21 October 2011

DVD REVIEW: THE PERFECT HOST


CAST: David Hyde Pierce, Clayne Crawford, Indira G. Wilson
DIRECTOR: Nick Tomnay

David Hyde Pierce is well-known amongst TV sitcom fans after he played Frasier’s younger brother Niles Crane in the sitcom of the same name. Since then his career hasn’t really taken off, and him teaming up with director Tomnay does not help much. Tomnay himself isn’t exactly Hollywood’s most wanted, with just a handful of features under his belt.


This thriller wannabe gives him a tick on the list, but does not deliver much else. The story is that a criminal (Crawford) is literally on the run from the law, and ends up in the house of one Warwick Wilson (Pierce). He pretends to share a mutual friend with his new host and they chat away like old friends, until his face appears on the TV news. Suddenly he cannot pretend anymore and turns on his host. Unfortunately for him, the host is not a pushover. In fact, he’s not at all what he seems; timid, nice, sweet. Tables are turned and we discover a scary side to this Warwick character, and before the movie is over, yet another shocking side of his emerges.

This formula is similar to that used in The Last Supper, whereupon your supper host isn’t exactly what he/she appears to be. Once the three twists are untangled, the film becomes repetitive and unimaginative. 

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