), saying that "he opened me," "sank into me," that it felt good and set her on fire. When she then says to stop (apparently thinking of a past event), Miranda asks, "Stop what?" and Chloe replies, "Stop f*cking me."

Miranda and Doug do some passionate, clothed kissing (while standing in his office), but Pete interrupts them.

We see Miranda's bare back in her mental ward robe.

Miranda is led into a group shower where other female inmates are already showering. We briefly see some bare butts, other glimpses of skin (including partial bare breasts) and then various shots of full frontal nudity (in some shadows and from a distance) as some of the women rush out. We then see the side of Miranda's bare butt (from an overhead view) as she lies curled up and completely nude on the floor.

Miranda asks Pete if they had an affair. He says they didn't and she asks if he wanted to and he says he did. She then wonders if he thinks she wanted to and he replies yes. When she asks why they didn't, he says she was married, but she then says that she's not now (but nothing happens).

Chloe says about her tormentor, "He can have my body, but he'll never have my soul."

On a video playback, we see a man hovering over a woman who's chained to a bed in her panties and we appear to see her bare breasts (from a distance and on the small monitor).

Miranda talks about a potential suspect, saying he probably had inappropriate sexual attractions, probably "got off" on abusing animals and has a confused sexuality.

SMOKING

Doug gives a cigar to Pete (and has one for himself). When Doug snips off the end, he tells Pete that he's been circumcised.

We see Doug with a cigar and a drink in his other hand.

A miscellaneous person smokes.

TENSE FAMILY SCENES

Chloe says that she cut her stepfather's throat in the past (and Miranda thinks he raped her).

Miranda learns that her husband has been murdered and she's the prime suspect (but she has little time to grieve and really isn't seen doing so after first hearing the news).

A doctor states that his daughter died four years ago.

TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT

For those sensitive to rape issues, Chloe claims to have been raped by the Devil, while it's highly suggested that two bad men rape or sexually molest the young women they've abducted.

The comment that you can't trust someone you think is crazy and that others won't trust you if they think you're crazy.

The criminally insane and those who treat them.

Ghosts.

VIOLENCE

Guards drag Chloe out from an interview session with Miranda.

Miranda swerves out the way and crashes her car to avoid hitting a girl in the middle of the road (but is okay). She then walks up to the girl who screams and bursts in flames, as does Miranda (the scene ends abruptly after that).

Miranda throws things in her cell and struggles with guards when first in her holding cell.

Miranda is led into a group shower where other female inmates are already showering. The ghostly bridge girl then flails away at Miranda, tearing up her arm (with bloody scrapes).

Miranda breaks glass in a door to open it.

Miranda panics and runs through the prison, but is knocked hard to the floor by two guards.

The ghostly bridge girl grabs and repeatedly throws Miranda hard against the walls of her cell. We then see surveillance followed by live footage of Miranda being smashed back and forth against the walls (prompting security, who can't see the ghost, to think she's trying to kill herself).

As Miranda flees, she knocks down one guard and then smashes a fence gate back into a nurse. Various guards then chase her and she tries to elude and then hide from them. During that, she climbs on the outside of a fence, slides part of the way down it, and then falls off, landing hard on the floor below.

Having escaped the prison, Miranda flies down the road in a borrowed car with the lights out, exceeding 100 m.p.h. She then realizes the brakes don't work and sees an oncoming truck nearing an approaching intersection. She barely passes by it, clipping part of it (and causing some car damage). She then goes out of control, crashes through some barriers and stops on the edge of a sink hole.

Miranda returns to her house (where her husband was murdered) and slowly makes her way through the place (at night). She then spots her bloodied husband trying to crawl away backwards from another version of herself that's carrying an ax. That version of her then swings the ax and we only see the beginning of its contact with his arm.

Miranda slowly recognizes she's in the presence of a killer. He then grabs and pins her to a wall, and then throws her against another wall. She then jabs a needle into his neck and he wildly fires gunshots at her, hitting and rupturing a gas line in the process.

A killer chases Miranda through an office, firing shotgun blasts all around (and causing property destruction). He then spots a ghostly figure, shoots at it and shatters a glass wall. He then fires again, but this time hits something that sparks a gas leak and sets him on fire (we see him covered in flames and then later see his slightly charred body). Miranda then shoots him in the forehead and we see a small, bloody hole there.

Miranda spots a creepy-looking boy on the street who's in the path of an approaching fire truck. It then blasts through him, but we see he was just an apparition and is gone when the truck passes by.

Reviewed November 17, 2003 / Posted November 21, 2003

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