听 
In terms of its characters, "The Gift" seems to have a script written by Bruce Springsteen. They are the kind of poor, disadvantaged white folk who struggle just to get by, and are usually the victims of their own limitations. The script, in fact, was co-written by Oscar-winner Billy Bob Thornton and directed by Sam Raimi who, as we know from "The Evil Dead" onwards, has just a slight feeling for the supernatural.
So white trash America is invaded by spookiness, in particular by the unsettling (to her) visions of Annie Wilson (Cate Blanchett) who - although burdened by her gift - feels compelled to help, particularly when the pouting young fianc茅e of the school principal goes missing. It is through Annie that we experience the extreme harshness and meanness of this tiny Georgia town, where women count for nothing, violence rules, no-one can be trusted, and corruption runs through everything. Men are, without exception, comprehensively awful.
Raimi cleverly creates pregnant pauses aplenty, and leaves his camera lingering on expressive faces, so that you just know something is about to happen, and he wraps the entire film in a suitably stifling claustrophobia. This is a picture where the sun never shines.
Performances are first-rate too: Cate Blanchett is as honest, vital and communicative as ever, while Keanu Reeves (surprisingly convincing as a racist wife-beater) and Giovanni Ribisi (disturbing as a disturbed mechanic) cause some real scares. It's such a pity, then, that the ending - far from being as substantial, meaty, and credible as what went before - is inexplicably botched. Did they hire a junior scribbler for the last ten minutes?
Visit .
